A Deductible is the amount you pay out of your own pocket before your insurance begins picking up any of the costs of health care. The amount of a deductible will vary from one policy to the next so be certain that you know about that before you select a health insurance policy. Deductibles are typically based on yearly health care costs and may include a different amount for families. For example, you may have a $500 per person deductible. That means you’ll pay the first $500, regardless of whether the first office visit costs that much or you make ten visits at $50 per visit. Your policy may also include a “per family” amount which means that you combine the costs for everyone in the family rather than meeting a deductible for each family member.

Don’t know how much your deductible is? There may be a good reason for that. An insurance plan that have a co-payment probably has no deductible, meaning the insurance company starts picking up a share of the costs from the first medical expense.

One of the most important things to remember about the deductible is its relationship to the price of Premiums. As a rule, the higher the deductible, the lower the premium cost. While it’s a good way to get the cost of your health care down, be careful. An overly high deductible is also expensive and may put you in the position of never being eligible to file a claim against your insurance.