It is a fact of life — you need health insurance — and the time to get it is before you have an accident, suffer a serious illness, or discover you are pregnant. Insurance does not cover health care for medical problems or conditions that start before the moment you have your policy. Finding adequate coverage may seem overwhelming, but knowing the basics can help make your search less stressful.

The first reality of health insurance is that you do not have a right to it. There are no state or federal laws that require private employers to offer health benefits to their workers. If you have benefits through your employer, and you quit or lose your job, do not assume you will be able to pick up the identical coverage for the same price. Similarly, do not expect your former employer to extend your benefits beyond your last day at work. There is no "grace period" during which you are still covered.

If you do lose your employer-sponsored benefits, there is a federal plan called COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act) that could provide you with a short-term safety net. Another federal law that offers some protection to workers experiencing a short-term lapse in their coverage is HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). If you do need to purchase individual health insurance, it will be expensive. Unlike group plans, in which the costs and risks associated with health care are spread among many, individual health policies are "medically underwritten" to take into account your personal health history. Any "pre-existing" condition such as heart disease, diabetes, and even pregnancy, can nix your chances of acceptance, or boost your premiums. Some states do require individual health insurers to offer everyone a plan, a mandate known as "guaranteed issue," to find out which states require guaranteed issue. This enables people who have medical problems — whether serious or minor — to buy a health plan.

Also note that once you purchase a health plan, the premiums may increase. While the rates for some health insurance plans must first be approved by state insurance regulators, health insurance companies often seek, and receive, permission to raise premiums. Additionally, some states allow health insurers to "file and use" rate increases, which means the insurers only have to submit their increases in writing and then they may immediately begin charging customers more money. Unless insurance regulators determine the rates are excessive, the insurers are allowed to keep charging the higher premiums.

If you are a college student and you need coverage — perhaps you are being dropped from your parents plan -- your school may be able to provide you with reasonable health coverage.

But no matter what your age, there are several federally sponsored programs to help you if cannot afford the premiums for individual health insurance, providing you meet their eligibility guidelines. They are:

• Medicare, a health insurance program for people age 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities, and people with end-stage renal disease.
• Medicaid, a program for the poorest individuals and low-income families with children.
• The Children s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a plan that provides health care to children whose parents make too much to qualify for Medicaid, but earn too little to afford individual health insurance.

Before you visit a country where the population speaks a foreign language, it helps to know a few key words and phrases. The same holds true when you are trying to decipher the lingo of health insurance. Whether you are buying individual or group health insurance, know there are several health plan varieties, including traditional indemnity fee-for-service plans (FFS), health maintenance organizations (HMOs), point of service plans (POS), and preferred provider organizations (PPO). Each plan has its own features to consider before making your choice.

FFS coverage offers flexibility in exchange for higher out-of-pocket expenses, more paperwork, and higher premiums.

FFS advantages

• You may choose your own doctors and hospitals.
• You may visit any specialist without getting permission from a primary care physician.

FFS disadvantages

• There is typically a deductible (anywhere from $500 to $1,500) before the insurance company starts paying claims, and then doctors are reimbursed about 80 percent of the bill while you pick up the remaining 20 percent.
• You may have to pay up front for medical services, then submit the bill for reimbursement.
• FFS plans pay only for "reasonable and customary" medical expenses. If your doctor charges more than the average for your area, you will have to pay the difference.

HMOs are the least expensive, but also the least flexible of all the health insurance plans. They are geared more toward members of a group seeking health insurance.

HMO advantages

• They offer their customers low co-payments, minimal paperwork, and coverage for many preventive-care and health-improvement programs.

HMO disadvantages

• You must choose a primary care physician, also known as a PCP.
• HMOs require that you see only network doctors, or they will not pay.
• You must get a referral from your PCP to see a specialist.

POS plans are more flexible than HMOs, but they also require you to select a PCP.

POS advantages

• Depending on your insurance company rules, you may choose to visit a doctor outside the network and still receive coverage -- but the amount covered will be substantially less than if you went to a physician within your network.
• These plans tend to offer more preventive care and well-being services, such as workshops on smoking cessation and discounts to health clubs.

POS disadvantages

• You must choose a PCP.
• While you may choose to see a physician outside the network, if you do not receive permission from your PCP, you are likely to wind up submitting the bills yourself and receiving only a nominal reimbursement — if any.

PPOs give policyholders a financial incentive — reasonable co-payments (also called co-pays)-- to stay within the group network of practitioners.

PPO advantages

• The standard co-payment is $10 for a routine office visit during regular hours.
• You may go to any specialist without permission, as long as the doctor participates in the network.

PPO disadvantages

• If you see an out-of-network doctor, you may have to pay the entire bill yourself, then submit it for reimbursement.
• You may have to pay a deductible if you choose to go outside the network, or pay the difference between what network doctors versus out-of-network doctor’s charge.