The year is coming to the end. This is the time of the year where most companies roll out the benefit package, aka health insurance plan for the coming year 2011.

There are so many different types of health insurance plans. In addition to all the different types of people with different insurance needs. It is common for many businesses to offer their employees three or four different options for health insurance in the coming year. So today we are going to look a some of the basics.

The fundamental differences between the different health insurance plans can be summed up with three groups of three letters each.  I am taking this information from NAIC insurance education Web site, www.InsureUonline.org

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how we were looking for a cat doctor for our beloved named Princess. She was loosing weight and acting very strange. I share with you process in finding a vet that we felt would give our cat the best possible care.

It was a couple days later, every member of our family cancelled their planned activities. We put our beloved feline in the cat carrier and off we went to the Cat Hospital.

When we got there, I was amazed the genuine warm friendly atmosphere of the staff and the cat that seem to oversee the reception area. From the parking lot to the examine room was spotless, with warm colors, and spoke these people love cats.

Our cat is not really a kitty. She is at least 10 years old. Our cat’s name is Princess. She carries herself like royalty. There has been other cats and a few dogs that have went running when Princess stood her ground.

Princess has always been in excellent health. Other than vaccine shots and getting fixed so she would not be getting pregnant. Over the last couple months she has been loosing weigh and starting to display some abnormal behaviors.

Princess will from time to time stand on the bed and start whining at my pillow. Other times she will stand in the kitchen and start to whine there also. We have paid more attention to her by petting and talk to her. Still  her behavior stays the same.

Yesterday, I wrote about Shopping for Emergency Kits. When I finished I felt that I had done a very incomplete job in covering the subject. So, today, I have added a part 2. Because the you can specialize emergency kits for cars, trains, work, buses, and home, I do not expect this will be the last.

In today’s post I want to cover emergency kits for cars. It is while we are driving about that we run the largest chance of being in or coming upon some emergency situation.

Quite a few years ago, there was the Kim Family headed north out of the San Francisco Bay area into Oregon for a family road trip for Thanksgiving back in 2006. Through a series of wrong turns they ended lost and stuck in the snow for nine days. They survived by taking what they have and using it to their best advantage.

Considering the recent events in Japan have got us all thinking about how we should be prepare for an earthquake. Especially, if we live in along a major earthquake fault.

Over the years I have had several emergency kits. Some were homemade others were store bought. I have even got one from just attending a trade show.

It has only been a couple of times that I have actually had a need to use anything that was packed in my cars as part of my emergency kit.

Walgreens has long been the drug store for choice mostly because of them being open 24/7. Then there is the drive up window. Where I can drop off a prescription and pick it up one or two hours later.

The old fashion drug store was where you walked in and was met by some clerk cleaning up or stocking shelves. Then the pharmacist was in the back filling prescriptions. The three or four rows of shelves between the front door and the pharmacist was the over counter medication and other products the help my medical needs.

Now flash forward to today. The early part of the 21st century. The family drug has become a thing of the past. It has been replaced by the multi merchandise stop that happens to fill you prescription from the doctor.

Just like last Sunday when I walked into my local Walgreens. I did not seen any cold pills or cough syrup until I had walked 3/4 of the way to where the pharmacist’s hang out. Considering the wide selection of stuff I saw, Walgreen could be the local quick mart on steroids.

Walking in the front door I was met with a display of metal water bottles. From there I had the choice to turn right and go the ladies cosmetics or turn left and walk past two check out counter that were covered with candy and 100′s of other impulse items for me to buy.

Passing the check out counter there were wine and candy on my left and rows of Easter candy and other grocery store items. Straight ahead was the film developing and printing section. (I guess there is still a few people around that don’t use their computers to share pictures.)

Round the corner with a sweeping right turn was the 20 feet of beverage cooler on my left and a longer shelf of potato chips and other snacks on my right. I notice the overall prices of the beverages were equal to or about the same as those across the street at Winco.

Further down on my left was a shorter freezer section. There I noticed they were stocking the Marie Callender’s Steamers that are sold across the street a Winco. Walgreens sell them for $2.74 where Walgreens is selling them for $3.10.

Just about the where the over counter cold medications began was a break in the shelving. In that break was a row across the rows. In the cross row as a row to its self. with small table of back supports, candy, and cooking utensils.

In that big Walgreens store there where maybe three rows for my personal health the rest was wide variety of items that would be more impulsive purchase. These ranged from toys, candy, car care, wine, BSU gear, and a good selection of “As Seen On TV” merchandise.

Bottom-line: Walgreens has become a healthy mixture of the local mini mart and the corner drug store. Of course I must admit it is on a much larger level.

I do head for Walgreens when we are in need for the over counter medication. I find the Walgreens brand is the same as the name brand I would be paying 20% to 25% more.

What is your experience with Walgreens? I would like to hear from you.

We are starting a new year. For those who have health insurance through work, your allotments have been reset on January 1st. Some of are going to have to change doctors or dentist because of a move or the company you work for has changed insurance carriers.

I don’t know about you, when it comes to choosing a dentist it is more personal than choosing a doctor. A doctor usually stands a foot or more away then only examines me for a few minutes. A dentist is right on top of me the whole time sticking me with that big needle, prying my jaw open to the max, and grinding on my teeth. In my mind I hold that dentist to have a high level of skill and professionalism than the family doctor. Mostly because every time I go to the dentist I am going to feel PAIN. I do not like pain.

“An out ounce of Prevention is worth a pound of cure”, has been quoted so many times, that it is to the point where it hurts every time I hear it. What hurts more is setting in a dentist chair with the dentist sticking that big needle in my gum.

Whenever one of my teeth that starts hurting, I head to the dental care section at Walgreen’s, Wal Mart or whatever store that happens to be handy. I quickly start looking for product that will will fix my bad tooth so I do not have to the dentist.

Have you ever walked out of a doctors office and felt that the doctor had ripped you off? Have you ever felt that you needed a second opinion, no matter what your doctor told you? What is your method of choosing a doctor?

There has been times where I have moved to such a distance that I could no longer see the same doctor who I have trusted for years. There was one time when the doctor informed me that he was retiring and that his younger associate would be taking his place. After a couple visits, my wife and I had decided it was time to find another.

This past week, I came across an article from Nielsen Wire about the relationship of health and financial responsibility. The day before that, I got to sit in on a lecture by Dr. Stephen R. Covey. The underline theme of both messages was personal financial/health before professional financial health.

It got me thinking that attitudes carry over to all parts of our life. How we manage our personal, and home finances will tell how we manage our business finances. This will be reflected in our physical appearance.

Yes, you are going to find the occasional person walking around in old torn clothing, with a million dollars in the bank, but those people are the exceptions to the rule. Most of the people I come across can be read by their overall health and dress.