We all now that catastrophic health insurance is not the dream solution for an American in the world today but what are its precise drawbacks?

First, catastrophic health insurance often excludes coverage in a worryingly large number of situations. Pregnant women, those on prescription drugs and even people just requiring a visit to the doctor’s office are not covered such catastrophic health insurance policies. This means that the thousands of people who rely on catastrophic health insurance do not seek the medical care they really need for the financial cost they would incur.

Second, the deductibles which are common for such policies often are set so high that they do not cover the most common of treatments. As above this problem with catastrophic health insurance prevents people who really require medical care from receiving it.

Third, the life time benefit is frequently set far too low on these catastrophic health insurance policies to be actual adequate for anybody’s life-time! People have to pick and choose when to get health care. Can I afford to go and have this surgery done? Or might something more serious be coming up? In a modern, rich society these are not choices people should have to make but they are the choices that  catastrophic health insurance forces upon people.

Finally,  as one of the only low cost forms of health care out there,  catastrophic health insurance means that those who cannot afford full blown health care are often made to ask the question of whether they can do without any health care at all – especially as  catastrophic health insurance is so inadequate. For the admittedly small number who do opt for this option and do get ill then they are up the proverbial creek without a paddle.
Is  catastrophic health insurance all negative?