For single parents a health insurance plan is something of great concern. Not only are finances tight for single parents even at the best of times, but the added costs of keeping kids healthy must be dealt with effectively as well. The expenses of regular checkups for their children are something that should be part of the budget planning and overall long term financial planning.

Creating a household budget can be an exercise in frustration even for financial savvy parents, but for single parents who are often left exhausted after a long day of work and then must deal single handed with all the household chores and responsibilities as well it can be so overwhelming that it just never gets tackled properly.

As with any budget, a simple list of all the expenses that come up in a month is the best place to start. This is also the first place good budgeting intentions can go awry quickly. It is important to be totally honest when listing these expenses because it is the solid foundation that the entire financial plan will be built on. There may be items on the list that a person feels guilty about spending money on and even if they want desperately to change that bad habit, it is important to at least acknowledge the money spent badly on this list. Bad habits can only be changed after admitting them and then making a plan to change them.

The next list is the budget planning page. First list all the necessities only (heat, rent, groceries, and phone) and write down how much those expenses cost each month. Next, free group health quotes should be obtained and a figure for a health insurance plan should go onto the monthly budget planning page as a regular expense. An amount for a savings or emergency fund should also be listed. Loans and debt repayment amounts are the next
things put on the list.

Once all those expenses are listed on the budget, the non-essentials can be looked at. This is a good time to decide how much money can be used each month on what was considered bad habits. It will be obvious at this time whether or not those habits can even be afforded.

This may seem like a very simple exercise but in reality it can take several days to complete. Many people simply have not taken the time to sit down and gather their monthly expenses in one place at one time in order to analyze them, let alone make a budget and plan that will have room for the necessary health insurance plan that will cover the whole family. Because parents are so busy and so exhausted by the demands on them, they may feel that this exercise is just too time consuming. Once tackled however, most people feel empowered by it.

Taking control over one’s money so that the most important things like a health insurance plan or group health insurance can be worked into even the tightest budgets can be a major step to financial security for single parents.