Insurance Question

How do you have medical insurance? I'm realizing I'm 'handcuffed' to my present job as it provides me with great health insurance but does not satisfy my needs to follow my passions. Would love to hear from those who work for themselves, are American yet overseas. How do you have health insurance to pay for the various needs we have? Thanks for your help!

I am stuck on an individual policy that I had before diagnosis. I had moved a few years before from another state. I a got plan with better drug coverage and a lower deductible which actually cost the same as the plan it replaced.I had to because policy don't go with you if you move to another state. I guess I was lucky there.

Bad news is my insurance premium will have doubled since 2008 as of Jan 2012(about 4 years). I can't change companies, get more coverage or move out of the state. I don't think I will be able to afford insurance until I am 65(13 years) even if the amount the policy increases are half what they have been the last 10 years. I don't have a specialist copay, my drug copays are $30 generic $125 brandname/month per drug, deductible is $2500 and total out of pocket in network is $6500 a year(excluding drugs). If I did have low copays and deductibles, I couldn't afford the monthly premium and really the cost would be exactly the same.

I am definitely better off than people that didn't have insurance when they were diagnosed. I am better off than people that are stuck in a job they hate and can't find another with insurance. The cost are ridiculous though and I am definitely denying myself care because I can't afford to pay for it.

If I followed my last GIs advice, my out of pocket for his fees would have been $3000+ year, the drug copays would have been another $3000, and my insurance is $3200. That is for somebody with UC in remission. $9200 for just that one illness not counting primary care. As is I am spending about $5000 total and getting almost no professional care at all.

I would not recommend leaving a job that you can live with that pays ok and has good medical coverage if you have UC. I ran my own business for many years and it is very stressful and risky. With the huge cost of insurance today and the extra cost of UC, I don't think I would have been able to do it. I am pretty sure UC is a preexisting condition so you would have to do it uninsured.

I find American insurance more confusing than politics. Everyone is essentially screwed once they're diagnosed with a disease. Either higher premiums, lower insurance, more cost or denied. I don't understand it at all anymore.

It's the bottom line I guess.

But I do hope you guys find a solution, though.

lol, not sure if the right term should be easier. But it can be equally as confusing. My mom has life insurance and a clause in her agreement states,' "In the event of you sustaining a permanent disability, your life insurance will be deducted after 65."

Unfortunately she did.

Now health insurance is a completely different beast. We have OHIP and it does cover most things. Since my family's on disability we just pay $2 for every script, unless that's the same for everyone else I'm not sure of. But if I needed more coverage after I move out, then it'll be tricky since I have a 'pre-existing condition'. I was lucky to sign up for Critical Illness insurance before getting this. Where $10,000 will be paid to me if I become extremely ill, and therefore cannot work, support family or pay bills.

I know in Ontario an immigrant has a waiting period to get onto OHIP, but once you're on you're alright script-wise. And I believe that's up to three months?

http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/programs/ohip/ohipfaq_dt.aspx

Here's more info for my province's insurance.

Provided the healthcare bill isn't repealed or changed by the courts, in 2014 you can no longer be denied individual coverage for a preexisting condition and their will be state insurance market places where you can shop for identical policies on price. This will be a lot like the medicare supplement market place. You can change your policy instead of being stuck and you can't be charged more for having a preexisting condition or denied coverage.

If you don't have insurance now,can't get insurance because of a preexisting and have been uninsured for at least 6 months, there is already policies available under the healthcare reform. It gets complicated because some states have their own program and some states are in a federal program. I checked for AZ and the premiums were not that bad. They did not have the greatest drug coverage which is not so hot for UCers but much better than nothing.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, aka PPACA, aka ObamaCare, was signed into law in March of 2010.

Various parts of the law kick in at various times, and some already have.

Preventing recisions, IMHO, was a huge deal. I was on private insurance, and still am until November 1 when I start a new job with benefits day one.

Law wasn't perfect, and there are still plenty of gaps. However, the law passed by the narrowest of margins with 60 votes in the Senate and 219 votes in the House. So, whenever anyone gripes about it, I like to point out that 60 and 218 are the magic numbers. Without them, forget it.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act

I was on COBRA for 18 months, then private insurance since then for the last 20 months.

Private insurance h*ll has been less than fun. After the first year, they dropped our RX drug coverage, which wasn't much to speak of already. Even with RX drug coverage, I resorted to buying from Canada and I've been doing that ever since.

When they dropped RX drug coverage, they reduced the rates a little. However, about 6 months later, they jacked the rates to a level that was above what I was paying before WITH RX drug coverage. More premiums for less coverage. Just a few months ago, I raised the deductible to $25K which took the premium down to about 60% what it was.

Also was paying out of pocket for separate dental/vision coverage. Had to go through this one specific dental chain, and while they do a decent job they've unsuccessfully filled a cavity twice. Within weeks, it popped out. Now, I'm just waiting out until coverage starts, and hopefully I can go to a wider selection of dentists.

When I was working, I could make the premiums. Got laid off at the end of March, and I've been on unemployment ever since. Keeping up the health insurance premiums has been a priority, but we're now about 10 months behind on our mortgage, foreclosure that goes from one month to the next, and by now it might already be sold, bankruptcy, and the new job is paying 40% less than what I was making when I was salaried.

American Dream in the 21st Century looks quite a bit like The Grapes of Wrath.