Health Insurance

[garynvegas]

Hey everyone. Longtime lurker, recently trying to get more active, blah, blah, blah.

So the health insurance I currently have through my job cost a fortune and doesn't cover much. To make matters worse, they are now raising our rates.

My question is: Does anyone on the board purchase their own health insurance from someone other than work place. If so, what is it and would you recommend it?

Thanks everyone!

[TomAz]

Can you define what you consider 'costing a fortune' and 'doesn't cover much'?

[malcolmjamalawesome]

I recoil in horror when I think about what shitty people you must associate yourself with in your real life that you would come to this forum for information like this.

[garynvegas]

Can you define what you consider 'costing a fortune' and 'doesn't cover much'?

For my wife, my daughter, and myself the cost is currently $620 per month and is going up to $845 per month. For this we have a $4000 deductible, pay $40 per office visit ($60 for specialist), and I think the coinsurance is 30% for hospital visits.

And Malcom, I know this probably isn't the best place to seek this type of advice, but I figure with the number of people that view and post here, there have to be at least a few people that can help me out. It never hurts to try...

[Courtney]

Insurance is freaking expensive. Always.

Right now, I have Kaiser Permanente, which is like the ultimate HMO. They're great for preventative care, and great for general routine stuff, and I love that I never have to wait more than a day or so to see a doctor, but I'm probably fucked if I get some sort of specialized issue want to go outside the network for treatment. However, right now, it works for me. I think it's like $320 per month, but my work pays for most of it.

[TomAz]

For my wife, my daughter, and myself the cost is currently $620 per month and is going up to $845 per month. For this we have a $4000 deductible, pay $40 per office visit ($60 for specialist), and I think the coinsurance is 30% for hospital visits.

And Malcom, I know this probably isn't the best place to seek this type of advice, but I figure with the number of people that view and post here, there have to be at least a few people that can help me out. It never hurts to try...

ow. that is expensive. sounds like your employer is not subsidizing it at all. that's too bad.

If you & your family are relatively healthy you can almost certainly get cheaper health ins in the individual market. try a website like ehealthinsurance.com for starters.

[sonofhal]

I like what I pay.

[bobert]

I like what I pay.

I lol'ed.

[Courtney]

Darn you socialists.

[TomAz]

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/rates/nic.htm

[bobert]

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/rates/nic.htm

So low-income Brits are paying 6000 pounds a year for health coverage?

[TomAz]

I dunno, I couldn't make sense of it.

[garynvegas]

ow. that is expensive. sounds like your employer is not subsidizing it at all. that's too bad.

If you & your family are relatively healthy you can almost certainly get cheaper health ins in the individual market. try a website like ehealthinsurance.com for starters.

The prices I gave are total and my employer does pay a small amount of that, but the high majority comes out of my pocket. And thanks for the advise on ehealthinsurance.com. We'll check that out.

Darn you socialists.

I concur.

[sonofhal]

So low-income Brits are paying 6000 pounds a year for health coverage?

No - you don't pay NI or Income tax on the first 6,000 you earn. After that they work out to approx 23% of your earnings.

Also, we only have to do tax returns if we are self employed.

The Queen also gives hand jobs for free.

[TomAz]

The Queen also gives hand jobs for free.

You can write to Her Majesty at the following address:
Her Majesty The Queen
Buckingham Palace
London SW1A 1AA

If you wish to write a formal letter, you can open with 'Madam' and close the letter with the form 'I have the honour to be, Madam, Your Majesty's humble and obedient servant'.

This traditional approach is by no means obligatory. You should feel free to write in whatever style you feel comfortable.

http://www.royal.gov.uk/HMTheQueen/C.../Overview.aspx

[menikmati]

Just don't go to the doctors. I haven't been in 10+ years.

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

Just don't go to the doctors. I haven't been in 10+ years.

That's fine and good until you break your leg or some other serious thing happen and you've racked up a $20,000 hospital bill overnight

[Courtney]

Yes. Not to mention, dude has a family. You can't just not take your kid to the doctor.

[garynvegas]

We found a plan through ehealthinsurance.com that we like. Now we just have to spend the next two days filling out forms and answering questions to apply for the policy we want. Sometimes I wonder if it would just be cheaper to move to Canada.

[captncrzy]

Just don't go to the doctors. I haven't been in 10+ years.

Kids go to the doctor at least once a month. $125 a pop without insurance adds up.

[TomAz]

We found a plan through ehealthinsurance.com that we like. Now we just have to spend the next two days filling out forms and answering questions to apply for the policy we want. Sometimes I wonder if it would just be cheaper to move to Canada.

You're welcome.

[garynvegas]

You're welcome.

Thanks Tom!

[gaypalmsprings]

Join a union. Dues will only set you back a thousand a year.

[wmgaretjax]

Kids go to the doctor at least once a month. $125 a pop without insurance adds up.

uh... what the fuck are you feeding your kids?

[Alchemy]

I don't take my kids to the doctor. When they're sick, I just tell them, "If God needs you in Heaven, there is nothing we can do to stop Him."

He's needed all of them, except for Tim Jr., who attended Juárez Medical Tech and can heal his own wounds and remedy his viruses with various household items and under-the-sink chemicals.

[captncrzy]

uh... what the fuck are you feeding your kids?

She had brutal allergies as a baby. Lots of sinus and ear infections created many a doctor's visit.

I didnt mean my kid. I meant little kids in general. Regular checkups, daycare flues, stitches, etc.

[ThatGirl]

I like what I pay.

The Brits have it even better than we Canadians do, we don't pay for doctor visits or surgeries on site but our taxes are high, and we pay a lot for prescription meds, even if you have a plan at work the coverage isn't always that great.

[chairmenmeow47]

hi tom (or anyone else that can answer),

so i've always had 100% coverage through my work's health insurance aetna. today i found out we're going to have a $100 deductible and at the most 90% coverage. i still have co-pays.

what does that mean? do i have to pay the 10% when i go to the doctor in addition to the co-pay? is that only if they do lab work (which is pretty much every time)? if i needed an MRI/ultrasound/CT scan/bloodwork/x-ray, would i owe 10%? i'm sure there are all sorts of variables.

thanks tom

[TomAz]

Usually, plans with both copays and coinsurance require you to pay one or the other depending on the service. Generally it's copays for physician office visits, and deductible/coinsurance for everything else. This is not universally true, however. And yes, you will now have to cover 10% of the cost of those services, up to your out-of-pocket maximum.

Your plan is still relatively generous compared to most employers today. I personally am in a $2500 deductible/80% coinsurance plan.

[chairmenmeow47]

yeah, they explained that the 100% is too costly because now we don't have million dollar limits, we don't have the pre-existing conditions thing, and we can cover dependents up to age 26. i've always had pretty good health insurance, so i can accept paying more so that others can get more (if that's really the case).

i just want to make sure i plan my flexible spending account accordingly. i went and looked at my bills recently and see that my surgery was like $4,000 and my hospital stay was $25,000(!!!). so now i guess i gotta pay better attention to what services i receive. even with a $2,500 max out-of-pocket, that's still a lot of money. thanks tom