Many insurance companies provide excellent benefits for preventative healthcare. In fact, some health and dental insurance policies offer free or very low-cost annual exams. This may include oral hygiene exams, mammograms and pap smears for women, prostate exams for men and more. At first glance, these benefits only are advantageous for patients who take advantage of them. However, a closer look reveals that they can be advantageous for all involved.

Identify Conditions Early

Through preventative care, healthcare workers can potentially identify issues earlier. This may include identifying prediabetes symptoms in a patient, stage 1 cancer and many other conditions. When these conditions are diagnosed and treated earlier, the prognosis may be better. Treatment can begin promptly, and this early treatment may prevent the condition from worsening. It may even result in the condition being reversed or cured without the patient and the insurance company having to endure the cost of a lengthy and much more complicated treatment plan. The same results can be expected from preventative dental care and vision care in many cases.

Monitor Progression

Preventative care also enables patients and doctors to monitor the progression of pre-existing conditions. For example, a patient who is developing dementia may be monitored regularly so that the doctor can adjust his or her treatment plan as needed. By doing so, the progression of the disease may be slowed. Significant treatment for conditions at advanced stages may be delayed for a lengthy period of time, and the result is financial savings for the doctor, patient and insurance companies. In the process, the patient’s quality of life may remain good for a longer period of time.

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Prevent Serious Issues from Developing

In many cases, preventative care may help patients improve their health and avoid serious health conditions entirely. For example, an overweight patient may receive helpful information from a doctor that can encourage weight loss. This may include nutrition and fitness recommendations. The patient may also be motivated to lose weight when he or she learns about slightly elevated cholesterol levels or other warning signs. Being overweight and obese can lead to some types of cancers, diabetes, heart conditions and more, so this type of assistance through preventative care may be critical for the patient’s health.

While insurance companies do their part to make preventative care affordable or even free for patients in some cases, many patients do not take advantage of this benefit. After learning how important preventative care is for all parties, you may be inspired to schedule an appointment today.