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wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool
Old 03-06-2006, 08:00 PM   #1
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wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=327716

interesting article:

- In the 5 years since 2000, the number in the pool has nearly doubled.

- "There's not a private insurer out there who will take you if you have diabetes or cancer or a history of heart disease," said Kitzman of AIS Group.

- There is not good data on the number of people denied coverage in the individual market. The General Accounting Office reportedly estimated that people with severe chronic health problems were rejected about 30% of the time.

- People with a history of mental health problems faced the greatest obstacles: They were rejected 52% of the time.

Even with the subsidies, the insurance can be costly. The premiums vary by age, sex and location. A boy or girl under the age of 18 who lives in Milwaukee, for instance, would pay $1,776 a year. But a man between the ages of 60 and 64 would pay $12,084 a year for insurance with the lowest deductible .


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Re: wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool
Old 03-06-2006, 10:58 PM   #2
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Re: wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool

My wife and I are 51 and could be enjoying retirement except for one thing, the need for health insurance. She was diagnosed with occult breast cancer a little over a year ago -- the cancer had spread to 4 of her axillary lymph nodes and 1 supraclavicular node. She's had chemo, radiation therapy, multiple surgeries and her last PET scan was clean.

I'm curious if there are any members of this forum that are enrolled in their State's high risk health insurance pool. If so, what type of premium do you pay and what is your deductible? And if you don't mind me asking what is the condition preventing you from obtaining health insurance.

I'm struggling with the need to stay with my current employer for 5 more years to be able to take some heath care benies with me. Given my wife illness, I want to do the things we planned to do in retirement now -- I don't want to wait until it's too late. But I realize being without health coverage would be a major mistake.

We could retire tomorrow and generate $50,000.00 annually off our investments and sell our primary home and move to the condo. But the prospect of paying up to 40% of our annual income for health iunsurance is scary.

Looking for some words of wisdom from folks who might of been there, done that.

Thanks!!!

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Re: wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool
Old 03-07-2006, 09:08 AM   #3
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Re: wisconsin's high risk health ins. pool

Maddy, we like Wisconsin and have lived both in Wisconsin and Minnesota. I won't retire in Wisconsin because the risk pool is too expensive there. Minnesota's charges are much cheaper. Plus, Wisconsin makes it harder to get coverage when you are out of the state. Minnesota doesn't.

Also, the GAO's figures are misleading. There are insurance companies that will cover people even if they have health problems but will have exclusions for that specific problem.

kwk, health insurance is so state specific that it is hard to provide you helpful information. You have the most rights when going off of a group plan. If a state has a risk pool, this is the time you can get into that pool with no preexisting condition waiting period. Other states don't have risk pools but give you certain rights to move into an individual plan. Sometimes the states don't regulate the rates the insurers can charge, so the plan may not be affordable. Other states regulate rates or don't allow insurance companies to consider your preexisiting conditions.

A good guide we mention here frequently is Georgetown University's guide at www.healthinsuranceinfo.net. It doens't talk prices though. If you have questions about a specific state ask away.
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