fisherman
Full time employment: Posting here.
- Joined
- Jul 7, 2007
- Messages
- 500
Just got our annual increase for our individual Health Insurance. This is year five of an individual plan for us. It has been 12% increases every year up to this point.
last year we raised the deductible from 5K to 7K to keep the increase down to 12%. This change also moved us from a grandfathered plan to a non grandfathered plan the letter said.
When I called the Ins company to ask what this meant they explained that this was saying our new policy was subject to the portions of the new laws that are in effect now. We got full preventive coverage instead of just $300 max per person. Our lifetime cap of 7 million went away and the kids can stay on the policy till 26 now. I asked them how much all that would cost me next year and they said probably very little extra as they were limited to I think 20% profit on Individual policies in the new law. I did not really buy all they were saying but I did not have much choice other than going back to full time work.
The full preventitive coverage saved us a few hunderd last year and we did not get close to the deductible so that part was definitely an improvement.
When the letter came today I opened it with the usual dread and hoped it would not be more than the standard 12% increase. It was a shock! The increase was 4.6%. Yes. less than half what it usually is even after getting more benefits which never happened before. The past years where a 12% premium increase with no benefits and sometimes a deductible increase to keep it to 12%. I am very happy about this. It is a welcome change.
last year we raised the deductible from 5K to 7K to keep the increase down to 12%. This change also moved us from a grandfathered plan to a non grandfathered plan the letter said.
When I called the Ins company to ask what this meant they explained that this was saying our new policy was subject to the portions of the new laws that are in effect now. We got full preventive coverage instead of just $300 max per person. Our lifetime cap of 7 million went away and the kids can stay on the policy till 26 now. I asked them how much all that would cost me next year and they said probably very little extra as they were limited to I think 20% profit on Individual policies in the new law. I did not really buy all they were saying but I did not have much choice other than going back to full time work.
The full preventitive coverage saved us a few hunderd last year and we did not get close to the deductible so that part was definitely an improvement.
When the letter came today I opened it with the usual dread and hoped it would not be more than the standard 12% increase. It was a shock! The increase was 4.6%. Yes. less than half what it usually is even after getting more benefits which never happened before. The past years where a 12% premium increase with no benefits and sometimes a deductible increase to keep it to 12%. I am very happy about this. It is a welcome change.
