Don’t drown in “health insurance word soup”

No Maanvi Singh, you are not the only “clueless 20 something here”. In her article entitled “Defeat by Deductible: Millennials aren’t hip to health insurance lingo” Singh explores the surprising ignorance of the younger generation in the States.

Her article summarises results of a study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania. 30 recent college graduates were evaluated on how well they could navigate HealthCare.gov in order to organise health insurance for themselves. The participants felt overwhelmed by the process and were stumped by the jargon. Around half of the group were unaware of what ‘deductible’ meant and three quarters couldn’t define ‘coinsurance’.

She concludes that young people are intimidated by the insurance process and the terminology. Who can blame them really?

Breaking down the barriers

I share Singh’s concern that this lack of “health insurance literacy” is creating barriers. These barriers are standing in the way of young people taking advantage of the services available to them. If the younger generation are struggling to comprehend health insurance in their own country and their own language, it’s a whole different ball game for the young expat demographic.

Fortunately, these tech-savvy millennials have the internet on their side and more often than not can find answers to their questions from people in the same boat. So take advantage of shared information which is so readily at your fingertips!

What I find frustrating, especially now that I have done my research, is that hidden behind the intimidating jargon are some basic and really straightforward definitions. So here, grab onto our metaphorical lifebouy, in the shape of a health insurance jargon buster, and stop drowning in “health insurance word soup”.

While you’re at it, take a look at our top 10 tips for choosing expat health insurance for some easy to digest and really useful advice before you knock down those barriers once and for all.

[Image: Scott Granneman]