Read The Full Question

You cannot expect to answer a question correctly if you do not know what it is asking. If you see a question that seems familiar and easy, you might anticipate the answer, mark it, and move on before you finish reading it. DON’T this is a serious mistake. Be sure to read the full question and all the possible answers before answering it – questions are often written to trap people who assume too much. Here is an example of a question in which an assumption could produce a wrong answer.

1. Billy incurs a hospital expense of $10,000. His major medical policy includes a $500 deductible and an 80%/20% coinsurance feature. Assuming this is the first covered expense he incurs this year, how much will Billy have to pay toward his hospital bill?
A. $2,000
B. $1,900
C. $7,500
D. $1,500

The answer is B. This is an easy question to answer only for someone who has read the full question, because this is the first application of the deductible. If you read the question too quickly, you might forget to account the deductible.