Recently out of college? Married and ready to start a family? Already have a full house? Maybe you're done raising babies and getting ready to retire. No matter. Affordable health insurance exists for people at every age and stage of life. Each health insurance plan is designed with different priorities in mind.

We don't look at health insurance in the same way when we’re just getting out of college as we do when we marry and begin to consider adding kids into the mix, right? Our priorities shift again once we’re settled with a full family, and then again when we’re done raising babies and ready to retire.

Life is full of twists and turns, ages and stages. There’s an affordable health insurance option for every one.

How to Find Affordable Health Insurance Today

Success starts when you begin searching for the right options for you according to your circumstances now and over the next year or two. However, no matter which health insurance option you choose – the key to making it truly affordable is to shop and compare.

Rates between insurance companies can be VERY different, even for the same type of coverage. Sometimes premiums can vary by as much as 50%!

So once you’ve given some thought to your immediate needs and projected them out just a bit, head over to an online quote site you can trust. Make sure it’s a large, unbiased web site. InsWeb.com is an excellent place to compare quotes.

Oh, and don’t forget – be sure to not just go by the monthly premium! Pay attention to what’s covered, what the deductibles are (if any) and remember, where there’s a deductible, there’s coinsurance!

Not sure what type of plan to go with? Here are some affordable health insurance options for every age and stage of life.

On Your Own, Finally!

Tossing that graduation cap into the air was a thrill – welcome to the “real” world!

If your health insurance has been covered by your parents until now, the insurance companies may reward your academic achievement by kicking you off their policy.

Once you are done with school (or hit the age of 23) your parents’ health plan won’t cover you any more.

Unless you scored a full-time job with benefits the minute you stepped off campus, it’s likely you are going without coverage.

Consider a temporary individual health insurance plan to cover the big stuff while you look for a job.

These plans carry a high deductible (the amount you pay-out-of-pocket before insurance kicks in) so the monthly premium is typically low.

It’s not going to be as vast as the typical managed care plan your parents have provided – but it will at least ensure you have some protection if you get really sick or are injured and require surgery. Impossible medical debt is no way to start adulthood.

Hitched and Ready to Hatch

The sound of wedding bells are still ringing in your ears – need a doctor to take a look at that?

Whether you’re planning to have kids right away or hoping to wait a couple of years, NOW is the time to take a close look at your health insurance options.

If both of you are receiving group coverage through an employer, it’s time to sit down and compare those plans in order to determine whether you want to keep both plans or consolidate by putting both of you on the best of the two.

If neither of you has health insurance through work, you need to buy an individual health insurance plan. You can get coverage for both of you in a single policy or if one of you suffers from a preexisting condition and the other is in good health, you may consider separate plans to keep coverage costs down.

If you’re planning on kids, be sure to look around for a family insurance plan that includes maternity coverage.

Did you know that many individual health plans won’t automatically cover maternity? Those that do cover maternity health expenses can be very expensive. This is where planning is important. If you skip the benefit now, don’t think you’ll be able to add it at the last minute. Many individual health plans that do cover maternity have a waiting period before conception. So if you conceive before that period is over, your pregnancy won’t be covered. Ouch!

Full House

As a single mom, I think managed care plans can be a busy mom's best friend. Having kids constantly in and out of the doctor’s office won’t just get expensive with a fee-for-service plan, it’ll also leave you drowning in paperwork.

Claims, Receipts for Reimbursement, Ugh!

With a traditional HMO (typically the least expensive of the managed care bunch) as long as you stick to their list of “in-network” providers and go through your primary physician for everything – all you need to worry about is paying the co-payment for each visit ($15 to see the doctor, etc.).

If you’re a little picky about your doctors and want to see someone out of the network, you can still save with an HMO that has a POS (Point of Service) feature. It’s generally a more affordable health insurance option than a typical PPO, but allows you the extra freedom of going outside the network and remaining covered.

Setting Up Shop

You’ve taken the big leap of faith and decided it’s time to start your own business!

Maintaining your old job’s health coverage through COBRA will not only be quite expensive, it will also run out. Before it does, be sure you’re all set with an individual health insurance plan.

A health savings account (HSA) in combination with a qualified high deductible plan might be a great option for you.

Choosing a high-deductible plan will save you lots of money month to month in premiums, and then you can deposit those savings into your HSA (a tax-free, interest-earning bank account) for smaller health expenses to cover the extra out-of-pocket cost.

Establishing an HSA is also a good way to enhance your financial planning, especially since you won't be participating in an employer’s traditional retirement plan.

The pre-tax money you put into an HSA can be used now or later. It rolls over from year to year, so if you’re healthy now, you’ll just keep accruing savings and interest until you need it.

Once you turn 65, the funds can be withdrawn as income, much like an IRA.

Relaxing in Retirement

65 never looked so good! Once you’ve taken out Medicare parts A and B, check out the alphabet soup of Medicare supplement plans and get yourself fully covered.

There are a bunch of new options for Seniors insurance today beyond the traditional Medicare supplement plans. Many companies are now offering Medicare Advantage plans that work a lot like an HMO. Check out Senior Health Insurance Options for more information.