Do people really lose their homes due to lack of health insurance?

In today's trying times, this really does happen.

In a nutshell, a serious (or in insurance parlance, catastrophic) illness or injury can wreak great havoc on a family's finances and may even cause financial ruin.

When the family's breadwinner (or any member of the family, for that matter) gets a serious illness or is injured in an accident, it may have substantial implications on the family's finances. The money that should have been used to pay for the mortgage may end up as payments for hospital bills, given that there is no health insurance coverage shielding the family from this.

Also, when the breadwinner is the one who is laid up in the hospital (especially if he stays there for months), then the family has no income to pay for household expenses, including the mortgage for the house. This means that if the family's finances are unprotected from these events, and there is no mortgage payment insurance in place, the family is faced with the need to pay for the hospitalization, as well as meet mortgage or rental obligations.

So yes, the sad reality is that there are families who were forced to foreclose on their homes because they can't maintain the payments.

To ensure that this does not happen to your family, it's best to get yourself and your family members covered with both health insurance and mortgage payment insurance:

• The health insurance policy will give the family a certain level of financial protection in case you or a family member gets sick or injured.
• Meanwhile, the mortgage payment insurance gives you protection when you get sick or injured and can't earn enough income for your monthly mortgage payments.

It is also important to lay up some savings that can help pay for the deductibles, since not everything can be covered by the insurance. There will be some portion of the medical expenses where you will have to shell out some money.

• What is considered a preexisting condition?
• Does private health insurance provide better care?
• Why an employee might select a PPO health insurance benefit over an HMO?
• Can I have a health savings account and regular medical insurance?v
• What happens to your medical insurance if you lose your job?