Toward the end of the year, when you may have used up your deductible, it's a good time to look into health care services you have been putting off. | PxHere.com
Toward the end of the year, when you may have used up your deductible, it's a good time to look into health care services you have been putting off. | PxHere.com
• Most Americans who get health insurance through their employer have an annual deductible.
• You can save money during the last few months of the year by taking advantage of your health insurance if you've already met your deductible.
• Most health insurance plans cover allergy testing and treatment.
While many people save money by shopping on Black Friday, another way to save money this holiday season is by making the most of your health insurance, if you've already met your deductible.
The Kaiser Family Foundation points to a recent survey that finds 85% of American workers who received health insurance coverage through their employer in 2021 had a general annual deductible for coverage that needed to be met before the plan paid for most health services.
According to the same survey, for workers employed by small companies, the average single coverage deductible was $2,379, compared to an average deductible of $1,397 for workers employed by large firms.
Stamford Health recommends that patients who've met their deductible start making appointments for testing before the end of the year, which could save them money over the long run. Recommendations include getting your annual physical and refilling prescriptions, as well as taking care of lab work or other diagnostic testing. Stamford also stresses that people over 45 should get a colonoscopy and women over 40 should get a mammogram.
Most insurance plans cover allergy testing and treatment, and winter is the ideal time to prepare for spring allergies. Once your deductible has been met, costs for allergy tests and treatments could be very low or even zero. You can begin the allergy shots before your deductible resets, which will save you money, in addition to beginning to build up your body's defenses against spring allergens.
Gulf Coast Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers' Dr. Matthew Blair recommends allergy testing, to make sure you're feeling your best for the new year.
"That procedure [allergy testing] has definitely changed over the last 10 years,” Blair told the Sunshine Sentinel. “Now we're able to test 30 to 40 allergens all at once. We really look at all the different ones to see what you react to. And depending on how many allergies you actually have is how many pokes you're really going to get. And we can also test for food allergies that way."
If you're interested in learning more about diagnosis or treatment of allergies, please take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.
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