What do Out-of-Pocket Maximum and Annual Deductible Really Mean?
The annual deductible used to be the amount you pay until your insurance kicks in. Today, almost all policies require you pay an additional 10%-20% of your medical expenses, above the deductible, up to $10,000–this is called coinsurance. The real number you should use to compare policies is out-of-pocket maximum–your annual deductible plus the maximum amount of coinsurance you could pay up to the maximum benefit of your policy.