2018 Health Insurance Increases

[Skip]

Carp! I can't just be me.

Can I vent a bit?!? ~23% increase in our small biz "group" plan now more than my mortgage!!! We have $6,000 individual deductibles, $40/80 copays, all sorts of other costs (prescriptions have ranged from $10 - 140). Everyone in the house is relatively healthy. Thank God!

Yes, I am used to the annual increases and expected something. Previous years were anywhere from a few bucks to a hundred. This is insane!

I think they timed these letters until people mailed in their ballots. Still cheaper than Single Payer, but it won't be far off the way this is going. There is no way our household is getting the healthcare we are paying for with these premiums. And it's not really insurance with pre-existings covered no matter what--it's cost sharing.

[Irving]

I hear you. I got three stitches back in February. It wasn't an emergency, and I didn't want to go but thought it might be a big deal since it was on my hand. I called around to the clinics at grocery stores and they all said they'd just send me to the emergency room. I went and it ended up costing me over f'ing $6,000!

One of my life coaches pointed out that I could have flown first class to Panama gotten the stitches and flown back for less. Health "insurance" in this country is completely fucked and has been for a long time. Now I'm angry about that all over again.

[Skip]

[snip]

One of my life coaches pointed out that I could have flown first class to Panama gotten the stitches and flown back for less. Health "insurance" in this country is completely fucked and has been for a long time. Now I'm angry about that all over again.

Sorry, that really sucks.

I'm pissed about this too. It's going to get to the point where people give up and we go full Commie. I really don't see another solution.

My wife is our "benefits coordinator" and she has two months to come up with something. Obviously, we can pay for a lot out of pocket in lieu of these premiums, but I've always thought it was irresponsible to not have an insurance product since I have a family.

If it was just me? They could f right off.

[Irving]

Since I don't have an employer, I get zero help paying for health insurance. I make sure to fund our HSA as best as I can though each year. If people aren't aware, you can fund an HSA pre-tax, and do so for as long as you have it. If you build it up to be very large and don't use it, it just turns into another pre-tax retirement vessel at some pre-defined age.

[copfish]

Same boat here.... I'm retired and PERA's plans suck... But looking at Connecting Colorado I can make up to $100K for a family of four and premiums are way cheaper than what PERA-Care charges...

[Grant H.]

Hence why I use CHM (Christian Healthcare Ministries).

Basically a catastrophic event type of system, so we pay out of pocket for normal stuff. Telling most providers that we are cash customers, and having researched what Medicaid/Medicare would pay, we've been able to do pretty well in negotiating good cash prices.

[Irving]

I looked up negotiating with companies before I paid my bill. I found lots of info, and everything I tried got shut down pretty hard. BUT they knew all the moves and I just had to follow the lady's lead on the phone. I still got it down into the $3,000 range I think. Still.

I remember the CHM from last year, but I never made a move on it.

[Bailey Guns]

I'm very fortunate (you know...silver lining and all that) that I'm now enrolled in the VA Choice program. I'm seeing the same doctor I saw under my BCBS plan thru my employer. But I just got my open enrollment packet and our premiums thru my employer didn't go up this year. Insurance is getting more and more important now that I'm rapidly approaching "senior discount" age.

[Wulf202]

Hence why I use CHM (Christian Healthcare Ministries).

I signed up, only to be denied on a pre existing condition. Since they're a co-op they're allowed to pick and choose.

[Ramsker]

Ours is going up . . . just not sure by how much. We were acquired this year and we're all losing the UHC coverage we've had for years--which has been awesome. Everyone is getting put on Blue Shield (California), which is what the company who bought us uses. We all get to move over and pay more . . . they all stay on the plan they had and get to pay less. Great.

Only other choice is Kaiser here in CO and I won't go back to them unless it's a last resort. Had a couple bad experiences with them from a previous job. So I guess we'll find out what Blue Shield has going for it starting Jan 1.