Health Maintenance Organization - HMO
Categories: Insurance
Your forehead is warm and you're starting to feel a little sniffily. Time to go to a doctor. You have health insurance, so, except for the copay, your insurer should pick up the tab.
But you have an HMO. Which means you can't just go to any doctor. You have to go to an in-network doctor.
Instead of a policy that pays for any doctor you want, an HMO provides a list of medical personnel who work within the organization. They're either employed by the HMO or they have a contract with it.
Insurance companies like dealing with HMOs because it's easier to control expenses (the doctors in the network have already agreed to certain prices). It's limiting for the customer, but the insurance is often cheaper than comparable coverage with wider freedom.