It's hard to even think in terms of cheap medical insurance any longer. Medical insurance here in Alabama has gotten so expensive that more than 16% of all the residents of Alabama can't afford any medical coverage at all. Fortunately there is a radical new way for many people who can no longer afford health insurance to get coverage.

This new idea in cheap medical insurance in Alabama is called a Health Savings Account, or an HSA. An HSA is a self-directed tax-free medical savings account. Tax-free money is deposited into your special savings account which can only be used to pay for your medical needs throughout the year. Any money left in your tax-free account at the end of the year is rolled over into the next year, potentially allowing you to build up a nice tax-free nest egg over time.

Attached to this tax-free savings account is a low-cost super high deductible health insurance policy. These policies have deductibles of more than $1,200 for an individual and more than $2,400 for a family.

Because these policies have such high deductibles their monthly premium is extremely low, low enough for most individuals and families to afford. However, during a normal year these high deductible policies will not pay one penny toward any of your health care costs. Instead, you pay for all of these costs yourself out of your special tax-free savings account. In other words, you have to pay for your own health needs but you get to pay for it with non-taxed dollars, saving you at least 25% .

What is the purpose of the high-deductible insurance policy, then? The policy is a safety net in the (hopefully) unlikely event that you suffer some sort of catastrophic accident or that you become very ill and require long-term hospitalization or round-the-clock care. Such a catastrophic event could easily wipe out your life savings or even force the sale of your home - but with the high-deductible insurance policy your savings and your home will be safe.

You can learn more about these Health Savings Accounts where you work, or at your bank, savings and loan, credit union or at any insurance company.

But whether you are looking into an HSA plan or a more traditional health plan the first place you want to look if you want the very best price possible is online. There are literally dozens of websites that encourage you to compare the prices of health insurance policies at various insurance companies here in Alabama.

Check out the prices on at least 3 different websites if you want to be certain that you'll find the rock-bottom price for health insurance.