Money Crashers: 2 health care articles and one on debt settlement

Money Crashers has published three of my articles in the past week. The first is not so much a new article as a spin-off from an old one: my piece on debt settlement from last year. The editors decided to split this into two articles, one on when debt settlement is a good idea and one on the nuts and bolts of how to do it. So the old URL now directs you to the article on the "how," and the new one on the "why" is here:

When Is Debt Settlement a Good Idea – Disadvantages and How It Works

The other two pieces are on health care, and they approach it from two different angles. The latest one is on how to choose the best health insurance plan out of the array of options that your insurer or your state health exchange offers. I walk you through the various factors to consider — premiums, out-of -pocket costs, provider network — and how to balance them to choose the best plan for your family.

How to Choose the Best Health Insurance Plan for Your Family

And the other attacks the problem from the other side of the coin: what to do if you're one of the nearly 30 million Americans without health insurance. I outline the various places to get care without it — including subsidized health clinics, retail clinics, direct primary care, telehealth, free health screenings, Hill-Burton hospitals, urgent care centers, and hospital ERs — with their costs, pros, and cons. And I examine some other ways to save, from the common (discount medical plans) to the obscure (clinical drug trials).

How to Get Affordable Medical Care Without Health Insurance