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Karla Flores

Insurance RX

I Make Insurance Easy & Simple

How to Live Safely With Food Allergies

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Ingesting a food you’re allergic to is potentially life-threatening. Up to 15 million Americans have a food allergy and that includes one in every 13 children. Currently, the most common food allergies in the U.S. are:

Milk, Eggs, Peanuts, Tree nuts, Soy, Wheat, Fish and Shellfish.

Symptoms range from mild abdominal pain to anaphylactic shock. If you or someone you know has an allergy, try these simple steps to prevent a reaction.

(1). Read food labels. Any foods with potential allergens should be stored separately from safe foods.

(2). Before and after every meal, not only you…but everyone you eat with, should wash their hands to avoid cross contamination of allergens.

(3). Assemble an emergency kit with appropriate medications and an epinephrine auto-injector. And while you’re at it, make a second kit so you have one at home and another for your travels.

Go to www.foodallergy.org for more tips on how to live easily (and safely) with food allergens.

Competing for Good Vision for Life

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Did you know when it comes to eye safety, basketball is the most dangerous sport in the United States? However, when it comes to kids under 14, baseball is the leading cause of eye injuries. And these aren’t the only sports that can be dangerous. How about martial arts? Forty-five percent of mixed martial arts injuries are to the face and include the eyes.

In fact, every 13 minutes, there’s a hospital somewhere in the country treating a sports eye injury.  Out of every 100,000 injuries, 42,000 are treated at ERs and 13,500 result in blindness.

But don’t let that stop you from participating. For most situations, protective eyewear prevents and lessens the degrees of most injuries. While it’s a nuisance to wear glasses, it beats the heck out of losing your vision temporarily or worse – permanently.

Technology forges better protection and currently, polycarbonate lenses are 10 times as impact resistant as other materials. When it comes to playing your favorite sports, a little protection has life-long benefits.

So don’t forget those glasses!

There’s more information for you at American Academy of Ophthalmology.

High Blood Pressure – It’s Not Just an Adult Condition

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When it comes to children, it would be nice to state what numbers constitute a normal blood pressure reading. Here’s the problem. “Normal” blood pressure numbers change as children grow. It’s further complicated by the fact that high blood pressure tends to be asymptomatic. So what’s a parent to do?

For one thing, be aware that family history is a high risk factor. Since testing is easy, get your child’s blood pressure checked at his or her next doctor visit. Checks can begin as early as infancy for children with conditions like premature birth, heart and kidney problems. These and other medical conditions raise blood pressure for young children up to age 10.

Non-medical causes tend to be lifestyle related. Children on poor diets with little exercise are subject to obesity – a major cause of high blood pressure at any age. To avoid medications, make lifestyle changes with better food and more exercise. This leads to weight loss and may be the only treatment needed. If that doesn’t work, medications ranging from diuretics to beta blockers may be prescribed.

As with any medical condition, the earlier the diagnosis, the easier the treatment.

Small Business Health Insurance Options

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Amy Penna, in her article “Small business health insurance: The state of the market and what small businesses are doing about it”, states:

“You don’t have to look hard to find evidence that group health insurance has become prohibitively expensive for small businesses with fewer than 50 full-time employees. As we’ve reported in the past, annual group health insurance premiums in 2017 for small businesses were $6,486 for single coverage and $17,615 for family coverage. 

Additionally, traditional group health benefits come with other costs that can stretch a company’s budget. The cost to administer group health benefits adds up to over $12,000each year. With figures like these, it’s no wonder that the number of small businesses offering group health insurance has declined by 25 percent since 2010. Currently, less than half of small businesses offer any kind of health insurance to their workers.”  

Many small businesses would like to offer health insurance benefits but finding traditional group insurance is too expensive. There are alternatives solutions such as a taxable wage increase or tax-free personalized benefits (QSEHRA) and other options that benefit both the employer and the employee in these ways:

  • The health insurance plan belongs to the employee and, in the event, the employee leaves employment, they are not without health insurance nor are they subject to the high cost of COBRA.
  • The employee has more options to customize their health insurance to fit their needs and budget.
  • The employer is not involved with the annual task of reviewing health insurance plan benefits. As one employer recently stated, “I can be out of the business of health insurance and not feel pressured on making the right plan options for my employees. I have also been the person they come to when they are not happy with their insurance. It is a great relief not to have to deal with those issues.”

The Taxable Wage Increase method increases employee’s wages so they can afford to purchase a health plan. On the company side, business owners don’t have to worry about playing middleman between the insurance company and their employees. On the other hand, the employee pays income tax on the increased wages. However, the premium can be lower than that of a group plan premium so the employee still comes out financially ahead and they have a health insurance plan customized to their needs.

The Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA) also known as a small business HRA, is a company-funded, tax-free health benefit used to reimburse employees for personal health care expenses. The business must establish legal QSEHRA plan documents, including a summary plan description to comply with IRS and Department of Labor requirements.

I need to pay for my own health insurance… what options do I have?

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Today, many people are self-employed, losing their employer benefits or finding their employer benefits too expensive along with higher deductibles and decreasing benefits.

If you are in this situation, it can be a challenging and daunting task to find and understand the right health insurance option that will fit your coverage needs and budget. Going online can get you in trouble as you believe that you are getting a certain type of coverage and then when you go to use your insurance, it is not what you signed up for.

I would also caution you, that there are insurance companies and agents that will lead you to believe you are getting a major medical plan when the only major medical plans remaining in the market are Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) plans or employer group plans.

Currently, there are three types of plans available for private (or non-employer paid) health insurance.

Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) which is well suited for those individuals who have a pre-existing condition of which they are currently being treated to ensure that they are not without treatment.

Short Term Plans. These plans work well for people in transition, i.e., between jobs that offer employer paid benefits or needing a few months of coverage before moving into Medicare. These plans are currently offered for 3 to 6 months terms renewable for another 6 month term.

Hospital Indemnity Plans offer the best option for those looking for a permanent plan, in other words, one that is guaranteed renewable. These plans offer a set insurance benefit for medical services for hospitalization, surgery, doctor visits, well care and other medical services. Some plans have a zero deductible or you can choose a higher deductible. Your auto insurance is an indemnity plan, i.e., when in an accident, your deductible (should you have one) is deducted and then your benefit is applied to pay for the repair of your automobile… this process is per incident.

Don’t get caught with the wrong health insurance… for information or questions, please feel to contact me. And, by the way, if you are unhappy with your current health insurance plan, you are able to cancel at anytime and switch to another type of plan.

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Are you unhappy with your health insurance premium? Are your employers paid health insurance premiums too expensive? Are you self-employed and looking for affordable health insurance? Are you in a job transition and don’t where to go for health insurance? Are you working in a corporate job just for the health insurance benefits? If you answered “yes” to any of these, I can help you.

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