Goal: Review your health/insurance budget and uncover hidden cost savings. Update your budget to reflect this new spending plan.
Why it Matters: Health is one of the most important aspects of life, and it can be difficult to want to cut back on things that improve our health.
However, today we’re going to show you how to maintain the same quality of health benefits while reducing the cost.
Completion Time: ~10-mins
11 Strategies to Reduce Your Health Expenses: After reading this list, take a look at your health/insurance spending and identify areas that you can improve.
Prescriptions
Consider getting a prescription saving card. Even if you have insurance, you still may be able to find discounted medication using a prescription savings card. However, it’s important to compare these offers with your insurance coverage and other coupons to see which will get you the best deal.
Apply for prescription drug assistance programs. Certain people such as retirees, college students, or people between jobs can apply for assistance through drug manufacturers or non-profits. These programs also apply to people who are uninsured, underinsured, or can’t afford their medication.
Check for discounts from the drug manufacturer or insurer. These entities may also offer discounts or special prices for certain medication.
Buy generic brands. Make sure that the generic version you’re considering contains the same ingredients and strengths. Talk to your doctor to double check before substituting for generic brands.
Find a Community Charity Pharmacy. CCPs are pharmacies that provide drugs to uninsured, underinsured, or low-income individuals.
Participate in pharmacy rewards programs. Many stores and pharmacies have apps or rewards programs that can help you save on prescription costs.
Shop around. Call multiple pharmacies to see if they have a prescription available at a lower price. Use online drug cost tools to help estimate your prescription costs.
Consider a free trial program. Some pharmaceutical companies offer programs to provide medication until you’re able to enroll in an insurance plan that can provide you coverage.
Insurance Premiums
Know your policy coverage. Did you know that almost 96% of Americans overestimate their knowledge of health insurance principles? Instead of thinking you know what you’re going to get, take the time to understand your policy so you know the smartest way to plan for expenses.
Negotiate medical bills. This isn’t exactly an insurance premium tip, but it’s important to know that you can negotiate bills and even overdue bills.
Shop around for insurance plans. If you’re looking on the open market or using an insurance broker, you can often find a cheaper option by comparing multiple policies.
Your Turn: Now it’s time to modify your health budget and free up more FI dollars to accelerate your plan. To view your spending and modify your budget in WizeFi, simply follow this tutorial.
Once you've reduced your health/insurance expenses, make sure to apply those extra financial independence dollars towards your 4-step plan.
In this example, you can go the 4-step plan and apply an extra $100 towards your Emergency Savings each month.
This one change has allowed this person to reach financial independence over 2 years sooner!
