Poll: Healthcare in retirement

[Lusitan]

Healthcare may be the most important factor for those contemplating ER.

[SteveR]

In retirement we will be using my DW's health plan since it will be fully paid by the company except for deductables.

I have an employer sponsered health care plan from my first ER where my former employer pays about 80% of the cost.

It is a no brainer which plan we will use.

[unclemick]

Hmmm

1993-2005 age 49-62 - no insurance. Not recommended. But given the other choice was WORK! - I took ER and going naked.

Now - with a bigger portfolio - high deduct Blue Cross in 2006.

heh heh heh heh

[Outtahere]

I will have no choice but to purchase my own health insurance, neither dh or I have or had a job that included that in retirement, also no pensions.

[MJ]

I am currently on my former company's cobra plan. It is a pretty low deductable, comprehensive and fairly expensive insurance even for me as a single. One of the reasons I am planning to leave the NY area to AZ is to get lower high ded insurance. I won't need expensive insurance since I plan to travel a lot away from my future homebase.

[Lusitan]

Hi MJ - did you choose AZ after researching the various state laws regarding health insurance? Or were you already planning on moving out there and it just happens to have a good set of state insurance laws? Just curious. I haven't done research on all the state laws, but NJ seems pretty decent (at least as compared to some neighboring states).

It's interesting to think that as Boomers start to retire, states may start to compete with one another in terms of mandating reasonably-priced universal-access healthcare plans in order to attract retirees to come live (and spend their retirement money) in their state. We may end up with a hodgepodge "national" healthcare system in the process ...

[Zipper]

Drugs, Dental, Massage and Chiropractic services are covered under Mrs. Zipper's Health Plan at the London Health Sciences Centre..

Medical is covered by the Province of Ontario. Without going into detail, the Canadian Healthcare System has been excellent to the extended Zipper family.

Healthcare for the Canadian retirees that I know is not an issue.

[Lusitan]

Doh!

This was my first poll and I didn't pay attention and see that I could have added more than the default 5 choices. I just added an option for no health insurance, but I don't expect that to be a very popular choice.

Looks like someone else has edited the poll ... all good ... I would have included military healthcare as under the pension/defined-benefit plan, but no harm in seeing it broken out.

I'm heartened to see the number of successful ERs who get by with purchasing their own health insurance. I'm pretty sure that is what I'll need to do - most jobs these days (apart from the military/govt and the few remaining union gigs out there) don't come with any pension health benefit.

Another possibility for us is moving to Europe, but we wouldn't be doing that for the insurance, only because half our family is there. I'd have to see how that whole system works (or doesn't work) and I'll probably purchase our own private policy anyway just in case.

[MJ]

Originally Posted by Lusitan

Hi MJ - did you choose AZ after researching the various state laws regarding health insurance?

Yes.
After I retired (laid off) last year, I started looking for states, I might want to live in because of warmer weather, bicycle friendly environment, lower cost of living which included health, liability and auto insurance, so I looked at AZ, NM and OR. I have a friend in Tucson who found me a place a to store my car and establish my residency.
Leaving NYC to go to Tucson, should probably save me between $10k to $15k in my COL.