Health Discount Plans

Discount health plans have been developed over the last several years to provide health care services at a discount to their members. Discount health plans are not health insurance, but simply a "discount plan"  that provides the member with savings on medical, dental, vision, hearing, prescription, counseling, and other related services

It is important to note that the companies that offer these health discount programs are not insurance companies. A health discount plan is not a health insurance policy, is not regulated by state departments of insurance and does not give you comprehensive health coverage and is not a substitute for health insurance coverage

Health Savings Solutions is a Health Discount Plan offered by Citi.

How Health Discount Plans Work

Some discount plans offer discounts of 10% to 40% on various medical and dental services. The health practitioner you will see as part of this system has agreed to participate in the discount service by signing a contract with the discount company.

For Example, A doctor?s fee may normally be $80 for an office visit, but he/she has agreed to lower it 20% to members of your discount plan. You will now pay the doctor 20% less than $80, which is $64.

For those people who cannot get health insurance because of a pre-existing condition, health discount plans are sometimes a good solution as many discount health plans will not exclude you from joining. Unlike a health insurance company, discount health organizations do not pay the health provider for any services; they only guarantee discounts to you as a member.

Factors to Consider

The potential drawbacks to these plans are that shoppers should be aware of include. 1) Network size, make sure there are enough providers of care and drugstores in your local area. Also, check out who the providers are and whether they are trustworthy. You may be used to seeing one group of doctors, going to the hospital where they work, and using a particular pharmacy.  and 2) No Regulatory Oversight.

The links below will provide specific resources that will help you choose an Individual health insurance plan in your state, as well as multiple carriers offering online health insurance quotes.