Introduction
The assignment will explain the term “deductible” to a novice audience, who is not familiar with how insurance works with drug-claim. The learning objectives are listed below in point form.
- Appreciate the importance and role of definitions in technical writing
- Understand how audience and purpose indicate the need for definition
- Differentiate between the levels of details in the definition
- select the right level of detail according to the situation
My definition of “deductible.”
Situation:
At the beginning of the year, many patients wonder why PharmaCare does not cover their medication.
Parenthetical definition:
The patient hasn’t reached the deductible (amount to be borne by the insured).
Sentence definition:
“Deductible” is an amount of the money to be paid by the insured before insurance companies pay the claim. In this case, the insured are the patients, and the insurance company is PharmaCare.
Expanded definition:
Analysis parts
To get a better idea of how deductible works, please consider the following three main parts:
- It is calculated based on your family income tax (Fair PharmaCare Calculator)
- Higher family income will have a higher deductible rate and vice versa
- Deductible will be reset at the beginning of the year
*Note that only the eligible medical service or medication will be counted toward the deductible.
How does it work?
The patients need to pay 100% of their deductible. Once the deductible is reached, BC PharmaCare will start paying 70% of your eligible medication. At this point, patients still need to pay for part of the medication (30%). When your Family’s Maximum (the maximum amount your family could afford estimated by the government) is reached, BC PharmaCare will pay 100% for the rest of the year of eligible prescribed medication.
Figure 1 How does BC PharmaCare Work?
Source: Pacific Blue Cross
Example
The doctor prescribed an 80 dollars medication to C person in January. Known that C’s deductible is 1000 dollars calculated from the Fair PharmaCare Calculator. Therefore, If C wants the medication, C will need to pay for the full price, 80 dollars. Throughout the months, C accumulates the prescription to 1200 dollars; over the deductible rate, for the next 100 dollars prescription that she only needs to pay 30 dollars.
Why I was covered last year but not this year?
Two possible cases are listed below:
- Reached the deductible:
- However, the prescribed medication is not an eligible medication covered by the plan of PharmaCare;
- Haven’t reached the deductible:
- It’s the beginning of the year the deductible is meant to reset.
This explains why Pharmacare does not cover the cost of the prescription at the beginning of the year.
References
“Fair PharmaCare Calculator.” Health. British Columbia, https://www.health.gov.bc.ca/pharmacare/plani/calculator/calculator-2019.html.
“Fair PharmaCare Plan.” British Columbia, https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/health-drug-coverage/pharmacare-for-bc-residents/who-we-cover/fair-pharmacare-plan.
“Understanding Fair PharmaCare: The BC government’s drug plan.” Pacific Blue Cross, https://www.pac.bluecross.ca/pdf-bin/info/0601.02.006_UNDERSTANDING_pharmacare.pdf.