57 replies to this topic

[NapisaurusRex]

I've been looking for health insurance for a year or so, right?

 

The cheapest I found 9 months ago was 100/month, the cheapest I found last week was 200/month, and the cheapest I found today was 260/month.

 

I'm using the same website and looking at the same plans and companies and everything. Can someone explain to me why it keeps going up? Or why it jumped so rapidly in the last week? Would clearing my cookies make it cheaper? 

 

I'm pissed.

[KaibaSama]

Oh god, I hope that's not what happens to me when CHIP runs out on my birthday (since it only covers up to age 18).

Maybe try looking on a different site to see if anything changes? (Such as healthcare.gov)

[Speedracer]

Try the same site using incognito mode to see if its based on your cookies; other than that I'm not much help, I get my insurance through my employer.

[NapisaurusRex]

Yeah, I'm unmarried and unemployed. Aka sol.

[HiMyNameIsNick]

260/month?

Holy crap, I pay like 50/60 bucks

[NapisaurusRex]

I know! I have literally no idea how they're determining this monthly amount, plus it's a 6k deductible. It's not even worth it.

[Tailwind]

Try going through the health insurance marketplace. Based on your income they'll try and match you with a plan you can feasibly afford... or at least that was the case when I tried. I went through them and instead found out that the state I live in, which denied me for health coverage not even two months prior would give me coverage for free after trying through them. :T

[talbs]

Wow my company pays around $500 a month for my insurance, so I'm assuming it's pretty good. I've never used it since I've worked there, knock on wood, but I'd much rather them select a cheaper plan and give me a raise. On topic however, I thought www.healthcare.gov was the best bet if you're uninsured. I think open enrollment is over, but I know normally they preach "get insured or pay a fine" so maybe there's still ways to make it happen, especially if you're unemployed and have kids, if my memory serves me correctly.

Edited by talbs, 08 January 2015 - 05:56 PM.

[NapisaurusRex]

healthcare.gov brought me down to 178/month, with a 6300 deductible.

[Grimley]

I've been looking for health insurance for a year or so, right?

 

The cheapest I found 9 months ago was 100/month, the cheapest I found last week was 200/month, and the cheapest I found today was 260/month.

 

I'm using the same website and looking at the same plans and companies and everything. Can someone explain to me why it keeps going up? Or why it jumped so rapidly in the last week? Would clearing my cookies make it cheaper? 

 

I'm pissed.

 

It's only going to keep going up, unfortunately. I've got an explanation of it all in more detail than anyone would really like to hear, plus being a fed contractor...not really a good idea to post specifics on a forum anyway.

healthcare.gov brought me down to 178/month, with a 6300 deductible.

 

That's a ridiculously high deductible.

[NapisaurusRex]

It's only going to keep going up, unfortunately. I've got an explanation of it all in more detail than anyone would really like to hear, plus being a fed contractor...not really a good idea to post specifics on a forum anyway.

 

That's a ridiculously high deductible.

IT IS. Like... if I'm mathing right, with that much per month, that high of a deductible, plus co-insurance after the deductible and everything, what I want covered by insurance will be cheaper to pay out of pocket than it will be to have insurance. I'd basically be paying for the privilege of being able to tell people I have health insurance.

[Grimley]

IT IS. Like... if I'm mathing right, with that much per month, that high of a deductible, plus co-insurance after the deductible and everything, what I want covered by insurance will be cheaper to pay out of pocket than it will be to have insurance. I'd basically be paying for the privilege of being able to tell people I have health insurance.

 

Umm...yeah, exactly.  You HAVE it, but realistically, it can't be used.

There's a lot of people only just now waking up to that unfortunate realization, and they haven't seen anything compared with what may happen to those premiums over the next 12-16 months.

[NapisaurusRex]

In other news, I can cook, clean, I'm fertile, mildly attractive, and open to marriage to someone who can insure me...

[Grimley]

In other news, I can cook, clean, I'm fertile, mildly attractive, and open to marriage to someone who can insure me...

 

I'm already married, otherwise I'd help out.

[Adam]

#ThanksObama

[HiMyNameIsNick]

Wow my company pays around $500 a month for my insurance

 

 

That's like the minimum wage in my country lol

[Swar]

That's like the minimum wage in my country lol

 

That's double the minimum wage in my country D:

[NapisaurusRex]

It's only going to keep going up, unfortunately. I've got an explanation of it all in more detail than anyone would really like to hear, plus being a fed contractor...not really a good idea to post specifics on a forum anyway.

PS I'm interested in this.

 
I think I figured out what I'm going to do. I was supposed to have insurance by Feb 6, my next dr appt, but I'm going to call them tomorrow and see who they were going to refer me to. Then I'm going to call those people and beg them to let me self-pay. Then, at the very least, I'll be able to see what insurance companies will actually cover the specialist I'll ultimately see and at best, I'll be able to pay out of pocket.

[Grimley]

PS I'm interested in this.

 
I think I figured out what I'm going to do. I was supposed to have insurance by Feb 6, my next dr appt, but I'm going to call them tomorrow and see who they were going to refer me to. Then I'm going to call those people and beg them to let me self-pay. Then, at the very least, I'll be able to see what insurance companies will actually cover the specialist I'll ultimately see and at best, I'll be able to pay out of pocket.

 

I think that sounds like a really good approach, and something else to keep in mind is to always ask for a detailed receipt of services (even regular visits/diagnostics) with full medical coding information for whatever procedures are done right there for you to see. Trust me...this is an annoyance to them. because prices for everything are vastly inflated all at the whim of whatever medical code they choose to use in the books. Very few people actually request fully-detailed receipts, however, but when they DO: it's a surefire easy way to call them on their bullshit of charging dozens of dollars for even handing you a Kleenex while in the exam room (I'm seriously not exaggerating on this).

[talbs]

That's like the minimum wage in my country lol

 

Minimum as in monthly/weekly or what? Our minimum wage here in my state is $7.25 hourly which working full time is ~$1160 a month or ~$15000 annually.

Edited by talbs, 09 January 2015 - 06:48 AM.

[Speedracer]

Minimum as in monthly/weekly or what? Our minimum wage here in my state is $7.85 hourly which working full time is ~$1250 a month or ~$15000 annually.

I thought you lived in NC? The minimum wage is $7.25... unless it went up at the start of the year still ~$15,000 annually (assuming 40 hours for 52 weeks per year)

[NapisaurusRex]

I think that sounds like a really good approach, and something else to keep in mind is to always ask for a detailed receipt of services (even regular visits/diagnostics) with full medical coding information for whatever procedures are done right there for you to see. Trust me...this is an annoyance to them. because prices for everything are vastly inflated all at the whim of whatever medical code they choose to use in the books. Very few people actually request fully-detailed receipts, however, but when they DO: it's a surefire easy way to call them on their bullshit of charging dozens of dollars for even handing you a Kleenex while in the exam room (I'm seriously not exaggerating on this).

I'm on a sliding scale with my PCP right now, which is very nice. I tried to get that initially with the local hospital (which my PCP is a branch of), but they don't have the specialists I need.

[HiMyNameIsNick]

Minimum as in monthly/weekly or what? Our minimum wage here in my state is $7.85 hourly which working full time is ~$1250 a month or ~$15000 annually.

 

 

Monthly. Working full time (8 hours p/day) it's like $550 a month (the legal one, since we have two kinds of dollar)

 

 

That's double the minimum wage in my country D:

 

You sure? I thought that Brasil had better wages.

Edited by HiMyNameIsNick, 08 January 2015 - 08:46 PM.

[Swar]

Monthly. Working full time (8 hours p/day) it's like $550 a month (the legal one, since we have two kinds of dollar)





You sure? I thought that Brasil had better wages.

Yup. Well, just a bit bigger, but still... It is at 788 reais, and with the dollar at ~2.67 reais, that's a little less than 300 dollars.

[Lucian]

Guuurrrrrll, you needa get on dat TriCare.