At first appearance, car insurance and health insurance appear to be completely distinct goods. Your car insurance covers damage to your vehicle (or another person’s vehicle), whereas your health insurance covers doctor visits and hospitalization. But what happens if you are hurt in a car accident? When you acquire car insurance quotes, you can select coverage options that will aid with medical expenditures resulting from a car accident.
If you purchase car insurance with medical benefits, you can supplement your existing health insurance or duplicate it. Before purchasing an auto insurance policy, it is critical to understand what coverage you currently have and what you require.
Auto insurance for medical bills
Liability, comprehensive, and collision insurance will not cover your medical expenditures after a car accident. However, the following coverages will:
Medical payments. This coverage, also known as MedPay, is available in most states and mandatory for drivers in Maine and New Hampshire who purchase insurance. Policies cover injuries sustained by you and your passengers in an accident, regardless of who is at fault. They also cover injuries sustained while riding in someone else’s car, or if you are hit by a car while walking or cycling. In some jurisdictions, MedPay can cover your health insurance deductible and co-pays, as well as dental and chiropractic services. However, keep in mind that MedPay coverage typically has minimal limits—often $10,000 or less.
Personal Injury Protection. Also known as PIP, this coverage is compulsory in around a dozen states and available in another ten. PIP, like MedPay, protects you and your passengers in an accident, even if you caused it, and it follows you while you’re in another person’s car, riding a bike, or walking. Although it is more expensive than MedPay, it often has larger coverage limits and frequently includes items that your health insurance may not cover, such as lost income, services you may require, such as child care, and burial fees.
Uninsured/underinsured motorists bodily injury. In general, if you are hit or wounded by another driver, that person is responsible for your car repair and medical expenditures. However, if the other driver does not have car insurance or has only the minimum legal liability coverage, you will be responsible for your own expenditures, unless you have car insurance with uninsured/underinsured motorists coverage (UM/UIM). You may be free to choose whether or not to obtain UM/UIM coverage, but the uninsured motorist element — and occasionally the underinsured portion as well — is mandatory in 20 states. It covers medical expenses for both you and your passengers. In some areas, you can also get UM/UIM property damage coverage, which will repair your car if you are hit by a driver who has no or insufficient insurance.
Weighing whether it’s right for you
Depending on your health plan, purchasing car insurance with medical coverage may be a wise decision.
If your state requires MedPay, PIP, or UM/UIM—or a mix of the three—do not assume that the minimum needed level is sufficient. In states such as New York, the legal minimums for uninsured motorist coverage equal the liability minimums, which many experts feel are insufficient to protect you in a major accident.
If you have a high-deductible health plan or one with a lot of out-of-pocket expenses, purchasing PIP or MedPay may be a good idea as well. Depending on your state, PIP or MedPay can take over before your health insurance starts or after you reach its limits. They can also provide services that your health insurance does not cover, and they may pay you faster.
Purchasing car insurance with MedPay, PIP, or uninsured/underinsured motorists coverage will raise your premiums, but if you are wounded in an accident, the rewards can be extremely beneficial.
