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Leading online dating site hookmeup has re-launched its website offering all new and existing members free use of all its facilities. There are no gimmicks or hidden surprises with their new offer.

Online daters have grown tired of online dating sites offering free online dating that doesnt deliver. Most sites offer kisses, roses, flirts, stamps, credits etc only to  hit members up for a subscription somewhere down the track. www.hookmeup.com.au offers free member contact, free instant messaging, free web/video chat, and free chat rooms. Their website also has a groups service where you can create your very own community. This online dating site seems to have the lot.

Hookmeup has all the very best features that rsvp, redhotpie, eharmony and aussiematchmaker offers, with one main difference being you wont at any stage be asked to pay. Hookmeup now has several thousand members. Registration is short and simple, and who knows, you might just find a friend or a hot date.  

Another excellent component is how simple the website is to use. A simple menu to choose from. Its all spelt out in plain english. Long winded and complicated online dating sites are also frustrating for online daters.

With such an over supply of online dating sites out there hookmeup has taken all the nonsense out of the online dating experience. Many singles are taking advantage of this free and state of the art website.  The owners of hookmeup have done thorough research in providing online daters what they want. Free, simple, with loads of features.

Time and time again many online dating sites advertise free to browse, free to join, free to register etc etc. Its mis-leading and has given the online dating industry a bad name.  Hookmeup should be a real hit in this industry. Online daters are becoming savy and no longer need to be tricked into paying for online dating when there are sites like hookmeup and others doing it for free.

Online dating is a way of life for many singles. As a result so many dating sites have popped up over the years. The tide is turning back to favour the online daters given all the choice thats available. I personally cant think of any other industry, be it related or not, where you can find some companies offering it all for free.  The trick for the consumer is to find the online dating sites that are truely free.

Happy dating.

       

If you are interested in booking a vacation, you have two main choices. You can do the work yourself, or you can choose to work with a travel agent. Although many people think they will save time and money by doing the work themselves, it is the opposite that is usually true. The next time you plan a vacation, you should consider the following benefits to working with a travel agent.

Travel agents know the best days to travel.

When working with a travel agent, you are dealing with someone who not only books dozens (or even hundreds) of vacations every year, but also someone who probably travels often him or herself. Travel agents understand the best days to travel from a budget perspective, as well as from a time perspective. If your dates are flexible, a travel agent can help you find the cheapest, most hassle-free options.

Save money on flights, hotels, and other types of reservations.

Almost all travel companies offer group rates. The problem is, when you travel with your family, you likely will not have enough people to get that group discount, even if you travel with a big family. With a travel agent, you will get the discount because they buy tickets in bulk. You may also get a discount simply because travel professionals get special discounts through professional affiliations.

It takes virtually no work when you let a travel agent plan your vacation for you.

Although you should still do a little research in order to know what questions to ask your travel agent and to make wise decisions on your travel options, you should have to spend little or no time dealing with the details of final booking and other preparations. You will save hours and hours of time!

Travel agents can answer travel document questions.

Laws regarding visas and passports are constantly changing. Although you typically still have to go through the application process yourself, your travel agent can make sure that you understand important deadlines and answer your logistical questions.

You might get insider perks with travel agents.

Some vacation options and travel perks might only be available for people who book with a travel agent. In short, travel agents know the right questions to ask. For example, if you are a newlywed and book through a travel agent, they might be able to get you a honeymoon suite for the same price as a regular room. Travel agents know how to reap the most benefits when booking vacations.

Travel agents can answer questions about your destination.

Chances are that your travel agent (or someone in his or her office) has been to most of the common travel destinations. That means that they should be able to answer your questions about the vacation. From the best restaurants to what to expect when traveling around town on public transportation, travel agents know how to answer your vacation questions.

Travel agents can recommend travel options that are more affordable.

One of the most common reasons for people not traveling more often is that travel is expensive. You might want to travel to a foreign tropical island paradise, for example, on a shoestring budget. Your travel agent can suggest a domestic sunny location, which gives you longer vacation options on your budget.

Kid-friendly travel is much easier with using a travel agent.

There are many challenges to traveling with children, especially young children. Travel agents can help you to deal with these problems. Remember, they book trips for families all of the time. Along the same lines, they can also help solve problems traveling with pets, senior citizens, or disabled individuals.

When your travel plans change, a travel agent can help you deal with these problems.

Things do not always go as planned. When this happens and you have reserved the various portions of your trip by yourself, you have dozens of calls to make, changing dates and trying to save as much money as possible. When working with a travel agent, you only have one call to make. Better yet, the travel agent might be able to get your dates of travel changed or get you a partial refund whereas alone, you might have simply lost the money.

You have a single bill to pay with a travel agent.

Instead of making a ton of small purchases with multiple receipts, confirmation and reservation numbers, you will have one big bill to pay. Better yet, most travel agents have payment plans, in which you pay a certain amount each month until your date of travel. They might even have financing plans to make things easier. With a travel agent, vacations can be stress-free from a financial perspective, on top of all of the planning perks.

Using a travel agent, online or in-person, to plan and reserve your next vacation has many advantages over doing it yourself. You do not have to go it alone to save time and money. In fact, not using a travel agent can cost you more dollars and headache than you would have had you chosen the services of an experienced travel agent.

Balanced investment strategy is perhaps the most followed and successful investment strategy for portfolio management. Its primary aim is to keep a balance between investment risk and return. A balanced investment strategy combines the merit of aggressive and defensive investing strategies.

Aggressive investment strategy involves investing in high return high risk investments with the sole purpose of maximizing return from investments. It involves allocating major portion of portfolio capital to invest in equities, equity based funds and highly volatile markets. Investors following aggressive investment strategy often look for comparatively short-term profiting and wish to invest more in growth stocks, and small caps and mid cap stocks. Advantages of aggressive investing include quick profit, high return over investment and no need of large portfolio capital. It can work really well for experienced investors and investors who are very strict in their money management. Disadvantages include high risk, high volatility in total portfolio value and no surety of profit. It less supports novice investors and investor looking for monthly earnings or living costs.

Defensive investment strategy is just opposite of aggressive investment; it’s purpose is to preserve the capital and ensure some return from investments. It involves investing in low profit low risk investments like bonds, money market funds, treasury notes, and equities with minimum price volatility and good dividends. Defensive investors look for long-term profits and/or monthly earnings. Advantages of defensive investment strategy include reduced risk, predictable income, better investment planning and diversification of portfolio. This strategy mainly suits beginners. Disadvantages include low return from investments and requirement of high capital investments.

In balanced investment strategy, the investor tries to keep a balance between his aggressive and defensive behaviors. It involves balancing of both return and risk by diversifying investments in both high return high risk and low return low risk investments. Balanced investors often follow a portfolio capital allocation rule telling how much to invest in equities and bonds and how much to invest in treasury notes, precious metals and funds. Usually one portion of portfolio is actively managed and other portion is left to grow automatically. Balanced investment strategy can be slightly aggressive or slightly defensive with respect to investments made.

The greatest advantage of balanced investment strategy is the diversification of portfolio and hedging against high total portfolio value volatility. It is good for investors looking for medium-term (3 to 5 years) profits. Other advantages include flexibility in portfolio management, better results with better capital investments, (almost) predictable income and manageable portfolio risk. Balanced investment strategy support both beginners and experienced investors and can be an option for monthly earnings for living.

I have always believed that to ever want to succeed in life, all you can do is to work on yourself more. To me it’s a lot like understanding the importance of personal development.

Everyday I am a student. Constantly learning, improving and always yearning for growth - whether personally, spiritually or in business.

So what does this have to do with network marketing, you ask?

Everything! It’s what makes the top earners in the industry be where they are today. Anyone has the ability to achieve success in network marketing. And by you reading this, I know you have what it takes! What that means is your commitment and persistence and you acquiring the right tools.

So what are the tools and personal skills to make one’s goals and dreams a reality?

The personal skills necessary include people skills, time management, goal setting, positive attitude and the practice of being a student of success. All of which are really the heart of a decent network marketing company.

The most profound thing I learned from an mlm coach was that ‘People drastically overestimate what they can accomplish in 90 days but drastically underestimate what they can accomplish in 5 years.’

That’s when I understood that the path to success, something we all strive for, doesn’t happen over night, in a week, a month or in one year!

Jim Rohn told it like this, ‘You can have EVERYTHING you want in any six year period, IF you commit to a plan of personal development.’

It’s the discipline to give up one hour of the idiot box and reading timeless inspirational books from great leaders and teachers of our time. Such include Napoleon Hill, Dale Carnegie, Wallace D. Wattles, Robert Kyosaki, Brian Tracy, Anthony Robbins, Robert G. Allen and Les Brown just to name a few.

A characteristic that you will notice that of top earners is that they will spend much more time and money improving on themselves than the average person. For example one top earner spent $70 on Brian Tracy’s ‘The Psychology of Selling’ audio tapes and listened to them as he drove. Results showed that he had increased his income by $70,000 that year - a return of 1,000 times - by putting Tracy’s ideas to work.

As you develop a daily habit of reading and listening to mind-expanding ideas from successful people, you will never fail to learn a new thought, strategy or technique. You will also find it a great joy, as it does for me, to squeeze in moments to read a few pages of a book a day or 20mins of good audio.

To help you on creating your Personal Development Plan, here are practical steps for you to get started today.

1. Read at least 10 pages every day of a personal development book.

2. Listen to at least 20 minutes a day to a personal development audio.

3. Attend a personal growth live seminar and professional courses at least quarterly.

Consider this to be just as vital to your success as the air you breathe. It will start to pay off as you watch the change that start to come over time and you begin to notice certain things, and feel subtle hunches that point you in the right direction. The reason for this is because your subconscious mind is working over time sending signals to your conscious mind in helping you reach your goal.

So let me ask you. Where would you be three to four years from now if you DIDN’T commit to these habits?

It’s true. We are where we are right now because of the choices we have made over the last few years. Just doing small simple things everyday through reading and learning - you’re already separating yourself from the masses. Quote from Brian Tracy: ‘The more you do of what you’re doing, the more you’ll get of what you’re getting.’ This is the stuff that makes champions and the reason why only a small percentage of the population ever BECOME successful.

While others flounder around, searching for some external factor to change in their lives, I remember this one quote that I’ve taken on as an affirmation, ‘Your level of income will never rise above the level of your personal development.’

Wouldn’t it be great to travel the world and get paid for doing so? When most people think about traveling, they think of the two outdated ‘travel models.’

1)    Work really, really hard and save a lot of money. Once you have ‘enough cash,’ you travel for as long as you can before going broke and getting another job (or go back to your old one).

2)    Travel as a part of your job. These would be low-paying jobs like working on a cruise ship, as a tour guide, bartender, adventure sport instructor, or simply getting a regular job in an exotic location. A better option, to be sure, but…

How can you travel wherever your heart desires, ‘working’ at something that fascinates you? The answer is closer that you may imagine, and a lot more attainable. No, you don’t have to sell anything to your friends or join a cult. I present to you option 3.

3)    Utilize simple technology to automatically provide people with value. For doing so, you make money.

Sound like fun? It definitely is.

The underground movement of travelers who hold no jobs and ‘work’ out of internet café’s and on laptops a few hours a day (or a week) grows larger every day. Here are some quick ways you can join this group.

•    Film your travel adventures and drive Internet traffic using your videos. You’re taking pictures and videos anyway, so why not make some money for doing so? Did you know you can use sites like YouTube and Flickr to send traffic to websites that will PAY you for the traffic?

•    Write about your travel adventures. Most ‘travel writers’ work like mad to make a few measly hundred bucks selling their stories to travel magazines. Instead, land a high-paying job on Elance or Guru… or better yet, post your stories to your own easy-to-create blog and make a Google Adsense income off of your readers.

•    Become a salesman for the biggest store in the world… Ebay! This is one of the most under-appreciated travel-income methods of all time. Most people think they have to ship a physical product on Ebay… which limits your inventory to what you could fit in your luggage or backpack. Unfortunately (fortunately for you!) this is completely wrong. You can sell digital products like e-books and courses on Ebay and never pay a red-cent for shipping. For physical products, you can also easily setup a fulfillment center that will ship your stuff without your ever having to lift a finger.

•    Drive internet traffic to sites using simple techniques. Can you get on an online forum and answer other people’s questions about a subject? Then you’ve got enough skill to drive internet traffic! If you send traffic to websites looking for customers on your subject, you can get paid for it.

Making an income while traveling isn’t as difficult as it may seem… you just need to take action on a few simple steps that not many people know about. Soon, you will be making more money while traveling than you would if you had a 9-5 job! The only thing stopping you is taking action.

**Attention Readers**

To get your copy of our free step-by-step guide showing you how to make money as you travel without ever holding a ‘job,’ visit http://www.moneyfortraveling.com. The expert authors at www.MoneyForTraveling.com have all made a substantial internet income while traveling or they have been hired and paid well to travel the world and will show you how to do the same.

**Attn Ezine editors/Site owners**

Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your ezine or on your site as long as you leave all links in place. You may not modify the content and must include our resource box as listed above. However, you may sign up as an affiliate at MoneyForTraveling.com and insert your affiliate links to earn income for your efforts.

Tax-Efficient Investing: A Wise Choice

By David N. Chazin

In conjunction with Sagemark Consulting, a division of Lincoln Financial Advisors, a registered investment advisor. Mr. Chazin is a regular contributor to PlannerConnect.

Taxes can take a chunk out of your investment returns; yet, many investors don’t give much thought to taxes when they make investment decisions. While investment decisions shouldn’t be based entirely on tax considerations, tax-efficient investing may make a significant difference in your net gain. Employing some of the following strategies could help you retain more of your potential investment earnings and lessen your tax obligation.

Invest in Stocks for the Long Term

Following a buy-and-hold strategy for your stock investments may save on taxes in the long run, as well as potentially increasing your net worth. If you trade your stock holdings frequently  even if it’s only once a year  you may end up owing estimated taxes and a significant capital gains tax on your profits.

Capital gains are taxed at 15% on investments you hold longer than one year (5% for gains that would otherwise be taxed in the 10% or 15% marginal federal income tax bracket). Gains on investments you’ve owned one year or less are taxed at your regular federal income-tax rate, which may be as high as 35% for 2005. So, even if you reinvest your sales profits, taxes will reduce the amount you’re reinvesting, effectively diminishing the size of your portfolio and its overall potential return.

Tax-Exempt Investments

Tax-exempt investments, such as municipal bonds, produce income that is generally exempt from federal - and often state and local  income tax. If you’re seeking income rather than growth, municipal bonds may be a good choice. This is especially true for investors in higher tax brackets. Income from municipal bonds may be subject to the alternative minimum tax.

To determine whether you would be better off buying a taxable or a tax-exempt investment, you need to calculate what a taxable investment would yield on an after-tax basis and compare that with the return on a tax-exempt investment. To do this, subtract your marginal tax rate from 100% and multiply this percentage by the rate of return the taxable investment is earning. That will give you your after-tax yield. Compare this with the yield on the tax-exempt investment to find out which is higher.

For example, if you are in the 30% marginal tax bracket, a taxable investment return of 6% equates to an after-tax return of 4.2% (100% – 30% = 70%; 70% × 6% = 4.2%). Thus, a tax-exempt investment yielding higher than 4.2% will give you a better yield after taxes are considered.

Sell a Loser To Offset a Capital Gain

Capital losses offset capital gains dollar for dollar and up to $3,000 of ordinary income a year. If you will have capital gains to report on your income-tax return, consider selling a losing investment and applying the loss to offset an equivalent capital gain.

Mutual Funds with Low Turnover Rates

A mutual fund’s turnover rate measures the extent to which the fund sells securities and replaces them with new ones: the higher the turnover rate, the more frequently the fund’s managers are trading the fund’s holdings. Turnover rate is important to you as an investor because, when the fund sells securities, a capital gain or loss generally occurs for tax purposes. A portion of any capital gains realized by the fund is taxable to you, even if no distribution occurs or if your distribution is reinvested in additional fund shares. A low turnover rate indicates that capital gains generated by sales of appreciated securities should be kept to a minimum, allowing you to wait until you sell fund shares to take potential profits.

Tax-Deferred Retirement Plan

Don’t neglect your retirement plan as a vehicle for tax-deferred investing. Participating in an employer’s 401(k) or 403(b) plan (or a Keogh plan, if you’re self-employed) reduces your tax obligation, since taxes on your contributions and earnings generally are deferred until you withdraw funds from the plan, typically at retirement. Distributions may be subject to income taxes and if made prior to the age of 59 ½, are subject to an additional federal 10% penalty.

Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) are another option to consider if you are eligible. Your contributions to a regular IRA may be tax deductible. And, although contributions to a Roth IRA are not deductible, account earnings are tax deferred and can ultimately be withdrawn from the Roth IRA income tax free, provided certain conditions are met.

Hanging onto as much of your hard-earned money as possible is the goal of tax-advantaged investing. Your financial advisor can help you invest with this goal in mind.

David N. Chazin is part of a network of qualified financial planners affiliated with PlannerConnect. You can reach him at David.Chazin@LFG.com, or to connect with a financial planner in your area please call (800) 318-7848, or visit the PlannerConnect website.

Mutual funds are offered by sprospectus. An investor should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of an investment company before investing. To obtain a prospectus that contains this and other information call or ask your financial representative for a free prospectus. Read it carefully before you invest or send money. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate with changes in market conditions so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed may be worth more or less than the original amount invested.

David N. Chazin, is a registered representative of Lincoln Financial Advisors, a broker/dealer, and offers investment advisory service through Sagemark Consulting, a division of Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp., a registered investment advisor,3000 Executive Parkway, Suite 400, San Ramon, CA 94583, (925) 275-0300. Insurance offered through Lincoln affiliates and other fine companies. This information should not be construed as legal or tax advice. You may want to consult a tax advisor regarding this information as it relates to your personal circumstances.

The problems of the world can be eliminated and solved by individual people like you and me, and through no other means than by those people purely concentrating on personal development and personal growth. We need to be able to recognize the essential humanity in ourselves and also in the people we meet.

Every time you open a newspaper or watch TV, listen to the radio or search the internet it’s the same thing nowadays: nothing but a seemingly endless succession of scenes of killing, robbery, rape, bombings, war and nastiness.

It can make you depressed if you let it.

Many commentators talk and write endlessly about the reasons for it all, and especially in the case of wars, governments and leaders of countries spend a lot of effort justifying themselves. It’s funny how they always seem to have some innocent and noble reason for invading a country or bombing the civilian population of that country, isn’t it?

In my opinion there are two major reasons why this situation continues, even though everyone hates it.

The first is a way of thinking that I have named The Badge Mentality. Under this mentality, you gather round and stay with those people who are wearing the same badge as you. Even if you maybe do not like a person very much, he is nevertheless wearing that badge, and it is the same as your badge. Actually, in a way, you do not even have to bother about making a decision as to whether you like him. That really does not matter. And why is that?

Because he is wearing the same badge.

And all those other people, the ones who are wearing different badges? We don’t trust them, of course, and we go ahead and obey our so-called leaders when they order us to kill them.

What form does this badge take? It can be a common nationality or a common language or a common skin color or even a common interest in a particular football team. The reason why there is conflict on Earth is because we have conditioned ourselves to see others as wearers of a badge, and we judge them by that, rather than trying to see each person as an individual human being.

The second reason for the continuation of this situation is if everyone blindly accepts the views and explanations of the political leaders, who are just saying whatever will keep them in office and preserve things as they are. This is why I say that if today everyone on Earth decided to ignore these so-called leaders, and instead, each person concentrated on his or her personal development as a human being, then we would have world peace in a very short time from now.

And yes, I am talking in terms of around next Tuesday.

But, you might say, maybe it is a little bit selfish to be pursuing personal development when there is so much trouble in the world? No because your own personal development is something you can start on right now, right here, today. And if enough people begin on a program of personal development, it will not be long before they develop a force too powerful for mere governments to withstand.

A personal growth revolution can never be imposed from above or from outside. So if it is going to happen, then it is for you to start it rolling, where you are, right now.

Peace is always there to be found within yourself.

 

So you’re going on a trip. Fantastic! Exciting! But what sort of trip are you planning to take? Is it for business or pleasure? Where are you headed? Who are you going with? Just what kind of travel experience do you want?

 

Traveling on a budget can give you all sorts of experiences, depending on a) your budget, b) where you want to go, and c) what you want to do. Everyone’s budget will be different, and traveling on a budget means knowing how much money you can afford to spend and sticking to that amount. So if you have a budget of two thousand dollars, your travel experience will be different from someone who has a budget of ten thousand dollars. It’s all relative to the dollar amount, but knowing some tricks to help you save money while traveling will make your dollars stretch further therefore increasing your travel experience.

 

Do you want to travel overseas? Do you want to travel around your home country? Do you want to stay in luxury accommodation or are you going to back- pack? Are you traveling with children or are you honeymooning? Are you traveling with a bunch of friends or are you keen to experience a group tour with strangers? Do you want to go to popular tourist sites or do you want to experience a destination’s way of living in remote areas? 

 

All these questions are things you need to ask yourself before you begin to plan your trip. You can either plan your trip with your budget in mind, or plan your trip, work out how much money you’ll need and save until you can get there. The first is probably a little easier to do because when the travel bug hits, you generally want to take off as soon as possible. Knowing your budget can guide you in making your decision of how and where you will be traveling. But if you have your heart set on a trip of a lifetime to an exotic island in the Pacific then you will need to save accordingly. It’s your choice.

 

Once you know what type of experience you are after, it’s time to work out the best way to get it on your available funds. Traveling on a budget is easier than you think these days. No longer does it mean living on stale food and sleeping in questionable accommodation. If you are wise and spend some time investigating deals to your chosen destination you could be able to enhance your traveling experience more than you thought possible. A bit of research will get you a long way when traveling on a budget.

 

This article is brought to you by: Stuart S. Travel – Your Online Travel Guru

www.stuartstravel.com

All we know well that herbal nutrients are required to support healthy metabolism and maintain functions of our body. Available data indicate that many more vitamins and vitamin-like nutrients are yet to be discovered in herbs today. That is why herbal medicines were used for thousand years to fight diseases and improve body functions. Herbal nutrients have been shown to help heal many maladies, improve general health and specific pathological conditions. Herbs can help fight disease and premature aging, maintain sustainable and enjoyable lifestyle.

Alternative health professionals is a NZ based online shop, offering you the largest range of natural health products, including vitamin supplements. We also offer natural beauty products, herbal medicines and remedies.

At Alternative health professionals you will find information on alternative treatments for mind body and soul within our articles section, and in our online store, you will find naturally good products from aromatherapy supplies to herbal balms and lanolin skincare.

Our all natural herbal supplements are obtained from the herbs proven to be the richest natural sources of specific essential nutrients and are provided in the formulation optimal for assimilation by the body. Herbal antioxidants and essential unsaturated oils are not produced by the body but are required for multiple body functions and promote immunity to keep away diseases.

The essential oils used in aromatherapy are extracted from many parts of the aromatic plant: leaves, stems, flowers, seeds, roots, barks, fruits and resins. The oils are a concentrated form of plant energy possessing the qualities of the particular plant, and are usually many times more potent than the comparable dried herbs.

Now a days mostly people face skin problem. All we have different kind of skin so the treatment must be different. We help you to get the best herbal treatment for your skin. When you start shedding the winter layers of clothing upon spring’s arrival, you will possibly find your skin and scalp are dry and flaky, itchy and uncomfortable. Winter weather dries your skin out. You can bring skin back to a youthful glow by cleansing your body internally and exfoliating and moisturizing your skin.

New York Health Insurance

Health insurance is insurance that pays for all or part of a person’s health care bills. A health insurance policy is an annually renewable contract between an insurance company and an individual. With health insurance claims, the individual policy-holder pays a deductible plus co-payment (for instance, a hospital stay might require the first 1000 dollar of fees to be paid by the policy-holder plus 100 dollar per night stayed in hospital). Usually there is a maximum out-of-pocket payment for any single year, and there can be a lifetime maximum.

The purpose of health insurance is to help people cover their health care costs which usually include doctor visits, hospital stays, surgery, procedures, tests, home care, and other treatments and services.

According to the latest United States Census Bureau figures, around 85% of citizens have health insurance. 59.5% of these people receive their health insurance coverage through an employer, and about 9% purchase it directly from the market. Government sources cover 27.3% of the population. Those without health insurance coverage are expected to pay privately for medical services.

Types of New York Health Insurance (http://new-york.ixs.net/General/New-York-Health-Insurance/index.aspx ) The types of health insurance in New York are group health plans, individual plans, and government health plans such as Medicare and Medicaid. In the United States, government-funded Medicare programs help to insure the elderly and end stage renal disease patients.

Group Health Plans

A group health plan offers health care coverage for employers, student organizations, professional associations, religious organizations, and other groups. The employer may pay for part or all of the insurance cost (premium).

Individual and Family Health Insurance

Individual and family health insurance is a type of health insurance coverage that is made available to individuals and families, rather than to employer groups or organizations. These types of health care plans are sold directly to individuals. For those of you who are unemployed or self-employed, an individual health insurance policy is always an option. Unfortunately rates for these policies are high and the coverage is usually less comprehensive than a managed care plan. The good news is that, in many cases, your insurance premium will be tax deductible. Of course, if you’re married, you can always try to catch a ride on your spouse’s group health insurance benefits plan.

Health insurance can be further classified into fee-for-service or indemnity (traditional insurance) and managed care. Both group and individual insurance plans can be either fee-for-service or managed care plans.

Managed Care Health Insurance

These include HMO, PPO, and POS plans. Managed-care plans typically make use of healthcare provider networks. Healthcare providers within a network agree to perform services for managed-care plan patients at pre-negotiated rates and will usually submit the claim to the insurance company for you. In general, you’ll have less paperwork and lower out-of-pocket costs with a managed care health insurance plan and a broader choice of healthcare providers with an indemnity plan.

There are three main types of managed care plans:

• Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO)

• Point-of-Service (POS)

• Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO)

All of these plans offer substantial health insurance benefits to members and their families. If you’re fortunate enough to have a choice of plan, consider the advantages, and disadvantages, of each. Compare the cost of care, the difference in premiums, deductible amounts and your freedom to choose a doctor outside the plan. There are numerous other coverages to compare as well — from prescription drugs to dental to alternative therapies. Be sure you understand the fine points of each.

Indemnity or Fee-For-Service Plan

Normally it covers the same expenses as managed care. The difference is your doctor is paid for each visit with the claim filed by either the patient or the medical provider. A big advantage– unlike some managed care plans, Fee-for-Service allows the patient a great deal of freedom in choosing which doctors and hospitals to use, but will probably involve higher out-of-pocket costs and more paperwork.

However, you’ll likely be required to pay an annual deductible before the insurance company begins to pay on your claims. An Indemnity plan may also require that you pay up front for services and then submit a claim to the insurance company for reimbursement.

Short-Term Health Insurance

Short-term health insurance plans are designed to protect against unforeseen accidents or illnesses, rather than to provide comprehensive coverage, and, as such, typically do not include coverage for preventive care, physicals, immunizations, dental or vision care. It covers for a limited period of time, and may be an ideal solution for those between jobs or those waiting for other health insurance to start. Typically, short-term plans offer coverage up to six months, although some plans may offer coverage up to 12 months. Purchasing a short-term medical insurance plan will make you ineligible for any guaranteed issue individual health plans commonly referred to as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Plans. HIPAA plans are usually very expensive and are generally intended for people with pre-existing medical conditions who would have trouble getting health insurance otherwise.

Medical Savings Account (MSA)

Medical savings account (MSA) is the most recent development in the area of health insurance. The principle behind the MSA is to take the bulk of the financial risk, and premium payments, away from the managed care and indemnity insurers, and allow individuals to save money, tax free, in a savings account for use for medical expenses. Individuals or their employers purchase major-medical policies, medical insurance policies with no coverage for medical expenses until the amount paid by the patient exceeds a predetermined maximum amount, such as 2500 dollar per year. These policies have extremely high deductibles and correspondingly low monthly premiums and the participants take the money that they would have spent on higher premiums and deposit it in an MSA. This money accrues through monthly deposits and also earns interest, and can be spent only to pay for medical care

What’s The Best Health Insurance Plan?

There is no one “best” plan for everyone. The best match for you and your family may be different than the best match for someone else. In order to help you answer this question, here are a few things to consider:

1. Are you going to need long-term coverage or just something for the short-term?

If you’re between jobs for 1-6 months, you may want to go for short-term coverage options. Alternatively, if you have no prospects of receiving group health insurance coverage through an employer, you may value the stability and increased benefits offered through an individual and family health insurance plan which will provide longer term coverage.

2. Are you looking for basic coverage or more comprehensive coverage?

Some insurance plans offer basic coverage (i.e., primarily inpatient hospitalization and outpatient surgery coverage) to cover you in case of a major accident or illness. These insurance plans typically have a lower monthly premium than plans with more comprehensive coverage, and may be appropriate for people who intend to use their insurance primarily in the event of a serious accident or illness. Other insurance plans that offer more comprehensive coverage may include benefits such as preventative care, physician services, prescription drug benefits and routine office visits. These insurance plans typically have a higher monthly premium than plans that only offer basic coverage, and may be appropriate for people who intend to use their insurance on a regular basis.

3. Would you pay for your services before you use them or when you use them?

If you choose a health insurance plan with a low monthly premium, you’re likely to have a higher co-payment or deductible. If you don’t anticipate making frequent use of your health insurance coverage, a higher-deductible plan with a lower monthly premium may suit you best.

4. How important to you is easy access to specialists?

Health insurance plans that require you to coordinate your care through a primary care physician typically require that you obtain a referral before seeing a specialist. So, if you prefer easier access to specialists, you may wish to consider a different type of plan.

5. Do you have a specific doctor or hospital that you would like to visit for healthcare?

Some insurance plans utilize provider networks. Pay special attention to the network of doctors or facilities that each health insurance plan utilizes. Also note that networks utilized by health insurance plans can change, so there is no guarantee that your doctor will always be contracted with your chosen health insurance plan.

6. What is the most you could pay out in case of a serious illness or injury?

Health insurance plans typically place limits on how much a member is required to pay out per year for his or her healthcare. This limit is often referred to as an out-of-pocket maximum. Once you’ve contributed this maximum amount toward your healthcare, the health insurance company typically covers all other costs for the remainder of the benefit year. If you’re concerned about what may happen to you in case of a serious illness or injury, you may wish to pay special attention to the out-of-pocket maximums for the health insurance plans you’re considering.

No matter what insurance plan you may choose, educate yourself and understand all the basics of the health insurance before finalizing anything.

For more information about New York Health Insurance visit: http://new-york.ixs.net