Monitoring whether your Medicare coverage have any gaps will be beneficial to you when you grow old and retire from working. A lot of elderly Americans these days have a hard time with paying for medical expenses they assumed would already be covered.

In case, you do see gaps in the Medicare coverages (or you might be worried in the future you will), it is advisable that you purchase Medigap. It is designed to fill in the gaps in your Medicare coverages. These are usually sold through private insurance companies and are standardized and regulated by state and federal law.

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We mentioned last time about short-term health insurance, now we’re going to talk about the opposite, the long-term health insurance.

Long Term Care Insurance or LTCI will be useful when you’re in the twilight of your years and probably no more resource for money to pay for a normal health insurance policy. However, deciding when to buy an LTCI policy will depend on a lot of factors, as buying them while you’re young means less expensive premiums to pay but you may be paying it over a very long time. It’s suggested that one should buy this type of insurance at around the 50′s to 60′s age range.

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If you just lost your job, either by resigning or getting terminated (not terminated due to gross misconduct), then you may be eligible for the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, otherwise known as COBRA.

For a name synonymous with snakes and poisons, it can help you weather out the storm while you look for a new way to cover health insurance for yourself and your loved ones. According to this act you have the right to continue your former employer’s group plan for individual or family health insurance for up to 18 months at your own expense.

If you’re currently employed, ask your HR personnel for more details.

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Health insurance plans sometimes don’t cover the college student kids. There’s a statistic saying that there are over 5 million of them not covered by their parents’ health insurance. This is where the college comes in and offers health insurance for their college student. The question now is, should the parents sign the papers?

Businessweek.com advises that parents should read the details before signing on the dotted line:

• Maximum Benefits vs. Deductibles. Most college plans have a very low benefits ceiling—often $30,000 or less. This won’t cover large medical issues such as cancer or injuries suffered in a car accident.

• Interior Caps. Some college insurance plans are structured so it is nearly impossible to take advantage of all the benefits.

• Prescription Drugs. Most plans put a cap on the coverage for prescription drugs. These caps, however, can vary from $400 to $5,000-plus.

• Exclusions. At the bottom of most insurance plans is a list of exclusions—medical issues or procedures that aren’t covered.

• Loss Ratios. Colleges seldom disclose a key statistic for judging their plans, known as a “loss ratio” or “benefits ratio.”

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With the current U.S. Recession, people are cutting back on a lot of expenses. However, Health Insurance should be somewhere near the bottom of that list for pretty much obvious reasons. So how do you ensure that your health and medical bills are paid and at the same time eat three meals a day? Follow the tips from insurance.com and you’ll be ok:

1. Practice prevention
2. Shop around for health insurance
3. Cut the cost of prescription drugs
4. Check your medical bills
5. Join your spouse’s health plan
6. Keep track of your medical expenses
7. Negotiate a discount with your health-care provider
8. Contribute to a flexible spending account
9. Take advantage of free health screenings
10. Get to know your health insurance

More tips here