What is considered secondary insurance?

Secondary insurance refers to a type of health insurance that provides additional coverage to individuals who already have a primary insurance plan. This means that when a healthcare expense is incurred, the primary insurance is billed first for the services received. After the primary insurance processes the claim, any remaining costs such as deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance may then be billed to the secondary insurance. This can help reduce out-of-pocket expenses for the insured individual, as the secondary insurance can cover some or all of the costs that the primary insurance did not cover.

In contrast, the other choices do not accurately describe secondary insurance. The first insurance billed for healthcare services is specifically defined as the primary insurance, not secondary. Government programs may provide insurance, but not all secondary insurance is exclusive to these programs. Lastly, the characteristic of requiring or not requiring copayments does not classify an insurance type as secondary; rather, this feature pertains to the policy terms of various insurance plans.