About Individual Health Insurance for the Self Employed

Self-employed individuals can face great challenges in being able to secure and afford health insurance for their self as well as their family. The best plan of action is to carefully shop around for the best policy for your needs and affordability.  Doing the work up front and carefully researching has the potential to save thousands in health insurance costs.

Health insurance for self-employed individuals can often be more difficult to secure than group insurance provided through an employer. However, in recent years it has become somewhat easier to buy individual health insurance policies, as there more options now available. Health insurance policies are available for the self-employed, but can vary greatly in coverage, cost and eligibility requirements.  There are many factors to take into consideration when shopping for a health insurance policy.

• The first factor is affordability.  Health insurance policies can vary greatly.  While it is important to find a policy with a premium you can afford.  It is equally important to look at other cost factors such as deductibles and co-payment costs.  High deductible health insurance plans can often lower the cost of a monthly premium.  In exchange for that you will need to pay more out of pocket for certain services before the insurance payments will begin. 


• Another factor to take into consideration is eligibility.  Some insurance companies will deny coverage or increase premiums for individuals with certain pre-existing conditions.  If you do have a pre-existing condition that falls under this category you will need to shop around for a company that will insure you and insure you at a cost you can afford.

Although health insurance can be expensive for the self insured, there are ways to make up for these costs and put more money in your pocket. The self-employed tax deduction can somewhat ease the burden of health insurance costs.  When filing taxes, self-employed individuals can deduct the cost of their individual health insurance premiums.  In addition to the premiums, you can also deduct certain medical expenses for treatments and procedures you may receive during that year.  This is something that every self-employed individual should be sure to take advantage to help off-set the cost of individual health insurance.