Health Insurance policy for 50-64 y-olds

[perinova]

From a news excerpt in Bottom Line publication this month.

Apparently Humana is offering Early retirement policies in 15 states (soon 26 states).
The premium can be a minimum of $60 / month for 50 year old non-smoker with $7500 deductible. It is also noted that there is a 30% rejection above 60 y-old (Humm does it mean it is better to get in as early as possible?)

Humana is to be followed by Aetna and Wellpoint in offering similar policies.

[mickeyd]

Sounds like an option to consider after COBRA expires and before Medicare begins.

[perinova]

On paper it seems good option for private insurance. Anyone has experience getting insurance from Humana recently?

Here is a press release this August:

Quote:

HumanaOne plans are designed specifically for individuals and families not insured by an employer, such as self-employed entrepreneurs, small business employees, part-time workers, students and early retirees. Humana markets HumanaOne plans through insurance agents and brokers, as well as directly to consumers.

Humana Introduces New, Flexible Individual Health Insurance Plans in Four States: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

[ziggy29]

Seems to be worth monitoring. Though in reality, I don't think this would fill an unmet need unless early retirees could be a "group" in a way that is economically feasible.

[markf57]

Quote:

Originally Posted by perinova Anyone has experience getting insurance from Humana recently?

My COBRA expired the end of October. I applied for Humana and was rejected. I haven't received the paperwork yet, so I don't know why. I'm very healthy, but I had a colonoscopy and a cat scan performed before my current insurance expired and I think it scared Humana away.

[Moemg]

I would be suspicious of a health plan that would reject so easily .They would probably also find plenty of reasons to cancel or claim pre-existing conditions.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

thanx for the post perinova. i'll have to study this further. at first glance though it looks to make my idea of living overseas to save on healthcare costs a bit redundant. but then i'd miss out on all the adventure i won't find here. still, good to have options.

a first concern that comes to mind is since this seems a new category of policy would that make it more likely that it could be discontinued into the future? would hate to change now when i'm healthy and then have to change again should some pre-existing condition developing between now and a conjectural then.

[fisherman]

We got a Humana policy this year as a hopeful improvement to Farm Bureau since that policy was not very good but was cheap. Humana has been good so far but we have not used it much. It did take us six months to get the policy and that was scary since we are in good health. The problem was DW had a doctor for several years that had died and his old office could not find her records. They would not write her till they found them. It took some persuading on our part to get the staff to find the records but they did finally and Humana quickly issued the policy after that. They were kind and considerate to work with but we really have not had a claim for them to pay of consequence so I cannot speak to that.

I am trying to think positive about the experience and believe that they were just doing good underwriting to keep premiums down but only time will tell.

[RetireeRobert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by perinova From a news excerpt in Bottom Line publication this month. Apparently Humana is offering Early retirement policies in 15 states (soon 26 states). The premium can be a minimum of $60 / month for 50 year old non-smoker with $7500 deductible. It is also noted that there is a 30% rejection above 60 y-old (Humm does it mean it is better to get in as early as possible?) Humana is to be followed by Aetna and Wellpoint in offering similar policies.

MIL had Humana Medicare Prescription policy for a year then wanted to drop it at Dec 31 for a different company. Humana notified 3 times by phone well before Dec 31 (!st 2 times in mid-late November).

It took until August to get the Humana premium stopped being deducted from her SS check, and a refund for the 7 months premiums taken out into the cancelled year.

She never filed a claim under that policy, so do not know haw they are on claims paying.

[Martha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markf57 My COBRA expired the end of October. I applied for Humana and was rejected. I haven't received the paperwork yet, so I don't know why. I'm very healthy, but I had a colonoscopy and a cat scan performed before my current insurance expired and I think it scared Humana away.

I hope you are working with a good insurance broker to help you find a policy.

[markf57]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martha I hope you are working with a good insurance broker to help you find a policy.

That quest starts Monday. I just found out about the reject on Saturday.

[Martha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markf57 That quest starts Monday. I just found out about the reject on Saturday.

So long as you don't have a 63 day or more break in coverage, you may still be HIPAA eligible. In case it looks like you might have other turn downs, talk to your agent/broker about whether you should also look at HIPAA qualified plans.

Also, the agent/broker might help get Humana to change its mind.

[Jonathan Pletzke]

Here's something that I cut + paste from my website. I hope it helps for folks to find a good agent. I recall one agent that I interviewed talking about people "selling health insurance from the back of their car". We recently had some news in North Carolina about the equivalent of "slamming" folks into various Medicare supplements. These folks were incapacitated in some way and could not have authorized paperwork. A good agent will help you to find the right policy, help you avoid getting rejected, and help to get your claims through.

Here's the bit on finding an agent. I think the last line is worth trying: asking around.

If you're looking to buy health insurance, either for yourself or your business, you'll need to work with an agent. There is no other way that I know to buy health insurance other than from an agent. Websites, big companies, small independents, and health insurers all employ agents who sell you the insurance. If you're not buying from an agent, then you're probably not truly getting insurance.
There are two organizations that reputable health insurance agents can choose to join. Both of these organizations offer a find-an-agent capability on their website:

National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) - www.nahu.org

NAHU Find an Agent

and

National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA)

and the subgroup Association of Health Insurance Advisors (AHIA).

NAIFA/AHIA Find an Agent

You can also ask around with your friends, your network, your realtor, and the local chamber of commerce for a health insurance agent recommendation.

[nellieb]

My dad is 83 and relies on medicare for his health insurance coverage. Is this what most people rely on? Is there somenthing else that should be done for extra coverage.

[Jonathan Pletzke]

There are a few different supplementary coverages that you can buy in addition to Medicare Part A (Hospital), and Medicare Part B (Medical i.e. Doctors). There are the Part D (Prescriptions), the Medigap policies (that let you see whichever doctor you like), and the Medicare Advantage (plans that are like HMO, PPO and have a network).

The costs of these can be significant, but so can medical costs. When I was researching this, I noticed significant gaps in Medicare A/B when I diagrammed them for comparison purposes. If you want coverage that approximates the type of coverage from an employer, you really need to have a Medigap or Medicare Advantage plan. The costs for these plans can be significant, so checking in on what is available may help to determine whether it's worth the cost for the coverage.

If you can afford the premiums, and don't want to see life savings eaten up by a significant illness, it may be worthwhile. This also applies to whether its worth looking into long term care insurance, too.