Which is the Best Life Insurance Policy?

When you’re searching for the best life insurance policy for you, one of the most important considerations is the type of insurance you’re purchasing. While the differences between these policies aren’t always explained very well, they offer different coverage, different premiums, and different exclusions and so should influence what you purchase.Life insurance falls into 4 main categories though it can often look like there are more because different companies will title them differently. Getting familiar with each type will help you know what sort of policy you’re looking and which one will be the best life insurance policy for you.Term LifeTerm insurance will pay your beneficiaries a certain, specified amount of money in case of your death in exchange for a regular premium. These policies generally have a specified length of coverage, or term, after which they are no longer valid. Most of these policies pay out in case of death only and not if you contract a serious illness or are in an accident that seriously prevents you from returning to active work.Term life can be the best insurance policy for you if you are looking for the lowest personal investment, or premium. On the other hand, if you do not die during the specified term of coverage, you receive nothing in spite of your investment.Whole LifeWhole life does not have a fixed term of coverage and so is considered permanent insurance. In addition, this type of insurance policy has a cash value on top of the specified death benefit, and you can access that cash value at any time. However, anytime you use money from the cash value of your policy, it is considered a loan and your beneficiaries may not receive the entire death benefit if you die before paying it back.While whole insurance policies usually have significantly higher premiums than term life policies, the greater flexibility and permanence of the insurance can outweigh this downside. If you can spend a little more on premiums, a whole life policy may be the best life insurance for you.Universal LifeUniversal life offers some similar benefits but more flexibility than whole life insurance. Most universal policies offer flexible premiums, and distinguish between what you’re paying for the death benefit and cash value of the policy (which many whole life polices do not offer).If you want the benefits of whole life but know you cannot afford the premiums at this point, a universal policy can allow you to have a permanent insurance policy with some cash value and lower premiums.Endowment Life InsuranceEndowment insurance policies build up a cash value until the total amount of the policy equals the death benefit. At this time, the policy reaches its endowment age and pays out whether you have died or not after a specific amount of time or when you reach a certain age.If you cannot afford high premiums, this is not the best life insurance policy for you. However, if you want some guaranteed income provided you live past a certain age check out this type of life insurance.No matter which type of life insurance you choose, you should know what you’re getting. That way, you can insure that the choice you make is for the best life insurance policy you can find.

Learn About Bungalow House Plans – Free Resources

Bungalow house plans are quickly returning as a desired home style. Bungalow house plans originally came from western areas of the United States but quickly drew interest from southern and northern area families. The original bungalow houses were quite small and only a single storey in height. Bungalows often had wide verandas across the front or wrapping around the house providing additional family gathering areas. Today bungalows are still considered to be single stories but may include partial second floors or loft areas.The popularity of bungalow floor plans is often the result of the desired convenience of having all the main living areas on one floor. In some cases it may be a requirement of necessity as the absence of stairs makes the floor plans well suited to those who are aging, have limited mobility or are confined to a wheelchair.Bungalow floor plans come in a wide range of sizes from small, compact plans suitable for inner city lots to large, sprawling plans that take advantage of country locations. Therefore bungalows can be considered suitable floor plans for any type of homeowner – young or old, single or married, large families or small.The smaller bungalow plans will be designed with strict, efficient use of all space as was typical in the original traditional bungalow designs. Simplicity of design is essential in creating a functional small bungalow plan. These plans can provide comfortable living spaces with all the current household conveniences that families are looking for while allowing for an ease of maintenance and smaller lot considerations. Smaller bungalow plans are suitable for individual homeowners or small families. They are often considered as ‘starter’ homes for families but are often found to be so efficiently designed accommodating grown families is possible.Larger bungalow floor plans have become very popular in recent years. These floor plans provide families with designs that include more elaborate spaces in which to entertain, relax or engage in family activities. Often these larger plans may include separate ‘wings’ to allow for privacy between bedroom areas and active living spaces. Active living spaces may now include mini gyms, game rooms, home theaters and hobby spaces. In areas where construction practices include full basements bungalows with fully developed basement areas are extremely common. This helps to offset the more expensive aspect of bungalow construction. Since bungalows require more foundation and roof area on a per unit basis (per sq.ft, per sq.M) than the same living space in a two storey, bungalows are more expensive to construct. By retaining the convenience of all the daily living spaces on one floor and adding the amenities and/or extra bedrooms in the basement level the footprint can be kept smaller and maintain cost.Bungalows can be designed in any style of exterior architectural design. Traditional exterior styles will customarily be Craftsman, Prairie, Shingle or Colonial designs. Typically clad in natural materials and finished in earthy color schemes these styles all offer wonderful attributes for a comfortable family home and blend suitably in most surroundings.Bungalows are also well defined by Modern, Post Modern and International styles of architecture. These styles will consist of strong yet simple forms enhanced with edgy detailing. Finishing materials will be clean and smooth with possible textured or boldly colored accents. These styles offer the discriminating homeowner opportunity to make a contemporary lifestyle statement.

Craftsman Bungalow House Plans – Usually Include a Wide Front Porch!

We know them as craftsman bungalows, California, Chicago, or Michigan bungalows, Arts and Crafts bungalows, or just plain bungalows. But what differentiates a bungalow from a Craftsmans home? About 1911, the Craftsman Bungalow Co, Inc in Seattle, Washington, along with Gustav Stickley, published a book of house plans called “Craftsman Bungalows” whose floor plans were based on the Art and Crafts movement of the time. The American Arts and Crafts Movement, an American architectural, design, and decorative arts style, was popular from the late 19th century through the early part of the 20th century. It remained strong until the 1930s. Craftsman homes features included:

Low-pitched roof lines, gabled or hipped roof
Deeply overhanging eaves,
Exposed rafters or decorative brackets under eaves
Front porch beneath extension of main roof
Tapered, square columns supporting roof
4-over-1 or 6-over-1 double-hung windows
Frank Lloyd Wright design motifs
Hand-crafted stone or woodwork
Mixed materials throughout structure
A huge front porch equipped with thick, square pedestal-like tapered
columns supporting the roof of the porch

While some purists insist that only homes built using these Stickley plans can truly be called “Craftsman,” many homes were designed in a style similar to Stickley’s, hence the bungalow. Bungalows originated in India and were normally small one-story homes with wide verandas (or porches). They were later used for homes for British officials of the British Raj, and whose design was later brought to the U.S. where they initially gained high status. In the later part of 19th century they were used as large cottages. A bungalow today is usually a detached residential home which is either single story, or has a second story built into a sloping roof. Here are main characteristics:

It usually has dormer windows if it has one and a half stories
House are rather small, however, you may find larger examples that were built in earlier years.
Low-pitched roofs with very deep porches
Heavy stone porch column supports that taper as they ascend
Wide projecting eaves and exposed eave brackets.
Exterior materials include natural siding, brick, and/or stucco.
Street-facing gables with composition or shingled roofs
Dark wood paneling
A large fireplace
An arched opening that separated the living room and dining room
Built-in cabinetry in the dining room and kitchen

As you can see Craftsman homes and bungalows share very similar, if not all, of the same characteristics. No matter how you refer to them, bungalows are one of our favorite home designs. We love the wide expansive porches that make them look cozy and comfortable.Bungalows were simple and inexpensive to build. Prior to World War I, a bungalow cost under $900. After the war, prices rose to approximately $3,500. Because of their affordability the middle class were able to more rapidly move from apartments to homes in greater numbers. Bungalow designs were spread by the practice of building from mail-order plans available from illustrated catalogs, sometimes with alterations based on local practice or conditions.Bungalows are found in older neighborhoods in many American cities. Many cities created what are called “Bungalow Belts” of the homes built in the 1920s because they clustered around streetcar lines. Today, you will find neighborhoods of bungalows in almost any city. Bungalows are prized possessions because of their unique and simple designs, built-ins, and their wonderful porches, bungalows are a favorite of many.

The Advantages of Singapore Bungalows

Imagine an exclusive neighborhood with tree lined streets, manicured lawns, spacious backyards and the privacy of having four walls to yourself. All of these come with buying your very own Singapore Bungalow.Everybody knows that land is expensive in the land-limited city state. Most other residents, visitors, expats have to live in flats, apartments and condos. Living in a bungalow in Singapore exudes a certain luxury considering that there are roughly only around 1,000 good class bungalows located all around Singapore.Aside from exclusivity, buying Singapore bungalows are very good long term investments. Bungalow sales have fared well even during hard financial times compared to other housing projects and property values. Over the years, very good financial gains have been reported by bungalow owners who have decided to sell their properties.Bungalow owners are also enjoying the plot of land that comes with their properties. Good class bungalows should have a minimum plot of 1,400 sqm. This gives owners and their families a lot of room to play and run around with. Another restriction for bungalow owners is that there has to be an adequate amount of grass and greenery around the property. This stipulation is to adhere to environmental laws that aim to preserve the ambiance of healthy living amidst Singapore’s urban jungle.In addition to this, bungalows are either single storey homes or two storey houses. The height restriction is again to preserve the low-rise and residential feel of bungalow neighborhoods.One of the advantages of buying and owning a bungalow is that it gives the owners a lot of room for future extensions. Bungalows can be easily remodeled and renovated because of the large space available to owners. Extensions can either be a new wing or a new floor or even a swimming pool. Because of the lot size allotted to bungalows, a garden is also a very good idea. Improved and maintained bungalows can easily fetch higher resale values, another motivation for bungalow owners to care for their properties.Singapore law states that only citizens can own landed property, including bungalows in the city-state. But there are a lot of bungalow owners who lease and rent out their properties to foreigners, companies, expats, corporations and even fellow citizens. This is another advantage of buying and owning bungalows because it is one of the more sought after properties for renting, making it a potential money making venture for its owner. Indeed, the current rental on bungalows around the city-state averages in the 5 figure category.Very few of these protected areas exist in Singapore today. Only about 39 designated areas for Good Class Bungalows or GCBs have been designated by the government as protected areas for these types of housing developments. These Areas are Nassim Road, Belmont Park, Cluny Hill and Raffles Park. There are around 2,500 GCBs around the Singapore and of the millions of Singaporeans only about 1,000 citizens own bungalows in these designated areas. The Singaporean Government has no plans in the future to add to these exclusive areas, further raising the value on the current bungalows around the city-state.For people who do not live or have not been to Singapore, they might ask what the fuss is all about Singapore bungalows. In a country where land is a commodity, and owning a bungalow does not only scream wealth, it also says luxury. Singapore bungalows are far and few in between so if you happen to own one, consider yourself one of the lucky few who have made it in life.

Know More About Types of Health Insurance Plans in Florida

Individual, families, groups, and businesses need customized health insurance plans to ensure that they have to spend minimum out-of-the-pocket money for their healthcare needs. With the implementation of healthcare reforms, the options for buying health insurance are widened.

With the advent of internet technology, the concept of transparency of price is gaining momentum. Insurers in Florida health insurance are facing a compelling need of price transparency when they offer health insurance quotes to their clients. At the same time, application time and waiting time for health insurance has reduced significantly as compared to earlier times.

Types of health insurance plans offered in Florida
Apart from State and Federal governments’ sponsored program including Medicare, Medicaid, etc., there is an option of buying health insurance from private companies. Like many other states, health insurance plans in Florida are offered to the residents in traditional format. These could be classified as:

1. Individual health coverage
2. Family health coverage
3. Group insurance
4. Student health coverage
5. Dental health insurance
6. Low cost insurance
7. Low-income families insurance
8. Short-term insurance
9. Small business insurance

Companies offering health insurance Florida
Below is the list of health insurance companies offering health insurance to the residents of Florida:
• Aetna
• AMS
• Assurant
• Avalon Healthcare
• AvMed Health Plans
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield
• Celtic
• Cigna
• Coventry
• Golden Rule
• Humana One
• IAC
• Solera Dental
• Vista

Types of health plans offered in Florida

A lot of consumer end up having discount coupons, which sometimes are termed as health plans; however, it needs to be understood that these discount coupons are not insurance. To buy affordable health plans in Florida, consumers need to equip themselves with proper knowledge about the same.

Traditional categorization of health coverage in Florida offers indemnity and managed care health plans. Indemnity health plans have the insured file claims for reimbursement. While managed care health plans allow the providers to file claims for the insured person.

Managed care health plans are further categorized as HMO, PPO, and POS.

Impact of the Affordable Care Act on insurance in Florida
• 290,000 small businesses in Florida will be offered tax credits for offering health coverage to their employees.
• Medicare beneficiaries in Florida will be automatically mailed a check of $250 to defray the cost of their prescription drugs.
• Early retirees will be offered reinsurance options.
• Uninsured Floridians with pre-existing condition will have a huge boost with $351 million federal dollars made available to Florida starting July 1 to provide coverage.
• Like many other states, for the first time ever, Florida will have the option of Federal Medicaid funding for coverage for all low-income populations, irrespective of age, disability, or family status.
• 8.8 million Floridians will no longer have to worry about lifetime limits on the coverage.
• Around 1.1 million individuals will not have to worry about getting dropped from coverage when they get sick.
• Children in Florida will be able to stay with their family insurance policy till the age of 26 years.

Costs involved in a health coverage plan in Florida

It is important to understand types of costs involved in a health coverage plan to make sure that Floridians have assessed everything before they finalize a health plan. We talk about the types of costs involved in a health coverage plan:

Premium-premium is the amount of money to be paid on monthly basis. Premium is the main cost that a health plan constitutes. It could vary from person to person and in plan to plan. It mainly depends on the age, gender, and health status of a consumer applying to get health coverage.

Deductible-deductible is the second major cost involved in a health plan. It is the amount of money that a consumer pays before the insurer actually begins to pay for the coverage. With higher deductibles, premium costs are reduced.

Coinsurance – coinsurance, as the name explains itself, is the amount of money that the consumer agrees to pay in percentage of the total cost of medical service after the deductible has been paid. Generally, it is usually 80/20 of the total value where 80% of the cost is paid by the insurance companies while the 20% is by the consumer.

Copay – copay is like coinsurance but it is not represented in percentage but in real value. Moreover, there is no consideration of deductibles in copays. Supposing a consumer needs to pay $70 per visit for the doctor: with copay, consumer will be paying $40 and the remaining $30 will be paid by the insurer. However, this copay facility will have some impact on the premium costs.

Going Pro – The Annual Market Revenue of Motivational Speaking

DIGITAL MARKETING

For much of history of mankind, the concept of promotion of goods and services, which, simplistically, we may refer to as “marketing” – has existed in the real world. With the advent of the internet- the creator and the crucible for the creation of this New World – came the “Virtual World”, also be referred to as the electronic or the Digital World, the process of marketing also underwent a paradigm change.
In the 21st Century, marketing in the digital world, or ‘Digital Marketing’, has revolutionized the manner and process goods and services are delivered to the consumer-customer.
With better & economical delivery of ‘data’ and an explosion in handheld ‘mobile’ devices, Digital marketing has pervaded our lives like no other. Digital methods of communication and marketing are faster, versatile, practical and streamlined. Digital Marketing is set to replace the more traditional systems and delivery of information altogether. Generations of yore may lament the impending demise of paper-based marketing methods, traditional TV, and radio mediums but the younger generation is truly embracing the brave new world of digital media and marketing.

Digital Marketing – Will change the way humanity lives, loves, consumes and shops. And it has only just begun.

We have to come on a stage where you have can earn so much money just with the help of digital marketing only.

We proudly provide one of the most comprehensive search engine optimization packages available. We go far beyond the traditional, short-sighted view that getting anyone and everyone to your website is the key to increasing sales. In fact, The SERVEXION India approach is to attract target market consumers to your site and then encourage them to convert from website visitor to buyer. In the end, your company should be getting a great return on your investment (ROI).

Search engine optimization is a long, carefully planned and executed a method for generating more target market visits to a website. Every company in the world that needs to use a website to display its products and services requires the services of an expert SEO consultant. Hiring an experienced, professional SEO company is the first step toward achieving your goals. Companies of varying sizes count on us to bring in website traffic and in turn, they are increasing their bottom lines.

10 Reasons Why You Need to Be Using Video by Rollsteady Media. Industrial Video Production Yorkshire

Video marketing’s time is finally here. We are at the stage where enough people are online, the connections are fast enough and the cost of production is affordable enough. This will improve even further over time!

With it’s incredibly high return on investment compared to nearly all traditional marketing methods video is, for most companies these days, the go to marketing tool. Anyone tasked with the responsibility of a companies marketing that has not considered and researched video for marketing can’t be seen as doing their job properly!

HERE ARE 10 REASONS WHY YOU NEED VIDEO!

1. SEO – Rank better in Google search and increase your web traffic.

Google owns YouTube and is therfore biased towards content on there.

Part of Google’s algorithm for search rankings considers the amount of time visitors stay on your website.

By integrating an optimized video into your company’s website,you can engage youre audience for longer than you can with simple text and pictures. This means you’re 53 times more likely to be featured on the front page of Google search results.

Today websites full of mountains of text and images rank lower in Google searches.

Customers generally take less than a minute to make a purchasing decision. They don’t want to read through all this to quickly understand a product. A well made video can engage them instantlyand get your sales points across quickly and effectively. They’re far more likely to decide to buy and do it right away.

Away from Google itself, it’ s important to consider that YouTube is now the 2nd biggest search engine. People would rather search for a video to watch than have lots of text to read through. So while you’re optimising the videos themselves for SEO this is also helping them get to the top of the rankings in YouTube, the 2nd biggest search engine!

2. Video is more engaging

Traditional web content still has a place in digital marketing. But adding more and more uninspring text and images is more likely to confuse the potential customer, they’re less likely to read everything you need to say to them and it slows down the load time of the site.

As we’ve seen, videos are way more likely to grab the attention of your audience and keep them engaged. A much better way of imparting this information, as well as keeping your site tidy and easy to navigate.

We spend 1/3 of time online watching it.

59% of executives and decision-makers will opt for video over reading text.

While a blog post loses on average 55% of readers within 15 seconds, a 90-second marketing video can hold 53 percent of viewers all the way to the end!

When featured on a your website’s landing page, video can boost conversion rates by up 80%. As well as bringing about a 200-300% increase in click-through rates when used in marketing emails.

Videos also generate 1200% more shares than both text and images combined.

When it comes to presentations and sales pitches, video is far more likely to engage and excite an audience than a live presentation comprising of text, stills and charts.

Merely seeing the word ‘video’ in an email’s subject line makes us 19% more likely to open it.

Simply put, more people are likely to see your product and it’s selling features by using video to convey your marketing message!

3. Increased conversion rates

85% of people are more likely to buy a product once they have watched a video showcasing it.

By letting you see the number of views on each video you can see what products or services potential customers are actually interested in. You can see how many viewers to your site could potentially become actual customers. This is far more powerful than just counting what has previously been sold and allows you to be proactive in your marketing.

You can even measure how many times a single individual watches your video, where they skip, fast forward, watch again or where they leave.

This makes video much easier to optimise. You can’t monitor a readers’ eyes in this way to see how they’re engaging with blog posts and banner ads.

4. Better explain your Product or Service

Video explains the usefulness and functions of a product or service clearly and quickly.

People soon get bored reading. Even if they do read all that text,it’s hard to control how they interpret it.

Seeing something helps people identify with it and understand it. They connect with it better.

The average person retains only 10 percent of what they hear, but 50 percent of what they see.

Videos are especially helpful if you have a complicated product or service.

5. Easy to share

With word-of-mouth the main way that businesses attract customers, it’s easy and convenient for customers to share your video whether one to one or on social media

When it comes to your own social media campaign video is perfect for generating interest.

Research has shown that over 70% of internet users watch videos online.

In fact more than 50% of the population will watch videos this year.

This means that people are way more likely to share your content if it’s a video.

6. A consistent, salesperson – working 24 hours a day for you

A great marketing message is seen, believed and remembered.

Videos can be used by salespeople to enhance their pitch or as a virtual salesperson working for you 24 hours a day. Videos can deliver a tailored message, ensuring the key sales points are hammered home every single time without having to work them into a conversation or worse still, forgetting to mention them.

Potential customers can see with their own eyes what you are selling, what it does, how it works, it’s benefits and unique features. This means they are more likely to buy it!

• 80% of web traffic is projected to come from video by 2019, online consumption of video is doubling every year.

• Videos on landing pages can increase conversion rates by 80%.

• 90% purchasing decisions are influenced by product video.

• Studies have found that viewers are 64-85% more likely to purchase the product after watching the video.

7. Video Strengthens Brand Recall

Print marketing print marketing can offer good brand recall effects but when watching a marketing video, consumers are able to retain 95% of its message. When receiving the same message through text-based content, this retention rate drops to 10%.

Pictures and sound are the best way for marketers to evoke feelings in an audience and forge a connection with the brand. It makes it memorable. Even if they don’t purchase straight away the seed is set seed when they come to making future decisions

While print marketing can have a similar brand recall effect as video, the level pales in comparison.

8. Get the better of your competition

If your competitors are using video they are already gaining these benefits and stealing a march on you. If your customer can’t see what your selling they’re more likely to go there! We can help you do it even better than them. If they haven’t dived in yet, it’s a chance for you to get ahead. Don’t waste it.

9. It’s versatile

Video allows you to attract and engage your audience for longer so you can get across all the information you need to make their mind up.

It can be used as stand alone or as part of a longer term marketing funnel.

Whatever the aim, there’s a suitable type of video corporate videos, branded documentaries, event videos, customer testimonial videos, training/instructional videos, case studies or testimonials. And so many ways to present the information – real live action footage, motion graphics or 2d/3d animation.

10. It’s time efficient

People love video and so do companies. It allows a lot of info to be transmitted data transmitted and received in a short space of time. The brain can process video 60000x faster than reading. No wonder they say a picture paints a thousand words! In most cases, video is the most cost effective way to attract and convert people into customers. It wasn’t possible until very recently. Make sure you take advantage of the opportunities it offers!

Of course, at the end of writing this article, the obvious question was “If video does this so well, why haven’t you made this article a video?” So we did!

Of course this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to reasons you need video.

If you’d like to discuss this further or you’re convinced you want to take that leap into video just get in touch with us at http://www.rollsteady.media

We’d love to hear from you!

Video Production in Brighouse, Huddersfield, Halifax, Elland and Leeds. At Rollsteady Media we’re as passionate about engineering as you are. We also know how powerful an asset digital marketing is today, especially video and photography. But at the same time we know how daunting it can be taking that first step into it.

To this end we have assembled a team of highly experienced professionals with many decades’ experience within the video, photography, design and engineering industries.

This allows us to create high quality, targeted digital marketing products based on a comprehensive knowledge and experience of UK industry. Despite our considerable experience we consistently maintain a youthful enthusiasm to harness the latest equipment, techniques and delivery platforms. We make the experience as simplified as possible, making your role as little or as much as you want it to be. You’d be surprised how little you need to do in helping us plan and execute the shoot, edit and distribute the resulting video But the results can be spectacular. Both on the screen and off it![

Our services are incredibly cost effective. Often the whole project can be undertaken by our main videographer or photographer. For larger projects requiring expertise in specialist areas we can add specialists into the mix to provide all of the services of a full service agency without the associated running costs. Examples include commercially licensed drone photography, long term timelapse and 3d product visualisation.

Health Care Fraud – The Perfect Storm

Today, health care fraud is all over the news. There undoubtedly is fraud in health care. The same is true for every business or endeavor touched by human hands, e.g. banking, credit, insurance, politics, etc. There is no question that health care providers who abuse their position and our trust to steal are a problem. So are those from other professions who do the same.

Why does health care fraud appear to get the ‘lions-share’ of attention? Could it be that it is the perfect vehicle to drive agendas for divergent groups where taxpayers, health care consumers and health care providers are dupes in a health care fraud shell-game operated with ‘sleight-of-hand’ precision?

Take a closer look and one finds this is no game-of-chance. Taxpayers, consumers and providers always lose because the problem with health care fraud is not just the fraud, but it is that our government and insurers use the fraud problem to further agendas while at the same time fail to be accountable and take responsibility for a fraud problem they facilitate and allow to flourish.

1. Astronomical Cost Estimates

What better way to report on fraud then to tout fraud cost estimates, e.g.

- “Fraud perpetrated against both public and private health plans costs between $72 and $220 billion annually, increasing the cost of medical care and health insurance and undermining public trust in our health care system… It is no longer a secret that fraud represents one of the fastest growing and most costly forms of crime in America today… We pay these costs as taxpayers and through higher health insurance premiums… We must be proactive in combating health care fraud and abuse… We must also ensure that law enforcement has the tools that it needs to deter, detect, and punish health care fraud.” [Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE), 10/28/09 press release]

- The General Accounting Office (GAO) estimates that fraud in healthcare ranges from $60 billion to $600 billion per year – or anywhere between 3% and 10% of the $2 trillion health care budget. [Health Care Finance News reports, 10/2/09] The GAO is the investigative arm of Congress.

- The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association (NHCAA) reports over $54 billion is stolen every year in scams designed to stick us and our insurance companies with fraudulent and illegal medical charges. [NHCAA, web-site] NHCAA was created and is funded by health insurance companies.

Unfortunately, the reliability of the purported estimates is dubious at best. Insurers, state and federal agencies, and others may gather fraud data related to their own missions, where the kind, quality and volume of data compiled varies widely. David Hyman, professor of Law, University of Maryland, tells us that the widely-disseminated estimates of the incidence of health care fraud and abuse (assumed to be 10% of total spending) lacks any empirical foundation at all, the little we do know about health care fraud and abuse is dwarfed by what we don’t know and what we know that is not so. [The Cato Journal, 3/22/02]

2. Health Care Standards

The laws & rules governing health care – vary from state to state and from payor to payor – are extensive and very confusing for providers and others to understand as they are written in legalese and not plain speak.

Providers use specific codes to report conditions treated (ICD-9) and services rendered (CPT-4 and HCPCS). These codes are used when seeking compensation from payors for services rendered to patients. Although created to universally apply to facilitate accurate reporting to reflect providers’ services, many insurers instruct providers to report codes based on what the insurer’s computer editing programs recognize – not on what the provider rendered. Further, practice building consultants instruct providers on what codes to report to get paid – in some cases codes that do not accurately reflect the provider’s service.

Consumers know what services they receive from their doctor or other provider but may not have a clue as to what those billing codes or service descriptors mean on explanation of benefits received from insurers. This lack of understanding may result in consumers moving on without gaining clarification of what the codes mean, or may result in some believing they were improperly billed. The multitude of insurance plans available today, with varying levels of coverage, ad a wild card to the equation when services are denied for non-coverage – especially if it is Medicare that denotes non-covered services as not medically necessary.

3. Proactively addressing the health care fraud problem

The government and insurers do very little to proactively address the problem with tangible activities that will result in detecting inappropriate claims before they are paid. Indeed, payors of health care claims proclaim to operate a payment system based on trust that providers bill accurately for services rendered, as they can not review every claim before payment is made because the reimbursement system would shut down.

They claim to use sophisticated computer programs to look for errors and patterns in claims, have increased pre- and post-payment audits of selected providers to detect fraud, and have created consortiums and task forces consisting of law enforcers and insurance investigators to study the problem and share fraud information. However, this activity, for the most part, is dealing with activity after the claim is paid and has little bearing on the proactive detection of fraud.

4. Exorcise health care fraud with the creation of new laws

The government’s reports on the fraud problem are published in earnest in conjunction with efforts to reform our health care system, and our experience shows us that it ultimately results in the government introducing and enacting new laws – presuming new laws will result in more fraud detected, investigated and prosecuted – without establishing how new laws will accomplish this more effectively than existing laws that were not used to their full potential.

With such efforts in 1996, we got the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). It was enacted by Congress to address insurance portability and accountability for patient privacy and health care fraud and abuse. HIPAA purportedly was to equip federal law enforcers and prosecutors with the tools to attack fraud, and resulted in the creation of a number of new health care fraud statutes, including: Health Care Fraud, Theft or Embezzlement in Health Care, Obstructing Criminal Investigation of Health Care, and False Statements Relating to Health Care Fraud Matters.

In 2009, the Health Care Fraud Enforcement Act appeared on the scene. This act has recently been introduced by Congress with promises that it will build on fraud prevention efforts and strengthen the governments’ capacity to investigate and prosecute waste, fraud and abuse in both government and private health insurance by sentencing increases; redefining health care fraud offense; improving whistleblower claims; creating common-sense mental state requirement for health care fraud offenses; and increasing funding in federal antifraud spending.

Undoubtedly, law enforcers and prosecutors MUST have the tools to effectively do their jobs. However, these actions alone, without inclusion of some tangible and significant before-the-claim-is-paid actions, will have little impact on reducing the occurrence of the problem.

What’s one person’s fraud (insurer alleging medically unnecessary services) is another person’s savior (provider administering tests to defend against potential lawsuits from legal sharks). Is tort reform a possibility from those pushing for health care reform? Unfortunately, it is not! Support for legislation placing new and onerous requirements on providers in the name of fighting fraud, however, does not appear to be a problem.

If Congress really wants to use its legislative powers to make a difference on the fraud problem they must think outside-the-box of what has already been done in some form or fashion. Focus on some front-end activity that deals with addressing the fraud before it happens. The following are illustrative of steps that could be taken in an effort to stem-the-tide on fraud and abuse:

- DEMAND all payors and providers, suppliers and others only use approved coding systems, where the codes are clearly defined for ALL to know and understand what the specific code means. Prohibit anyone from deviating from the defined meaning when reporting services rendered (providers, suppliers) and adjudicating claims for payment (payors and others). Make violations a strict liability issue.

- REQUIRE that all submitted claims to public and private insurers be signed or annotated in some fashion by the patient (or appropriate representative) affirming they received the reported and billed services. If such affirmation is not present claim isn’t paid. If the claim is later determined to be problematic investigators have the ability to talk with both the provider and the patient…

- REQUIRE that all claims-handlers (especially if they have authority to pay claims), consultants retained by insurers to assist on adjudicating claims, and fraud investigators be certified by a national accrediting company under the purview of the government to exhibit that they have the requisite understanding for recognizing health care fraud, and the knowledge to detect and investigate the fraud in health care claims. If such accreditation is not obtained, then neither the employee nor the consultant would be permitted to touch a health care claim or investigate suspected health care fraud.

- PROHIBIT public and private payors from asserting fraud on claims previously paid where it is established that the payor knew or should have known the claim was improper and should not have been paid. And, in those cases where fraud is established in paid claims any monies collected from providers and suppliers for overpayments be deposited into a national account to fund various fraud and abuse education programs for consumers, insurers, law enforcers, prosecutors, legislators and others; fund front-line investigators for state health care regulatory boards to investigate fraud in their respective jurisdictions; as well as funding other health care related activity.

- PROHIBIT insurers from raising premiums of policyholders based on estimates of the occurrence of fraud. Require insurers to establish a factual basis for purported losses attributed to fraud coupled with showing tangible proof of their efforts to detect and investigate fraud, as well as not paying fraudulent claims.

5. Insurers are victims of health care fraud

Insurers, as a regular course of business, offer reports on fraud to present themselves as victims of fraud by deviant providers and suppliers.

It is disingenuous for insurers to proclaim victim-status when they have the ability to review claims before they are paid, but choose not to because it would impact the flow of the reimbursement system that is under-staffed. Further, for years, insurers have operated within a culture where fraudulent claims were just a part of the cost of doing business. Then, because they were victims of the putative fraud, they pass these losses on to policyholders in the form of higher premiums (despite the duty and ability to review claims before they are paid). Do your premiums continue to rise?

Insurers make a ton of money, and under the cloak of fraud-fighting, are now keeping more of it by alleging fraud in claims to avoid paying legitimate claims, as well as going after monies paid on claims for services performed many years prior from providers too petrified to fight-back. Additionally, many insurers, believing a lack of responsiveness by law enforcers, file civil suits against providers and entities alleging fraud.

6. Increased investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud

Purportedly, the government (and insurers) have assigned more people to investigate fraud, are conducting more investigations, and are prosecuting more fraud offenders.

With the increase in the numbers of investigators, it is not uncommon for law enforcers assigned to work fraud cases to lack the knowledge and understanding for working these types of cases. It is also not uncommon that law enforcers from multiple agencies expend their investigative efforts and numerous man-hours by working on the same fraud case.

Law enforcers, especially at the federal level, may not actively investigate fraud cases unless they have the tacit approval of a prosecutor. Some law enforcers who do not want to work a case, no matter how good it may be, seek out a prosecutor for a declination on cases presented in the most negative light.

Health Care Regulatory Boards are often not seen as a viable member of the investigative team. Boards regularly investigate complaints of inappropriate conduct by licensees under their purview. The major consistency of these boards are licensed providers, typically in active practice, that have the pulse of what is going on in their state.

Insurers, at the insistence of state insurance regulators, created special investigative units to address suspicious claims to facilitate the payment of legitimate claims. Many insurers have recruited ex-law enforcers who have little or no experience on health care matters and/or nurses with no investigative experience to comprise these units.

Reliance is critical for establishing fraud, and often a major hindrance for law enforcers and prosecutors on moving fraud cases forward. Reliance refers to payors relying on information received from providers to be an accurate representation of what was provided in their determination to pay claims. Fraud issues arise when providers misrepresent material facts in submitted claims, e.g. services not rendered, misrepresenting the service provider, etc.

Increased fraud prosecutions and financial recoveries? In the various (federal) prosecutorial jurisdictions in the United States, there are differing loss- thresholds that must be exceeded before the (illegal) activity will be considered for prosecution, e.g. $200,000.00, $1 million. What does this tell fraudsters – steal up to a certain amount, stop and change jurisdictions?

In the end, the health care fraud shell-game is perfect for fringe care-givers and deviant providers and suppliers who jockey for unfettered-access to health care dollars from a payment system incapable or unwilling to employ necessary mechanisms to appropriately address fraud – on the front-end before the claims are paid! These deviant providers and suppliers know that every claim is not looked at before it is paid, and operate knowing that it is then impossible to detect, investigate and prosecute everyone who is committing fraud!

Lucky for us, there are countless experienced and dedicated professionals working in the trenches to combat fraud that persevere in the face of adversity, making a difference one claim/case at a time! These professionals include, but are not limited to: Providers of all disciplines; Regulatory Boards (Insurance and Health Care); Insurance Company Claims Handlers and Special Investigators; Local, State and Federal Law Enforcers; State and Federal Prosecutors; and others.

Social Media Marketing And SEO

The digital world is an increasingly crowded but mandatory field that businesses owners must play in. As a Tampa business in today’s world it is now not enough to just have a website and Tampa social media marketing strategy, you also must employ a comprehensive search engine optimization plan. For this reason, the smart option is to work with a company, like Webhead Interactive that does both.

Webhead social media strategies are designed in a way to complement their SEO work. This way each end of the marketing spectrum maximizes the work of the other. The result? More traffic to your site and more customers to your business. Tampa social media is a very crowded field. Most businesses are active on one or more of the popular social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, even Pinterest and Instagram. For this reason it is important that your business not just be active in your Tampa social media marketing, but also be found through comprehensive SEO efforts.

Webhead Interactive, known as not only a top rated Tampa SEO company, but also the premier Tampa social media marketing agency, has the experience and expertise necessary to help businesses reach their market audience through a fully integrated and optimized social media management strategy. They work on multiple levels to be able to not only help your customers find you, but also interact with you through your social media channels. Since Webhead social media doesn’t just focus on one aspect of your digital marketing, but instead takes a 360 approach, they far surpass the impact of other social media companies in Tampa. Quicker, more powerful results and a proven track record of success.

As the leading full-service Tampa social media agency, Webhead Interactive will help you identify how your business and brand can benefit from an optimized social media presence. An example of some of the services they offer and might recommend include; custom Twitter, Google+ and YouTube backgrounds to help you promote your brand, Facebook timeline design and implementation to increase visitor click-through rates, Pinterest set-up and board strategy, content distribution and sharing strategy to maximize exposure and much more. They will also help you with your digital and social media promotional advertising strategy to further encourage engagement and fan development.

In order to make sure your Tampa business is found by the customers that are looking for you the best strategy is to maximize your online exposure by using both social media marketing and SEO as part of your communications strategy. By choosing a company like Webhead Interactive and Webhead social media, you know you are working with a team that understand and excels at both. The author has an immense knowledge on Tampa social media marketing. Know more about Webhead social media, Tampa social media marketing related info in his website.

Paton Marketing: Quality Solutions for Effective Internet Marketing

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