Saving on health insurance can be an exhausting task. It consists of jumping through hoops, researching various policies, finding the best premiums to fit your budget and then talking long hours on the phone with your insurance agent to find the pros and cons of each of these decisions.
It may be difficult understanding your individual health insurance plan to save money, but don’t forget that you have two other powerful factors to save, your health and technology.
Simply put, if you have a smartphone, you have access to resources that provide you with medical information, out of pocket drug costs, and health insurance directories– this will save you time and give you easy access to crucial information in your health plan.
Here are some picks to download right away!
Medscape
In brief, this app is designed to help you keep track of dosages for adults and children, pricing on drugs, access to generics, access to CMEs (continuing medical education) and a look up for nearby hospitals, physicians, and pharmacies. One of the key concepts that stand out about this app is access to information regarding interactions of various drugs. If you are on several prescriptions, this can make you aware of potential side effects to ask you physician.
Epocrates
Considered the first medical app for the iPhone, this app is useful to physicians and patients alike. There is a prescription drug identifier – to help recognize different drugs and ensure you are taking the right prescriptions, interactions between drugs, and a much needed medical calculator. This includes calculating your Body Mass Index to determine which group you are in and if you are risk for diseases, check it out!
Health Insurance Provider Apps
These apps are created by the various health insurance providers – so if you are a member under these health insurance providers you can receive information in seconds at your fingertips.
Be sure to check if the app applies to your plan and your needs, here are general functionalities of health insurance provider apps:
They can:
- Display your electronic card ID
- Give you directories for physicians who are in-network
- View past claims
- Calculate out-of-pocket costs
- Lookup nearby pharmacies
- Give you information of cost sharing requirements per visit
Functionality may vary between apps; some that are currently released are the myHumana app from Humana, Blue Cross Blue Shield in Florida, and United Healthcare.
A growing trend is that providers and patients are both benefiting from the improved access to information, so you can expect more health insurance provider apps in store for you very soon – check the app store today!
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