General > General info Somewhat hot tub related
Health Insurance
NWHotTubber:
--- Quote --- My husband has coverage for the entire family that is 100% employer paid, but we end up spending close to ten thousand dollars each year out of pocket (they have a crappy plan). I'm wondering whether or not it would be beneficial for us to get a second coverage for at least myself and the kids.
My 6yr old has a dentist appointment tomorrow to the tune of $2k out of pocket. :'( Good thing I have a tub to relax in....
--- End quote ---
Depending on what size of company your husband works for you may want to talk to the admin. and see if they are willing to review the current group policy or see if there is another company the employer would consider. May even do a little research on GP and submit it.
If it is a small company this is a fairly easy task... if it is a larger company, probably a waste of time. Unless you are in good with the office staff ;)
Then you might be able to find supplemental coverage.
That just sounds huge out of pocket...
ORANGEPEEL:
Brookenstein:
I am in the insurance and financial planning arena.
One thing I can share is that individual health insurance is in generally VERY EXPENSIVE ! :'(
One thing that you should check out is a Health Savings Account (HSA).
Not alot of people are aware of it, and also alot of insurance agents don't understand how it works.
Far too in-depth to discuss in this forum.
You can access the basics of it on the U.S. Treasury Dept. site: www.treas.gov,
click on the link for HSA.
There are alot of benefits for an HSA Acct., it may or may not be of benefit in your circumstances.
If you do work with an insurance agent, make darn sure they know what they are doing in regards to an HSA.
Meanwhile, enjoy your tubbing. :)
dkersten:
I am no insurance expert but I can say that with the way prices are today, $1000 a month for family coverage is not unreasonable.. at that price, depending on company size, it is possible that the company he works for is "self insured" and they are kicking in a portion to the pool. It is not uncommon for a single 25 year old to get personal medical insurance for about $1200 a month premiums.
My family company has about 95 employees now, and we are "self insured". what this means is we charge the employees on the plan a premium, and kick in the same amount to the pool. The pool pays a premium to a self insurance program that will kick in if any individual exceeds $35,000 in a year, or if the overall goes over something like $500,000. I think about half the employees are on the plan, and some have their families on it. I believe its about $900 a month for a family with 3 or more kids. (I am not on the plan because my wife's insurance is cheaper and better). There is no eye coverage, and the dental is minimal. Last fiscal year the company had to kick an extra $254,000 into the pool to cover the costs. I believe that was the max before the self insurance policy kicked in and covered the rest, which was pretty much nothing after that.. the 50% from employees and 50% from the company was over $250,000 short. We had a good year, so we didnt take that money from the profit sharing program. This fiscal year we will, which means everyones 401k and bonus profit sharing will be severely lowered if medical costs are that bad again.
It may seem like a lot to spend $1000 a month for insurance but keep in mind that if one of your kids breaks an arm, it will likely cost around $1800-$10,000 depending on if they need surgery.. it might even go higher if the break is severe enough.. Most moms these days will take their kids into same day care or emergency room for fevers and vomiting, and sometimes even for sore throats. Most of the time its a common cold or even flu, and sometimes an ear infection or strep throat. Emergency room visits these days cost insurance companies around $500-$800 if nothing more is done than seeing the doctor and getting examined. Add x-ray, ct scans, throat cultures, stitches, etc and the price climbs. If moms would schedule regular visits to the family doctor, the price drops dramatically, but in the world of fast food and fast internet, people also want fast cures. Also, so many people figure that they are spending $1000 a month for insurance, why not go to the emergency room, its only a $50 co-pay right? Unfortunately thats the reason insurance is so high to begin with.
HSA's are fairly new, and are way better than flex spending, but you usually cant get in them unless the HSA is part of the medical insurance.. the allowable contribution is based on the number of people you have insured. The great thing with an HSA is it collects interest and doesnt go away at the end of the year. Flex plans and cafeteria plans are great if you know how much you will spend in a year on medical expenses but if you overestimate you lose the money.
I do about $3000 a year to a flex plan and if I dont use it I stock up on over the counter medicines and such as well as glasses for everyone. There was a thread in the hot tub section about a week or two ago about deducting the price of your hot tub as a medical therapy expense, and in talking to my flex provider, it seems that if I had a note from a doctor saying that he recommended hydro-therapy then I could use flex money for that.. I might try that when it comes time to upgrade my tub..
imp etc:
--- Quote ---It is not uncommon for a single 25 year old to get personal medical insurance for about $1200 a month premiums.
--- End quote ---
$.02 . . .
That seems way weird . . . my Kaiser (I am 43) costs $192/month. If I added my Spice, it would be about $400. We don't have kids.
As I said previously, so far (counting blessings) I am fairly healthy so I have a pretty high deductible - I think it's $1500/year.
I'm also covered by Blue Cross which Spice gets at work for free.
hotubinn:
I am self employed also. I insure myself and my two children with Blue Cross Blue shield. My wife's employer covers her (too much dough for all of us). I pay less than $500 per month for myself and a 6 yr old and 4 yr old. Very reasonable.
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