The physicians and staff of the Yale Medical Group know that the world of health insurance and HMO's is filled with terminology that is unfamiliar to us. Here is a list of the most important terms you may encounter. To find a definition, just click on the letter of the alphabet you want to go to or feel free to scroll down the list.
Traditional insurance pays the patient directly.
Providers caring for Medicare patients who accept the Medicare approved fee schedule as payment in full are accepting assignment and may not ask the patient to pay the difference between Medicare and the physician's fee schedule. Those that do not accept the Medicare fee schedule are said to not accept assignment. There are limits to how much they can balance bill the patient. The amount that most indemnity, government payers, and managed care companies require the covered person y to pay in all health care encounters after the deductible is met. This can be a specific dollar amount or a proportion of the bill.