* Today most insurance quotes you find online will pull up multiple companies with one inquiry. Take the quotes you get and layout them out in a spreadsheet so it will let you compare in an "apples to apples" benefits situation so to speak.

Custom building your health insurance plan is something you should always look at. One suit does not fit all. Adding a critical illness rider in your plan will allow you to have higher deductibles and of course lower premiums. The reason for having to meet a high deductible is a critical illness over 70% of the time.

* Add up the doctor visits the entire family has in the course of the year. The average physician visit is $80 an if you multiply that times the visits for the family you may find by having that benefit on your health insurance policy it is not cost effective. Many plans today include wellness benefits anyway included in the coverage.

* Always make sure your doctor and hospitals you would prefer are in the network of coverage. This will lower the cost of visits as you will recieve the in network billing costs. Find out if your doctor and hospital are in the network. And it may seem obvious but many people find out after coverage takes effect their providers are not in network.

* Medication is definitely an area that needs to be looked at. Prescription costs are rising daily, and there are secrets to cutting these costs with a little effort. Most medication today does have a generic form,and many health insurance plans have a zero deductible and low co-payment for generic drugs. Another key point is try to find out if you can order your "maintenance drugs"(the ones that you have been on for some time and the dosage has not changed) in 90 day supplies as this will cut a lot of cost for you.

* Finally, if you want one of the lowest cost health insurance premiums and have tax savings at the same time consider an HSA (health savings account). This plan is very straightforward as you meet the designated deductible whether it is from inpatient or out patient treatment,or medication and once met the policy will cover 100% up to the designated amount. Usually at least 2 million dollars for the life of the policy. The premiums are put into a tax savings account and you have a nice write off for the year. Talk to an accountant to see if this may fit you.

With healthcare premiums rising using these affordable health insurance secrets will help you cut costs without jeperdizing your benefits. As we said before, one size does not fit all in health insurance but if you only apply one of these secrets you can be closer to fitting your needs and budget.