About Accident Health Insurance

Well over 3 million people are injured or made ill at work, based on 2008 data from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. This doesn't account for injuries in the home, in traffic accidents or during recreational activities; therefore, the total number of injured people per year is higher. Your regular health insurance policy may not sufficiently cover accidents, in which case an accident health insurance policy may be necessary.

Definition

• Accident health insurance, also known as accident and sickness insurance, covers you only if your injury, illness or death results from an accident. You may use this type of insurance in place of, or in addition to, regular health insurance policies. Employers routinely offer this type of insurance. It also is applicable to sports teams; fraternities, sororities and other organizations; and students studying abroad.

Coverage

• Accident health insurance will cover some or all of your medical and hospital costs that relate to your accident. This includes surgery and other procedures. Injuries, illness or death as a result of an accident may impact the ability of you or your loved ones to pay your bills. Thus, accident insurance usually covers income payments so you can stay afloat, even if you can't work.

Application

• For some individuals, a full insurance policy may be too expensive. Other people may be in transition if they are switching jobs and previously held insurance through their employer. Accident insurance provides a "bare bones" health plan people may use until their more comprehensive health insurance policy kicks in, or until they can afford better coverage. If you are in a job where your risk of accidents is high--for example, construction--and have insufficient health insurance, accident insurance provides additional coverage.

Restrictions

• Accidental health insurance is more restrictive than other types of health insurance. For example, you can restrict coverage to certain hours of the day, such as only when you are on the job, or you may make the policy apply only through the dates of a trip you may take.

Cost

• The cost of accidental health insurance is relatively low. Depending on how much coverage you need and which company you use, policies may range from less than $1 per month to $50 per month. This is significantly less than the average individual health insurance policy, which is about $4,800 per year, according to Doresa Banning, freelance journalist and medical transcriptionist with the CompuQuotes website. Of course, every insurance company offers different rates, and your premiums may be higher or lower depending on whether the insurance company assesses your risk of an accident to be low or high.