HMO vs. PPO, what's the difference?

http://www.moorebenefitsinc.com/video-center Alot of people ask the question, what is the difference between an HMO and a PPO? An HMO is an health maintanance organization and even though HMOs are portrayed as a bad guy on tv and movies sometimes, it really is a legimate way to receive your health insurance and health care. What happens in the health maintanance organization, HMO is part of your premium each month goes to the meidical group and they use that money to take care of you so they receive the same amount whether they see you or not. So they are definitely incentivised to keep you healthy. You usally have to pike a primary health care doctor and receive a referral to a specialist and you stay within their medical group for all of your lab, xray and hospitalization. They want to keep you healthy with preventative care and if something happens to you they'll provide the care you need.
PPO is on the other hand a preferred provider organization. So they're a netowrk of doctors who have agreed to prenegotiate discounts from the insurance company and you can go see any of them any time you choose. YOu won't need a referral to a specialsit you can go to whichever hospigtal is in your network. In fact, PPO networks are usually national so you can receive care in this county or the next county or even across the nation and still be in the network. Those are the main differences between an HMO and PPO. From a cost standpoint, HMO's are generally less expensive in terms of premium and amount you have to pay to receive care and the PPO is generally more expensive both in terms of premium and how much it costs to go to the hospital.
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