Imagine how much automobile insurance would cost if it paid for all expenses associated with owning an automobile – oil changes, engine failures, worn-out tires, brakes, rust, and so on. The number of people who couldn't afford car insurance would rise dramatically, and we would have a car insurance crisis in America.

That is the situation with healthcare. As health plans increasingly pay for almost every service or procedure, ameliorate our every discomfort, and succumb to every cultural whim and fad, the price of insurance continues to rise.

Health plans are paying for every imaginable benefit – while automobile insurers are not – because of both consumer demand and state mandates.

The demand for additional healthcare benefits is greater than for additional automobile insurance benefits because many people feel entitled to have access to every possible healthcare service. The costs of additional benefits are not always clear to consumers; thus, many people perceive the benefits to be “free.” In response to consumer demand, health plans sometimes expand coverage on their own. In other cases, they are forced by politicians running for reelection to cover additional services or procedures.

To make health insurance more affordable, state governments should stop mandating additional benefits and rescind all of their previous mandates. In addition, both private and public insurers (such as Medicare) should agree to pay for only costly and essential medical services and procedures (similar to the way they banded together to pledge to reduce $2 trillion in healthcare expenses a few months ago).

Under the system I am proposing, health insurance would pay for emergencies and urgent care, diagnostic tests and X-rays, medically necessary surgery, hospitalization, therapy, and any other critical services that few people could afford to pay out of their own pockets. Individuals would pay for routine, discretionary, and elective services – such as doctor visits, acupuncture, marriage counseling – on their own.

This type of system – which has not yet been tried – would lower healthcare costs and make insurance more affordable for everyone, especially the uninsured, by reducing the number of healthcare services that are used. When the use of services goes up, health insurers must raise premiums to pay for the increase in expenses. This makes it more expensive for insured people to keep their health coverage, while also making it more expensive for uninsured people to purchase coverage.

Insurance is intended to be a pooling of people's money to pay for large, unexpected expenses – not for every expense that is incurred. In other words, it is supposed to be a safety net for catastrophic events.

Yet many Americans go to the doctor for all kinds of trivial ailments, because their insurance pays for it. True, many people want this type of coverage, but that is because they do not understand the long-term cost implications. If Americans want to keep the current healthcare system sustainable (and it appears they do), then they need to take on more financial responsibility for their healthcare. People who choose to visit the doctor for the sniffles should pay for it themselves rather than making everyone else pay for it. If they did, the use of services – and thus the cost of healthcare – would go down.

If we can budget for our phone, electric, cable, and gas bills, as well as for unexpected household and automobile expenses, then we can budget for routine healthcare services. This would require some families to forgo the purchase of a plasma TV, but it would make health insurance more affordable.

In addition, most health plans even cover lifestyle choices that have been sold as medical conditions by lobbyists, pharmaceutical and medical companies, politicians, the media, and pop culture. Some of these covered services – such as cosmetic procedures, birth-control pills, and abortion – do not even address a diagnosis. (Contrary to popular belief, pregnancy is not a malady.) If there is no medical condition, then health insurance should not be paying for it.

By shouldering a greater burden of their healthcare costs, Americans would probably eat more healthily, exercise more, quit smoking, and lead healthier and happier lives. A healthier population would use fewer medical services, which would lower healthcare costs and premiums.

When it comes to healthcare, we should not confuse luxury with necessity. By transforming health insurance into a system that simply pays for essential medical services and procedures, more Americans would be able to afford insurance – and there would be far fewer uninsured Americans.

Zach Krajacic is a writer in Buffalo, N.Y.

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Types of Cheap California Auto Insurance Quotes

This article will give you some information on the types of cheap auto insurance policies you can get in California and how to find one that suits your needs.

Auto insurance in California can prove pretty expensive as the state is known for having some of the nation’s highest auto insurance quotes. So is there any way of getting a cheap California auto insurance quote?

The minimum insurance you need for driving a car in California is liability insurance. This covers for damages caused to other cars or properties when it’s your fault, as well as the victim’s or his passenger’s injuries and compensation for physical suffering. The minimum California auto insurance has to have a liability coverage of 15/30/5. This means a coverage of at least $15,000 for physical injuries to any one driver or passenger in the other car, $30,000 for injuries caused to all persons in that car and $5,000 for car or property damages.

An auto insurance policy in California may also include other coverages like collision – repairs to your car no matter whose fault it was, comprehensive – damages to your car caused by other events like vandalism, fire, theft etc., personal injury, personal injury protection – covers medical bills issued to you or your passenger when you’ve been involved in an accident and uninsured or underinsured drivers – pays for damages to your car as well as medical expenses for you and your passenger when the accident was caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver.

After you’ve requested auto insurance quotes from several insurance companies in California, choosing the right one for your needs depends on several factors. For example, you can settle for a minimum coverage auto insurance policy if you don’t have that many assets, but if you do and you want to protect them you may need to get additional coverages.

Some are important while others are not. In case you already have medical insurance, for instance, the personal injury protection option is something you can do without. On the other hand, the uninsured/ underinsured driver option is good for almost everyone. This is because about a quarter of all drivers in California don’t have a license. A collision coverage is not that useful if your car is pretty old, but if you are driving a newer model it can help you save some money. The same is true for the comprehensive insurance option.

Rates for California auto insurance can vary significantly from one company to another. So make sure you’ve done your research properly before choosing the right one for you. There are several websites on the Internet which can help you compare between different offers.

cheap California auto insurance
Here you can find more information on cheap California auto insurance

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Only catch is I'm 28 years old going on 29. I wasn't sure if there were any age restrictions on combining policies with my parents who are senior citizens. I'm simply looking for a better rate becuase my record is terrible. My parents live in my home as well so we share same address. Thank you.

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Your son has just obtained his license and with that a new found sense of freedom. Now you ask how to get cheap auto insurance for my son ? Car insurances can vary dramatically in price so read on to learn how to buy car insurance that is affordable for your teen drivers.

Because teens lack driving experience insurers consider them a high risk to insure and thus the premiums assigned are much higher than an adults insurance rates would be. There are a few things you can do to help reduce the rates you pay for your teen drivers.

First you need to stress to them how important it is for them to keep a clean driving record. That means driving safely – no speeding tickets, no traffic violations, and no accidents. Over a period of time there safe driving will be rewarded with lower premiums.

You can also reduce their rates by purchasing insurance with a higher deductible. The higher the deductible is the lower the premium is.

If you are going to be purchasing a vehicle for your teen choose a vehicle that is built well with extra safety features, and do not choose a vehicle that falls into a sports class or higher risk rating class. Be sure to check the class the vehicle falls into.

The graduated licensing laws have come into effect in most states in the USA and some provinces in Canada. The rules will vary from one location to another but the basic underlying philosophy is to restrict new drivers by limiting what their license will allow them to do.

They may be issued a full auto license such as a class 5 but there is usually a letter designation behind it to indicate they are a new driver. These new drivers have nighttime driving restrictions, vehicle occupant restrictions, and a 0 alcohol tolerance restriction to name just a few. They will also be required to take an additional test after a specific period of time to remove them from the new driver programmer.

But you’re still wondering where to get cheap auto insurance for my son? Teenage drivers can dramatically reduce the cost of insurance by purchasing a stand alone policy from an agency that specializes in providing teen insurance. A stand alone policy means they are not added as an additional driver on your insurance but rather carry their own insurance.

These insurance companies reduce their risk for insuring teens by placing certain concessions on the driving habits of them. They may require driving school, no driving after dark, or various other restrictions which allow them to keep the premiums lower for teen drivers.

The statistics for teen drivers aren’t good. A 16 year old driver is 10 times more likely to get into an accident than an adult between the ages of 30 and 59, so you can see why insurance companies are hesitant to provide good rates.

The best thing you can do for your teenager and his or her insurance rates is to teach responsibility and make them accountable. Make them earn your trust for the use of the car, and make them accountable to pay at least a portion of their insurance premiums. They can do this by working a part time job which also breeds maturity, so it’s a win-win all the way.

You and your teenager are thrilled with the new found freedom for both of you. So now you need to do your homework and research teen insurance rates so you can get them on the road. What are you waiting for?

About The Author

Sher Matsen has been serving customers for over 20 years as a freelance writer and has been offering information and advice to the consumer. To find out how to save on your auto insurance Please visit us at http://www.all-auto-insurance.com/

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If you want to buy auto insurance you need to know what are the different kinds of coverage that are available and choose the one that best fits your needs and budget. Full coverage auto insurance is a typical way to say that you want to be completely covered with comprehensive and collision coverage.

However full coverage means different things to people, the type of coverage available are liability, personal Injury Protection, Property Damage, Uninsured motorist, collision and comprehensive coverage.

For instance if you buy a car with a loan and the financial company asks for full coverage they mean that you need to have the basic necessary coverage in your state plus comprehensive coverage that will protect your car from any damage when it is not in motion.

However for some auto insurance companies, when you talk about full coverage they understand that you want all the minimum necessary coverage that your state requires you to have.

So full coverage is not really a term that professionals use, because it doesent have a strict definition, is just commonly used. Instead you should tel you insurance company the kind of coverage that you want and its limits.

Is important that you compare quotes from different companies and ask for special discounts that you may be able to qualify for. For exmaple if you are under 25 years old you should ask for a student discount if you have 3.0 gpa.

You can also reduce your rates if you have a good driving record, not tickets and a good credit score.

But the most important thing is that you buy the right insurance policy and be fully covered from any damage or injuries that you may have to pay for in case of an accident.

By: Ray Rubio

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

California auto insurance coverage Quotes, instantly get the best rates in your State and Save more than $598 a year with the Top Carriers. Just enter your Zip Code and you will get the Best Rates and Save Money. Go Here www.autoinsquote.org

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