Trying to keep premiums low on your health insurance policy can be very challenging. Fortunately there are several ways you can limit premiums while still maintaining health insurance coverage. While all of these methods might not be right for you, one or two of them might help ease the pressure on your monthly budget caused by your health insurance costs.

First, you could consider a high deductible plan. This plan is best for people who are very healthy, who only see the doctor once or twice a year, and who are mainly concerned with accidents. It would also be a good plan for someone who has a very good savings account in place in the event that something goes wrong. With this plan, you would pay higher co-pays and you'd pay more out of pocket when you went to the hospital, but you would make that money up easily in just a few months of saving on monthly health insurance costs.

Another way you can limit premiums is by eliminating coverage you do not need. Take the time to go through your current health insurance policy. Analyze if there is anything that you don't use or don't use very often. If, for example, you're paying $30-$40 extra a month to include things like chiropractors and massage therapists, perhaps it would be better to just pay those people out of pocket when you go to use their services and work that visit into your monthly budget. If you're physically unable to have children perhaps you can get the maternity coverage removed from your policy. Many times people purchase health insurance as a packaged deal without stopping to pay attention to what is included in that package.

You can also bring your premiums down by paying attention to your health. If you smoke, you can decrease your premiums by quitting. The same is true for drinking. If you're currently overweight you can lower your premiums by losing some weight and adopting a healthier lifestyle. This will make you much less of a risk, which will, in turn, lower your premiums. You can talk to your insurance agent about other lifestyle factors that might be raising your premiums as well.

Finally, take advantage of health care related tax savings wherever and whenever you can. If you pay your health insurance out of pocket, for example, rather than staying with a group or employers plan, this represents a rather large tax deduction that can save you money. Anything you put into a Health Savings Account and use for health is also tax deductible. Health insurance premiums don't have to translate into big problems.