HMO – Health Maintenance Organization
An HMO requires you to designate a primary care provider (PCP), who serves as a “gatekeeper,” providing general health care and referrals to in-network providers as needed. It is more restrictive than a PPO in that if you go to a doctor who is not in the network or even see an in-network specialist without a referral, your expenses will not be covered.

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization)/POS (Point of Service)
A PPO or POS plan means you can decide at the point of service–that is, when you need health care–whether to see an in-network provider and receive a higher level of benefits or an out-of-network provider and receive a lower level of benefits. You may see specialists without a referral, and switch between in-network and out-of-network providers. You do not need to designate a PCP.

HDHP (High Deductible Health Plan)
An HDHP is a fast growing option – because it is typically much cheaper than the other health plans.  Just like its name suggests, an HDHP has a much higher deductible (between $1,500 and $5,000).  While this may seem like a lot, it should be noted that often, there is no coninsurance, meaning that once your deductible is paid, your remaining expenses are covered 100%.  In fact, this is a requirement for an HDHP to qualify for an HSA.

From the CNN Article:

He noted that consumers currently pay higher health insurance premiums due to the costs run up by hospitals and other facilities providing care to uninsured people.

My concern with this approach, however, is that the costs aren’t only driven up by folks without insurance, but they are also driven up by people who take advantage of their health insurance plans. For example, people who go to the emergency room for non-emergency services (bad colds, ankle sprains, etc..).

We are quick to chastise the insurance companies as we debate the causes of our health care crisis – but we also need to make sure we look at ourselves when discussing ways to make the health care system work better.