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Home > Health Insurance, the bane of my existence!

Health Insurance, the bane of my existence!

August 11th, 2008 at 03:18 am

I am not going to rehash all the trouble I have had the past 9 months with health insurance and my job. If you need a sleep aid feel free to browse my previous posts on the subject. However, I will say that all of this !@#$ with medical insurance is getting really old.

My boss calls me on July 30 (my day off) and tells me that as of July 1 my insurance premiums are going up $300 more each month (to $1,100/month) and asking what I want to do. Seems she has not paid said premiums for July yet even though it is July 30. Nice. Well gee willikers, boss I guess I gotta pay it for July and August at the very least since you are giving me so very much notice to research other options. *No sarcasm here*

I am seriously fit to be tied. Every single time I come up with a little extra money to put toward debt freedom I am thwarted. Absolutely no exaggeration. It is beyond ridiculous at this point.

Anyway, I have talked to an insurance broker and have gotten quotes. The only option that is less expensive is an HMO HSA for $600/month. It will cover only in-network doctors/hospitals with no out-of-network coverage. The family deductible is $5,000 with a max out-of-pocket of $10,000/year. Guess what my $5,000 Emergency Fund is going to be called come September 1st?! *sigh*

I am tired of barely treading water. Someone needs to sue the pants off all the insurance companies so we can get back all those "profits" we pay them only to have them deny coverage of every little thing. *GGRRRRR*

Okay, rant off. Anyone with insight into HSA's please feel free to opine. Thanks!

10 Responses to “Health Insurance, the bane of my existence!”

  1. Amber Says:
    1218422594

    I would be upset as well, getting a call on the 30th. And sue insurance companies who pays our politicians to work for them and not the people, yeah right; that's why there is ERISA which makes it very difficult or should I say "it won't happen" to sue
    Sorry to hear about all your troubles

  2. Blue Eyes Says:
    1218423021

    That is ridiculous. You might want to check www.ehealthinsurance.com. You can get a quote immediately online. Since I am covered 100% at my job, I got Health America for my 2 children for less than $230/month through the above site. The coverage is reasonable and copays are minimal. Just a thought. Good luck!

  3. gamecock43 Says:
    1218424299

    Holy Batman you are paying $1100 a month in health insurance?! Remind me to never, EVER have kids.

  4. MariRDH Says:
    1218424829

    Yes, my health insurance is a "family" plan for me, hubby and daughter which is one reason it is expensive. The other big reason it is so expensive is because I live in New Jersey. Unfortunately we will be living here for at least the next 2-3 years until my hubby gets done school. Thank G-d he will then pick up the health insurance as a teacher!

    I think HSA's in other states are much lower in price, but here is good ol' Jersey they are fairly expensive as well. Frown

  5. scfr Says:
    1218462902

    We are self-employed and therefore self-insuring.
    We switched to an HDHP with HSA back in November.

    If you go to my blog and type "HSA" in the search bar, you'll pull up several entries I wrote about the process. There is one called "HDHP & HSA Cliff Notes" that may be a good place to start.

    One important thing to remember is that the money you put in to your HSA is money you do not have to pay tax on, so $5,000 really won't cost you $5,000 in net pay.

    Good luck.

  6. Ima saver Says:
    1218464084

    AFter paying in $95,000 to Blue cross and never getting one penny back, we dropped our coverage! I just refuse to get sick!!

  7. MariRDH Says:
    1218498022

    scfr,
    Thanks for the info! I am reading all your entries now. I appreciate your sharing your experience. Smile

  8. livingalmostlarge Says:
    1221078034

    Hope you are doing well and I'm using this in my post.

  9. Mona Lori Says:
    1221824812

    I have a high-dedutible health plan, along with an HSA and by selecting this type of plan, I am able to reduce my family monthy premiums by $8000/year. I also try to shop around and find the best value before visiting a provider for routine services - but this is almost impossible. The lack of transparency makes it difficult for consumers to look-up prices, compare what other consumers paid, and find the best value -- before visiting a provider. I decided to to something to address this problem. I launched a community search tool called www.outofpocket.com to help consumers find the best value. The site relies on consumers to post/share prices they paid for actual visits to share with other consumers.

    I invite you to check it out and I welcome all your comments.

    Mona Lori
    founder
    OutofPocket.com

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