Here we are, entering a new flu season. Generally, experts judge that flu season begins about now in late fall, peaks in about January or February and then ends gradually. Each year, flu (short for influenza - a viral infection of the respiratory tract) is a serious concern. It is estimated that 36,000 Americans died last year due to flu.

So, as a broker who urges his clients to take care of themselves and get good health insurance, I urge you to do the same. Check with your doctor and, if he/she advises it, get a flu shot. I get one each year because I am getting old enough that flu is more risky for ME and I spend a fair amount of time with my grandchildren for whom flu is also a major risk. Flu always hits the younger and the older hardest.

Normally, flu shots are inexpensive, readily available, and effective protection. But this year is different. Experts are speaking with alarm about the "real possibility of a pandemic of avian flu."

To us, regular people, that means they are concerned about a worldwide spreading of the lethal bird flu that has arisen in Asia (known as H5N1). So far, it has spread from birds to birds and from infected birds to people but not much from people to people. If (when) it mutates so that it is able to be spread from person to person OUR LIFE WILL CHANGE! Millions and millions of people will die! Hospitals, doctors, all social services will be overwhelmed. There won't be enough drugs to help those infected, there won't be places to get the drugs, there won't even be gasoline to fuel your car to go somewhere for help. There won't be food in markets. Even public utilities like water, natural gas, electricity may be unavailable.

NO KIDDING - THIS IS SERIOUS! AS MANY AS 75% OF INFECTED PEOPLE MAY DIE!

Make preparations. You might turn out to be entirely on your own. Stock up on everything you will need if you literally need to stay cooped up in your home for weeks or months to save your life. Here is a website where you can read about this more and where you can get advice about how to prepare.

Go to http://www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/individual/index.html

Recently, there has been renewed discussion about customized insurance or personalized insurance. Of course, we have always offered ways for you to create custom insurance by selecting from among the options we make available on our website. Don't be afraid to experiment a little when you seek a quote on our website by changing the factors and observing the effect on the premium cost.

There is no chance that you will be charged when you do multiple quotes. When it comes time to purchase, we will clearly let you know that you are about to create a charge to your card. Meanwhile, feel free to look around at the factors that can personalize insurance to exactly meet your needs.

On our website, go to http://www.wavehelp.com/frequently-asked-questions.htm to see some discussion about the various factors. We all must live within a budget. The objective always is to get the best VALUE by getting the most benefit for the lowest cost.

Following is a very brief discussion of many of the factors you can change to customize your insurance:
MAXIMUM COVERAGE - This is the maximum cumulative amount the insurance company will pay during the entire time you have the coverage. Pay close attention to this factor because many medical procedures are very expensive and you don't want to run out of coverage just when you need it most. Sometimes, the maximum coverage is different for different perils. The higher the maximum coverage, the higher the premium.
DURATION OF COVERAGE - Some kinds of insurance are perpetual; that is, the insurance will continue in force until you do something to end it. Other insurance is for a limited period of time. The longer the coverage period, the higher the premium.
DEDUCTIBLE - This is the amount that you will pay before the insurance company begins to share in paying for your care. Deductible is applied annually or to the length of time you are covered if that is shorter. Deductible usually re-sets on January 1. The higher the deductible, the lower the premium.
CO-INSURANCE - This is the cost-sharing feature of many plans. You will see it expressed sometimes as a fraction such as 80/20 or 85/15. In the fraction, the lower number represents the percentage of costs you will pay after you fulfill your deductible. The lower that percentage is, the higher the premium. There is a second part of co-insurance to be aware of. Co-insurance can be limited to certain amount of costs, or it can be unlimited. For example, you might have a policy that specifies "80/20 of the next $10,000". What that means is that after you meet your deductible, you will need to pay 20% of the next $10,000 of costs or $2,000. After that, the insurance company pays for all covered costs up to the maximum coverage. Co-insurance is applied annually or to the length of time you are covered if that is shorter. Co-insurance usually re-sets on January 1. The lower the total co-insurance you are responsible for, the higher the premium.
CO-PAYMENT - Some insurance plans are set up with this feature that requires you to pay a certain amount each time you visit a care provider such as a doctor. Usually, it is an amount less than $50 per visit but sometimes emergency room co-payments are substantially higher. The lower the co-payment, the higher the premium.
MODE OF PAYMENT also known as FREQUENCY OF PAYMENT - If you pay for your insurance up front, the insurance company can put that money to work investing it to earn interest. In that case, they usually give you a break on the total premium for the period of coverage. For example, if you pay the total annual premium for a year's coverage, you will probably pay less than four times the quarterly premium; and, four times the quarterly premium is usually less than twelve times the monthly premium.
EXTENT OF COVERAGE - Sometimes you will have the option to pay more so that pre-existing conditions are covered.
COVERAGE FOR DEPENDENTS - Many policies allow you to include coverage for dependents on your plan. When this option is available, it is usually less expensive to have one policy that covers everyone instead of having a separate policy for each person.

In my last post, I provided a lot of words and some things to think about. This time, to make up for that, I'll send you to a spot where you can just enjoy yourself. Visit a pilot and photographer who really knows how to put together a trip at http://silvairehair2.home.comcast.net/072806/

REVISION - as of 12/04/07 this link is no longer active.