3 Reasons Millennials Need Ancillary Health Insurance
Blues Perspectives
| 3 min read
Whether a person is sick or needs a cavity filled, health insurance is intended to help them take care of routine medical situations. And different age groups tend to utilize health services differently. One study found 93% of millennials do not schedule preventive health care visits with their insurance-provided primary care physician. Instead, they tend to utilize urgent care facilities or access medical advice online. But what happens when an unexpected event – like a car accident or cancer diagnosis – forces a person into a sea of specialist doctors? That’s when specialty insurance becomes a benefit even for younger, millennial members. Specialty insurance benefits are intended to prepare an insured person for unexpected medical situations and protect them from the financial difficulties these events can cause, such as lost wages and out-of-pocket coverage for high medical bills. Plan options include life, disability, accident, critical illness and hospital recovery coverage. While these events are not something most people want to think about, especially when they’re young, signing up for specialty benefits could help a person save money in the long run. Here are some reasons why millennials and young professionals should consider their specialty insurance options:
- No one can predict the future. While thinking about the specialty benefit options – such as life, disability, accident, critical illness and hospital recovery coverage – might seem unnecessary for someone young and generally in good health, no one can predict an illness or an accident. Being prepared for any possibility puts the power back in the insured person’s hands, so – if a situation like that does arise – they will feel more prepared and protected having a specialty benefits plan in place.
- A person could save money in the long run. It’s not always easy to spend extra hard-earned money on health insurance, especially when the issues being covered do not seem like immediate threats. But having these different types of insurance could save a person from unexpected costs should an accident or emergency medical issue occur. Many young professionals have not had ample time to build up a solid savings net, and unexpected health costs that aren’t covered by insurance could put a young person in a financial hole out from which it would be difficult to climb.
- Customizing benefits can keep costs low. Young professionals may not need coverage through all the different specialty benefits options available to them through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Instead, employers offering specialty benefits (whether purchased voluntarily or as a combination of employer-paid and voluntary) will give individuals a choice to formulate what benefit options are most helpful based on their family medical history, work environment, and other personal factors. This can help people tailor their plans to their financial state in respect to benefit payouts, rider inclusions and coverage for family members.
More from MIBluesPerspectives:
- Employee Wellness for the Millennial Workforce
- 3 Millennial Health Conditions on the Rise
- The Young Adult's Guide to Doctor Visits
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