Health Care Insurance Concerns?

[Joe Marconi]

Has anyone spoken to their insurance agents in regard to health insurance. I briefly saw my insurance agent at the last Chamber of Commerce meeting and he told me he wants to meet with me way before November, when it will time to renew, to discuss all the changes in the new health laws. From what I see in New York, rates are going up and coverages will not be the same.

 

 

[CARMandP]

I don't offer it to my employees yet but I can tell you that my own personal health insurance is planning to more than double because the minimums don't meet Obamacare's requirements. So much for the lie that my health insurance won't be going up. We will probably have to do without sadly because there is no way I can afford to pay double for the crap insurance I already have

[xrac]

Some of us will pay a lot more for less. My deductible is now up to $7,000.

[Jeff]

I don't have health care, just cant afford it. My bigger fear is how the mandatory Obamacare is going to affect me. I am not a person that gets sick often. We were just talking about it last night at the house and I have been to the doctor a total of 4 times since 1993, and that is including 2 trips to the ER ( 1 was a dumba$$ attack not wearing saftey glasses when grinding and the second was a badly pulled back).

[TTP]

I am in the same boat as you are Jeff, hardly ever get sick couldn't tell you the last time I went to a doctor! But I am getting older now, so healthcare is becoming a concern of mine now but the prices of insurance are just plain ridiculous!

Also from what I have read if you don't have at least 10 employees you are not required to have insurance for them.

[xrac]

I am in the same boat as you are Jeff, hardly ever get sick couldn't tell you the last time I went to a doctor! But I am getting older now, so healthcare is becoming a concern of mine now but the prices of insurance are just plain ridiculous!

Also from what I have read if you don't have at least 10 employees you are not required to have insurance for them.

That is my understanding also. However, we face personal penalties if we do not have insurance.

[Jeff]

The penalties are what worries me. I can't afford insurance so I will be penalized. And I have heard numbers form 3k to 7k annually. I would love to be able to afford a complete health care pkg. Even today I have a miserable tooth ache and I will probably pull it myself!

[TTP]

Yes its sad, that the honest worker can't afford to stay in business because of all of the dishonest moochers out there that work the system and make it so hard for us to make a living!

[xrac]

Considering the on going debate on health care here is some food for thought.

 

https://fee.org/articles/stop-misusing-the-term-health-care/?utm_source=zapier&utm_medium=facebook

[Hands On]

I have just added health insurance. I have cut my personal pay to make it work. I am also lowering other insurance bills. I plan to call Comcast to reduce that bill, as well as cut out ALLDATA repair and use identif8x for all repair info.

I will probably raise my labor rate January 1st to cover the cost.

My wife and kids have been covered by CHIP and Medicaid. If they loose that coverage because I offer a plan It will cost me $1480 a month, more then my home payment.  

My one employee that signed up cost another $550. So this is a little over 2000 a month. If I raise my labor rate by $5 and fiddle with my parts matrix a tad it should balance out.  

It makes me sick thinking about the cost so I need to get it lol.

I do hope this will help me attract the better techs out there. If I can get a more efficient employee out of it the costs would be even more offset.

Edited December 20, 2017 by Hands On

[xrac]

That is $18,000 to cover your family.  That is crazy! This insurance stuff is the biggest fraud ever pushed upon the American people.  This is our premiums that were suppose to go down.  This is the Democrats on crack and the Republicans as gutless wonders and neither side cares about anything but staying in office and nothing about the people.  Sorry for the tirade but people are in such a ridiculous situation.  What is your deductible? 

[Hands On]

The good thing is the max out of pocket is 2k a year. With my families heart history I am basically financing in advance work I know I will need in the future. I also plan to take advantage of all of the pre care health things it offers.

[xrac]

23 hours ago, Hands On said:

The good thing is the max out of pocket is 2k a year. With my families heart history I am basically financing in advance work I know I will need in the future. I also plan to take advantage of all of the pre care health things it offers.

At least the deductible is modest.  I am Medicare as of December 1.  My premium (medicare & supplements) drops by over $400 per month and my deductible went from $7,500 to less than $200 otherwise I would still be sweating the health insurance thing. 

[Hands On]

It is a shame that I am looking forward to getting older so I can get my social security and medicare.

[tyrguy]

16 hours ago, xrac said:

At least the deductible is modest.  I am Medicare as of December 1.  My premium (medicare & supplements) drops by over $400 per month and my deductible went from $7,500 to less than $200 otherwise I would still be sweating the health insurance thing. 

I'm with ya Xrac, I turn 65 in April and I'm looking forward to Medicare. My insurance just took another jump of 

$100 to about $950/mo with a 4K deductible. I expect to see a decrease similiar to yours.

[xrac]

3 hours ago, tyrguy said:

I'm with ya Xrac, I turn 65 in April and I'm looking forward to Medicare. My insurance just took another jump of 

$100 to about $950/mo with a 4K deductible. I expect to see a decrease similiar to yours.

Unless there are health issues that preclude it you should consider short term health insurance coverage until April 1.  You could enjoy a considerable savings. 

[tyrguy]

No real health issues but it's only 4 months.

Edited December 22, 2017 by tyrguy

[xrac]

18 minutes ago, tyrguy said:

No real health issues but it's only 4 months.

Having sold insurance in the past I would check this possibility out.  You may be able to secure coverage for four months for less than $1000.  I don't what that market is like today but short term use to be super cheap.  Personally, I did not pay my last month of premium before I was Medicare eligible. The mandate was fulfilled if you were covered 10 out of 12. If I had gotten sick during the last month I would have paid the premium and been covered since there is a 30 day grace period. If you want to do that you only have to look at it as covering 3 months.  Of course, the mandate is going away so coverage doesn't matter from that aspect. 

[bantar]

While this is not insurance, I recently learned of this healthcare insurance option.   There is a company here called diamondphysicians.com that offers concierge medicine.  I think it's under $100/month and then most medical issues are covered.  Doctor visits are free, Lab work is about $7, xrays $30, etc.  They have both GP's and some specialists on staff.  I think an insurance agent can make a mint if they find a way to package major medical insurance with this type of medical care.  One is not covered of they have a major medical issue or if you are in a car wreck.  However, if there's a choice between no insurance and this only, it still has value.  The person that told me about this has no insurance and a family with small children.  He's a member of this network and at least he, his wife and kids are getting medical care.    I had always associated concierge medicine with wealthy folks only.  As you can see, this one doesn't break the bank.  

It looks like they might expand to other areas as it is a franchise as well.  

[skm]

Health insurance has become a JOKE ! we are not offered insurance through work.. I have to pay out of pocket for my and my wife's insurance. Our monthly bill starting Jan 1st will be 956.00 a month , there is no way we can afford it. We do not qualify for any assistance so it is on us.. Our saving grace maybe that my wife started a new job as a medical secretary for a spine doctor in a hospital so we have looked into their insurance and it looks like we should be able to join hers without having to wait until their open enrollment which is in may and wouldn't take effect until July. They said that they may be able to consider the high payment that we can't afford to be a life altering circumstance. Her insurance will be 400.00 a month cheaper and much much better coverage. much lower out of pocket and deductibles not to mention no need for referrals we can go to any specialist in the network most of which are in our living area so that is a plus as well. We should hear something soon if not we will be without health insurance starting Jan 1st.

[alfredauto]

I had to pay a penalty this year because NYS made and error and cancelled a couple of my kids. Their website was broken so they couldn't fix it for a few months. The state got it corrected finally but we still had a gap. How can 6 people be on the same plan, all dependents of me, all signed up at the same time and 2 get dropped mid year? Computer error. Now I have to file another form to get a refund of the penalty, I'm still working on getting reimbursed for some Dr visits. Not to be one of those guys but when I was self insured everybody made more money. The providers and me both. By a LOT! My employees have other halves with family plans thank god because I can't afford to provide health care for them no matter how I figure it.