About Health Insurance for Low-Income Families

Video Transcript

"This is John Pinelli, financial representative, talking to you today, about health insurance for low income families. In our society, health insurance is unfortunately not a right, it is rather a privilege, that people who are able to obtain the coverage, either through work or on their own, or can afford to have, have, whereas many Americans go uninsured, because they're low income, or they're unable to afford the premiums of health insurance. These individuals, if they're able to qualify, can apply for Medicare, or Medicaid, and this is on an approval basis. It's often very difficult to be approved for these, and there may be other certain terms and regulations, beyond just being low income, that you might have to meet as well, so it's important to check into this. You can look at this through, there's many government websites that will offer you more information on Medicare and Medicaid, and they will tell you exactly what you need to go through, to apply for these. The forms that you need to fill out, and the eligibility requirements will be spelled out for you there too, so if you think that you might be eligible for one of these, because of low income, there are other factors to consider as well, but look at those government websites, because they will provide you some greater detail and insight into those coverages. Now, for low income families who may not qualify for Medicare and Medicaid, it is possible to obtain some sort of coverage, through major medical carriers, like Blue Cross, Blue Shield, and Kaiser, for fairly affordable rates. Things that are going to determine how much you pay, are going to be things like your deductible, how many people are covered, the health of those individuals, etc, so I think with some adequate shopping around, you could be able to find something that is fairly affordable and obtainable, for your family. Now, with our current president, he has made the assertion that he would like to provide health care coverage for all individuals, under a government provided plan, much like is provided in Canada. This sort of process however, may take some time, and individuals who don't have coverage, who are just dependent upon receiving this government sort of coverage, will not be satisfied in the near future. It's going to take some time, legislation. Changes always take time, so in the meantime, it is important to have some sort of coverage, to protect you against major medical catastrophes that can occur, so don't depend on the government, and if possible though, look for ways to receive aid from the government, in terms of Medicaid and Medicare, if you're able to qualify. This has been John Pinelli, financial representative, talking to you today, about affordable health insurance coverage, for low income families."