Healthcare Premium Costs???

[whittonm]

$1177 a month COBRA for self and spouse for dental, vision, drugs, mental health. 100/70 PPO style plan. Deductibles are $10 to $50 depending on who you see and where.


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[twolfy]

$394mth for DW and me. Std BCBS PPO plan. Still with megacorp subsidized plan. Not sure how much longer I will have access to this plan. Would not receive any subsidy under AHCA so hopefully can keep this till Medicare kicks in.


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[iac1003]

Still working, so I luckily pay for a single plan only about $210 a month for a PPO with recent copay increases, increases in drug copays and various limitations, but a $3000 out of pocket maximum per year. My original plan was to retire 18 months prior to Medicare age in 4/2015 and go onto COBRA.

However my employer may be switching to a HD plan next year in 7/2015 and if one is on COBRA one can't contribute to the HSA, which I don't have now. So if I go with COBRA I will pay about $800+ a month, have a $6000 a year out of pocket maximum and have no tax deductible HSA to contribute to. Since you only have 30 days I think after the qualifying event (retirement in this case) if I retire in 4/2015 I have to pay the COBRA premium by 5/30/2015 and my employer's plan won't be announced until 6/2015. So I may be screwed.

OTOH I can get an unsubsidized ACA plan after I leave not quite megacorp (but biggest in its field), but being 63 I will probably pay as much as or more than the COBRA with fewer doctor choices here in Texas, which is not exactly the land of great and available healthcare. Then if I get an HD ACA plan I can contribute to an HSA.

What to do, what to do...

I'm just trying to make it to 65, Medicare and an F supplement like my 72 year old DH has.


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[easysurfer]

I pay about $230/month. Individual, Bronze plan, 6K deductible, then 100% covered after deductible met. It's a HSA.

 

[Buck2520]

DW got this. Our cost would have been same for both of us but I have VA so only she is signed up under ACA.

Monthly premium $115.08/mo.
Deductible. $150
Out-of-pocket maximum. $2,250
Copayments / Coinsurance
$10 Copay before deductible/30% Coinsurance after deductible Primary doctor
$10 Copay before deductible/30% Coinsurance after deductible Specialist doctor
$10 Generic drugs



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[ziggy29]

About $140 a month here for a BCBSTX Bronze PPO plan (about $270/mo before subsidy, age 48). Since I am a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe, as long as we can keep our MAGI under 300% of FPL (about $46K for us) I have no copayments or deductibles at all. Otherwise, this plan would have a $6000 deductible and OOP max.

DW is covered by Gold-level group insurance through her employer and they pay 100% of the premium. I'm on my own.

 

[rodi]

I recently switched to COBRA. We're paying $1283 for a family of 4, for dental and Kaiser Permanente medical, with a $20 copay per office visit and $100 for ER. Prescriptions are $20 or the actual cost if it's less. No deductible for the medical. The dental covers the annual cleanings 100%, 80% of fillings, 60% of crowns, with a $200/person, $300/family deductible. It also reduced our orthodontist bill. (Kids will be out of braces by the end of the year.)

My husband and older son have soft teeth - so I need to keep dental in place.... it pays for itself.

I didn't qualify for ACA subsidies this year since I was working for 1/2 the year, got paid out PTO and bonus, etc... Next year we will sign up for ACA and should qualify for subsidy. A similar Kaiser plan will cost us about $900/month (with subsidy). It will have $50/copays though. I'm also looking at Kaiser's high deductible HSA plans on the HSA. We want to stay with Kaiser since my husband likes his doctor and we really like our pediatrician. (I'm ambivalent about my doctor and my switch to my husband's doctor.)

I priced non-subsidized plans directly with Kaiser and through the ACA website - I am getting a good deal with COBRA.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

As a retiree, I pay half the group rate negotiated by my former employer for my UPMC (Univ. of Pittsburgh Medical Center) PPO plan which amounts to $248.00 a month. I consider this a bargain, have it auto-deducted from my pension. I have a co-pay of $15/visit for my PCP, $25.00/visit for a specialist (no referral needed to see a specialist), and $50.00 to visit the ER. Medications are up to $25.00 per script.

 

[Teacher Terry]

My hubby & i pay $10,000/year thru our former employer. It is good insurance with low co-pays.

 

[photoguy]

I didn't qualify for ACA subsidies this year since I was working for 1/2 the year, got paid out PTO and bonus, etc... Next year we will sign up for ACA and should qualify for subsidy.

Do you know what documentation you plan to use for income verification? I'm in the same situation, worked enough this year to be well beyond subsidy limits but I won't have a tax return showing my income qualifies until after I file my 2015 taxes.

 

[PERSonalTime]

My hubby & i pay $10,000/year thru our former employer. It is good insurance with low co-pays.

Terry, thanks for the response. Is your HI obtained through COBRA?

 

[ziggy29]

Do you know what documentation you plan to use for income verification? I'm in the same situation, worked enough this year to be well beyond subsidy limits but I won't have a tax return showing my income qualifies until after I file my 2015 taxes.

When I enrolled last year, I was never asked for documentation of income. Had they used the most recent tax return available at the time (2012), it would have reflected an income almost 3x higher than it was at the time I enrolled (was laid off earlier in the year). So somehow when I entered our current income it didn't spit it out because my tax return history was much higher. As it is it looks like I somewhat underestimated our 2014 income but I am being a little overwithheld on taxes plus I'm still contributing to a TIRA to keep our MAGI down, so it's no big thing -- the excess subsidy I'm getting will be offset by the extra tax withholding. I'll fix it later this year, which would only reduce the subsidy somewhat.

The only documentation I had to provide was my tribal enrollment card which doubled as a CDIB (Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood).

 

[W2R]

I am paying $104.90/month for Medicare Part B, plus an additional $190.28 for federal employee/retiree insurance, which picks up many expenses that Medicare doesn't.

So, my total insurance cost is $295.18/month.

I have no dental or optical insurance, and pay for those costs completely out of pocket.

 

[photoguy]

Ziggy - thanks for sharing your experience. I hope it goes smoothly if I apply for a subsidy upfront.

 

[Teacher Terry]

No it is not Cobra. It is the rate that state retirees have to pay. When I was an active employee I paid about a third of what I do now which really makes no sense. Since I am 5 years older then my hubby when I get on Medicare I will have to still pay most of the amount for him to have insurance.