Glossary

Preferred Provider Option - one chooses doctor, specialist and does not require a referral.

Health Maintenance Organization - managed health care -  a primary doctor refers one to specialist, lab work, MRI,   CAT scans, etc.

The Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act of 1996 established national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health plans, and employers.  It also addresses the security and privacy of health data.

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act gives workers and their families who lose their health benefits the right to choose to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time under certain circumstances such as voluntary or involuntary job loss, death, divorce, and other life events.  Check out: http://www.dol.gov for more information.

The Federal program helps pay health care costs for people 65 and older and for certain people under 65 with long-term disabilities.

A program administered at the state level, which provides medical assistance to the needy.  Families with dependent children, the aged, blind, and disabled who are in financial need are eligible for Medicaid.

The State Children's Health Insurance Program administered at the state level, providing health care to low-income children whose parents do not qualify for Medicaid.

Recommended Dietary Intakes(Allowances), now called RDI(1997) National Academy of Sciences at http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/dga/rda.html.

A program administered at the state level, which provides medical assistance to the needy.  Families with dependent children, the aged, blind, and disabled who are in financial need are eligible for Medicaid.

The body mass index is an approximate measure of body fat.  It is based on your height and weight.  A BMI between 19 and 25 is considered a normal amount of body fat.  If someone's BMI is 25 to 29.9, that person is said to be overweight.  A person is said to be obese if a person's BMI is 30 or higher.  The higher your BMI, the greater your risk for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and certain cancers.  For a BMI Calculator click on http://familydoctor.org/x2544.xml.  

Health Insurance Consumer Guide by State at http://www.healthinsuranceinfo.net.