Supplemental Health
What is gap insurance for health insurance?
Health insurance gap insurance (not to be confused with auto gap insurance) is a supplemental policy that pays your health insurance deductible and coinsurance when you're hospitalized or have a major medical event. For example, if you have a $5,000 deductible and are hospitalized, gap insurance pays the $5,000 — so you pay nothing out-of-pocket. Gap insurance is particularly valuable for people with high-deductible health plans who want protection against catastrophic out-of-pocket costs without paying for a low-deductible plan.
Key Points
- Pays your health insurance deductible and coinsurance for major medical events
- Particularly valuable for high-deductible health plan holders
- Eliminates the financial risk of your deductible without switching to a low-deductible plan
- Typically pays on hospitalization, surgery, and major diagnostic procedures
- Costs significantly less than upgrading to a lower-deductible health plan
- Pays in addition to health insurance — both policies pay independently