Before purchasing insurance, there are several important questions to ask your health care provider. There are also questions to ask your health care insurance company. This article describes five of the most important.

#1. How does my health care insurance stack up compared to other health care insurance policies?
If you have a good working relationship with a doctor’s office, this is one of the most important questions to ask your healthcare provider. Some doctors work very closely with insurance companies and can tell you which ones pay fast and which try to find an excuse to deny every claim, which will approve much needed tests and which will not.

If your doctor is unfamiliar with the different insurance policies, make discreet inquiries at your health care provider’s billing office. They are guaranteed to know who pays and who gives you hassles.

#2. How much will my insurance cost?
This is a question to ask the insurance company. There are several ways health insurance can cost you money:

Premiums. Premiums are the price you pay every month for the privilege of having the insurance.

Deductibles. Deductibles are the amount of money you must pay out of pocket before your health insurance policy kicks in. If you cannot afford to pay your deductible, one of the important questions to ask your healthcare provider is whether or not the deductible can be waived or whether you could make payments on it. Otherwise, you may not be able to get the healthcare you need.

Co-pays. Co-pays are your share of the costs. Some insurance companies offer flat co-pays ($10 per office visit), others offer variable co-pays (10% of the cost of the office visit).

#3. How do you handle pre-existing conditions?
Most insurance companies define a pre-existing condition as a medical condition for which you sought treatment in the six months before purchasing the insurance plan. Seeking treatment does not necessarily mean seeing a doctor. For instance, if you are a diabetic who takes insulin, the daily injections you give yourself may count as “treatment.”

Insurance companies typically refuse to pay any claims related to a pre-existing condition until you have been insured for twelve to eighteen months.

By the way, if you have maintained continuous insurance coverage and are purchasing insurance through your employer’s group plan, the insurance company must cover your pre-existing conditions. It’s the law.

#4. Are there any exclusions?
Make sure you are aware of any diseases, treatments, or disabilities that are excluded from your policy. Several plans won’t pay for birth control unless the doctor certifies that there is a medical reason for it beyond family planning. Others won’t pay for costs related to prenatal care and childbirth.

Still others refuse coverage—or demand higher co-pays and deductibles—for the treatment of mental illness or drug addiction. Additionally, purely cosmetic procedures such as face lifts and tummy tucks are almost never covered.

#5. What is the lifetime limit?
Most insurance companies cap benefits at around one million dollars. This may seem like an incredibly large amount, but a serious accident or injury followed by a few months in the intensive care unit and extensive rehabilitation afterwards can bring you pretty close to the maximum.

With even the most basic health care costs running so high, having health care insurance is a must; however before you select your policy, there are important questions to ask your health care provider as well as the insurance company.