Helping workers and their families navigate the health care system is essential. October is Health Literacy Month, which is an ideal time to recognize the importance of making health information easy to understand so that you can better navigate your health coverage. If workers and their families understand their protections under the law and the plan they have through their employment, they will be prepared to make informed decisions about their coverage.
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration administers several important health benefit laws covering employment-based health plans. These laws include your basic rights to information about how your health plan works, how to qualify for coverage and make claims for benefits, your right to continue health benefits when you lose coverage or change your job, and protections for special health conditions. Educating workers and their families about these rights is a critical part of the Department’s mission.
To help increase your health literacy, here are five tips to make your health benefits work for you:
Explore your health coverage options. There may be many different types of health benefit plans available to you. Find out what is offered through your employment, then check out the available plan(s).
Read your plan’s summary plan description for the wealth of information it provides. Your summary plan description outlines your benefits and your legal rights under the Employee Retirement...
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