Health Insurance or Discount Program?

With so much attention focused on the Obama health care plan, it seems like more and more ads have sprung up peddling cheap health insurance programs. As the old saying goes, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably isn't. Many of these so called "health care programs" are nothing more than a proposed discount program that claim certain discounts are available through various participating doctors, pharmacies and hospitals etc. Sadly, some of the more fast talking salespersons for these companies tout them as "health insurance". Only in the fine print do you learn that it is a discount program and not health insurance. If no providers in your area participate in the program then it is of no real value and even if some do the number of procedures or services covered are often very restrictive.