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Purchasing Health Insurance
- Thread starter Kaman
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House_X
House X by Peter Eisenman
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2001
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This may or may not be right for you. I was in-between jobs for 3 months this year and without health insurance for my family for that time. I bought a plan from Fortis Health Insurance (out of Milwaukee) that is for people who need temporary insurance. I think the max you can do it is for 12 months. I got a high deductable plan for my family and it cost me $160/ month. It does not cover routine visits. BC/BS had quoted me ~$800/month! Cobra from my previous employer was ~$760/month. Hope this helps someone.
Hello,
Thanks a lot fellas, I really appreciate the advice. Things are rough enough trying to survive on flight instructor pay, and health insurance is a must have until my wife goes back to work as an R.N. We've got a 3 month old, so she is our priority.
I'm very grateful to have a full-time job at an FBO instructing, answering phones, cleaning the restrooms, etc... I know that it's just a beginning, but with all the pilots on the street it's great just to get airborne a few times a week.
Regards,
ex-Navy rotorhead
Thanks a lot fellas, I really appreciate the advice. Things are rough enough trying to survive on flight instructor pay, and health insurance is a must have until my wife goes back to work as an R.N. We've got a 3 month old, so she is our priority.
I'm very grateful to have a full-time job at an FBO instructing, answering phones, cleaning the restrooms, etc... I know that it's just a beginning, but with all the pilots on the street it's great just to get airborne a few times a week.
Regards,
ex-Navy rotorhead
Kaman,
A couple things to look out for:
+ High deductible plans are just that. Some plans will have certain services covered automatically, others you'll pay a sometimes $500-$1000 per event fee, others yet you'll have a deductable up to an out of pocket maximum (say, $5k, with a deductable of $500 or somesuch). Be prepared for a situation where you have potentially massive bills for what was once a routine situation.
+ High premium plans are also just that. Lots of money flies out the pocket monthly, and it's going to depend on which carrier you choose on how much that is. If you don't get sick, they stink =)
+ Some individual plans will have all sorts of qualifying exams and or procedures. Be prepared for those, as they can affect your coverage options.
+ You may not be insured (this does vary from state to state IIRC) if you have a pre-existing condition and you are uncovered for a period of time. For example, if you have lyme disease, go off health insurance for a month, and then get reinsured, poof, insurance company # 2 (which now covers you) may not have to pay claims assosciated with that condition. It can bite people in the rear.
+ Depending on where you are, your options will of course vary. A great way to find out more about plans in your area is contact an insurance broker and (maybe, for you) offer a free hour of dual in exchange for a survey of the market place. Brokers, in some markets, can help you BIG TIME.
+ You may have more luck with a local carrier (where I am in the Boston area, that would mean Tufts, Harvard Pilgrim, Fallon, so on) than a national (CIGNA, US Healthcare, BC/BS [while technically local, it's a "national" company], Kaiser, etc) insurer. Local plans are more likely to take on individuals, at potentially lower rates. YMMV on that one, though.
+ There are many plans, like POS (point of sale, more for the "car accident need help now), HMO (what we're all used to), traditional indemnity (if you're "older", this is what you are used to), and PPO (go anywhere you want, but you pay for it in premiums and out of pocket expenses if the provider is not in-plan). Make sure you research all of them
+ Look for plans that are geared towards the self-employed and the small buisness. You may be able to find adequate health insurance through professional groups (NAFI may offer something, I don't know), since they have the barganing power of a large employer.
I can't give you rates, unless you live in MA (and even those may be wrong). You can expect to pay in the neighborhood of $100-$900 a month, though (depending on what you choose, again, the rates above are for the MA area).
Good luck! If you have any Q's, you can PM me. The insurance marketplace is tough nowadays....
Cheers,
-Andrew
Corporate cog in the health insurance machine
A couple things to look out for:
+ High deductible plans are just that. Some plans will have certain services covered automatically, others you'll pay a sometimes $500-$1000 per event fee, others yet you'll have a deductable up to an out of pocket maximum (say, $5k, with a deductable of $500 or somesuch). Be prepared for a situation where you have potentially massive bills for what was once a routine situation.
+ High premium plans are also just that. Lots of money flies out the pocket monthly, and it's going to depend on which carrier you choose on how much that is. If you don't get sick, they stink =)
+ Some individual plans will have all sorts of qualifying exams and or procedures. Be prepared for those, as they can affect your coverage options.
+ You may not be insured (this does vary from state to state IIRC) if you have a pre-existing condition and you are uncovered for a period of time. For example, if you have lyme disease, go off health insurance for a month, and then get reinsured, poof, insurance company # 2 (which now covers you) may not have to pay claims assosciated with that condition. It can bite people in the rear.
+ Depending on where you are, your options will of course vary. A great way to find out more about plans in your area is contact an insurance broker and (maybe, for you) offer a free hour of dual in exchange for a survey of the market place. Brokers, in some markets, can help you BIG TIME.
+ You may have more luck with a local carrier (where I am in the Boston area, that would mean Tufts, Harvard Pilgrim, Fallon, so on) than a national (CIGNA, US Healthcare, BC/BS [while technically local, it's a "national" company], Kaiser, etc) insurer. Local plans are more likely to take on individuals, at potentially lower rates. YMMV on that one, though.
+ There are many plans, like POS (point of sale, more for the "car accident need help now), HMO (what we're all used to), traditional indemnity (if you're "older", this is what you are used to), and PPO (go anywhere you want, but you pay for it in premiums and out of pocket expenses if the provider is not in-plan). Make sure you research all of them
+ Look for plans that are geared towards the self-employed and the small buisness. You may be able to find adequate health insurance through professional groups (NAFI may offer something, I don't know), since they have the barganing power of a large employer.
I can't give you rates, unless you live in MA (and even those may be wrong). You can expect to pay in the neighborhood of $100-$900 a month, though (depending on what you choose, again, the rates above are for the MA area).
Good luck! If you have any Q's, you can PM me. The insurance marketplace is tough nowadays....
Cheers,
-Andrew
Corporate cog in the health insurance machine
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