Healthcare Rant

[dr.mel_PT]

I just got the annual letter from our HR department about open enrollment for healthcare; can someone tell me how my premiums will double come January 1st?! And on top of that, they increased our deductible for prescription drugs from $50 to $100. Not to mention, we have such a crappy insurance plan and it really doesn't cover much, so I'd like to know what am I paying for exactly?! It's insane how much these insurance/drug companies can get away with and it really makes me sick!

Do you think these astronomical hikes are due to the current healthcare talks? Maybe insurance/drug companies are covering their tails in case the new gov't option comes through? I could just be paranoid but it really makes you wonder.

 

[ImFiddY]

That's not bad, I currently pay $800 a month for coverage on two people with a $3,000 deductable and $300 deductable for prescriptions. It's gone up from $400 a month 4 years ago so it's not a recent increase.

 

[upnorthchick]

Melissa- I'm taking a risk by replying to your post! I hope no one flames me!!

First, I am so sorry that your company is raising your deductibles and your contribution rate! That, in a word, SUCKS!

Second, they could be doing it for several reasons, including but not limited to how much your employer is choosing to contribute to the monthly premium in which, if they contribute less, your premium goes up, or in your case doubled(that really is awful). Your company could be contributing less (causing you to have to pay more) because of financial reasons-maybe business is slow and the budget had to be cut. I would hope they could/would give you an explanation as to why such a drastic change is taking place. Can you ask them? Years ago, something similar happened to me and I marched myself in to the benefits manager and asked "why?". In my situation it so happened that a) we were a smaller company not belonging to a big group and b) a couple of employees and/or family members had big medical claims in the prior year, so the cost of the insurance premiums increased drastically to my employer, and then trickled down the the employees.

I just received the annual enrollment information for my company. It appears that our costs from the insurance company went up 5 - 7% for the year. That is a very "reasonable" increase.

I would suggest inquiring with HR/Benefits as to why your premium costs went up so dramatically. They should know that 50% increase would cause a "buzz" with their employees and probably should have scheduled a meeting or included a letter of explanation.

Again, I'm so sorry that your premiums went up so much! That's just seems so outrageous! Especially the prescription part.

HTH!

 

[Ivy]

I feel very bad for you too. My husband has the insurance coverage for our family and it is very expensive, I mean we literally pay for everything and I have a son who has a chronic illness. There are days when I feel as if we are drowning just trying to be maintain his health.

 

[dr.mel_PT]

And here we go: this was an interesting (allbeit aggravating) article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/16/business/16drugprices.html?pagewanted=1&ref=business

We are having a meeting on Friday about it. I just can't believe it's such a huge increase.

 

[carres1973]

I agree with what Lisa said. It could be one of two things and the only way to find out for sure is to ask your HR department. I also agree that there should have been some prep work before hitting employees with this type of increase.

On a side note, my company and their insurance company (Anthem) are FORCING me to use mail-order pharmacy if I want my insurance company to pay for my prescriptions. AND in order to use mail-order pharmacy, I have to buy 90-day supplies of everything...so have to spend more up-front. GRRRRR!!!

 

[debbydarestobefit]

mine went up too...

My monthly premium cost for employer-sponsored insurance doubled also - in January it will cost me ~$110/month for my insurance. My co-pays remain the same for in-network providers (but increased for out-of-network). My sister's employer's insurance also went up ~20%. But I'm grateful to have this as I have purchased insurance on my own in the past and it is very expensive. I think that most people with employer-sponsored insurance have very little inkling or understanding of the true cost of insurance, and actually, of the cost of medical care. Nor little understanding of how the un-insured and underinsured actually contribute to raising the cost of medical insurance for others, due to not being able to afford to see the doctor until things are really bad, or using the ER as their form of medical care. Someone has to pay for that care, and it ends up increasing medical costs for others and, hence, their insurance premiums. Our current system is truly a mess, and seriously needs overhauling! It seems that those who don't think so are those who have always had very good employer-sponsored insurance, and are clueless about everyone else's plight, including employers who are trying to provide medical insurance as a benefit! It's a difficult issue and will take a long time to make better. Just my opinion, Deb

 

[Fembot40]

We currently pay $1000 for BC/BS, and they nit pick every charge at the doctors. I pay a copay, but ALWAYS get another bill for something they no longer cover during the appointment. Last Mammogram cost $300 out of pocket, needless to say I haven't gone in two years. Our son broke his arm this summer and it cost $1250 out of pocket, and that was w/o a cast (it was his upper arm, which doesn't require casting) and we're forced to use mail order meds that continually cost more every time we reorder. We're one more increase away from just going without insurance. I wonder what health care will look like next year after all these people who are on extended unemployment benefits, finally loose those checks and are forced to dump insurance. I'm starting to hope that the health care bill doesn't get approved and things just stay the same. It's on the verge of collapsing, and at this point, might be a better option, start fresh with a system that can work for everyone. It's so sad that it's a common article in our local newpaper of people with cancer having to hold fund raisers to pay for their care. We are all just one serious illness away from going broke. The newest statistic is that 50% of all bankruptcy is caused from health care costs. Phew, I guess I've been holding that in too long.

 

[MCunningham]

I hear you; my health insurance premiums (Carefirst BlueCross/BlueShield) through my job just went from $370 a month to $500 a month for just my husband and I, and we are 29 (me) and 32 (him) and have no health issues. Our insurance is actually decent, but we just don't go to the doctor enough (probably 4 times a year!!) to justify $500 a month, which adds up to $6,000 a year!!!

I'm seriously looking at not being able to afford healthcare within the next two years or so, with the huge increases we've been having. It's depressing.

MC

 

[horseshowmom]

I'm so sorry to hear how much many of you are paying. I wonder why such a difference from person to person? We have BC/BS and pay $250.mo for a family of 5 (I'm 38, DH is 41). We had 2 years without an increase then a small 10% increase last year. Prescriptions remain the same, dental went up a few dollars, but this year they are adding vision for a very reasonable cost. Its a PPO and our out of pocket costs are so tiny I'm embarrassed to share them here. My daughter had surgery 3 years ago and I think for everything...hospital, doctor, aneshesiologist,labs,etc we paid $100 total out of pocket.
I'm very happy with my insurance and hope whatever happens in the future that I am allowed to keep what I have for the cost I have.

 

[upnorthchick]

I'm so sorry to hear how much many of you are paying. I wonder why such a difference from person to person? We have BC/BS and pay $250.mo for a family of 5 (I'm 38, DH is 41). We had 2 years without an increase then a small 10% increase last year. Prescriptions remain the same, dental went up a few dollars, but this year they are adding vision for a very reasonable cost. Its a PPO and our out of pocket costs are so tiny I'm embarrassed to share them here. My daughter had surgery 3 years ago and I think for everything...hospital, doctor, aneshesiologist,labs,etc we paid $100 total out of pocket.
I'm very happy with my insurance and hope whatever happens in the future that I am allowed to keep what I have for the cost I have.

Assuming that you have your coverage through your employer.... The big differences come from how much the employer contributes(pays) towards the monthly premium that they(the employer) is charged.

For example, at my company, for an employee with Family Covererage(employee, spouse, and unlimited children) the company is billed $958 a month. The company pays 80%, or $766.40, of the monthly premium for the employee, leaving the employee to pay 20%, or $191.60, each month for their family coverage. So if my employer chose to pay only 50% of the monthly premium, the employee would have to pay $383.20 for coverage.

And of course, the employer chooses what the plans out of pocket limit will be, what the co-pays are, deductible amounts, etc.

Also, what an employer is billed depends on many factors. Smaller employers don't necessarily get the same rates as bigger employers. It also depends on the amount of claims that were filed for previous years-bigger claims can mean a big jump in the rate that is quoted to the company.

I have good coverage too and like you, I hope I get to keep it!!

 

[Lastchance09]

I just got the annual letter from our HR department about open enrollment for healthcare; can someone tell me how my premiums will double come January 1st?! And on top of that, they increased our deductible for prescription drugs from $50 to $100. Not to mention, we have such a crappy insurance plan and it really doesn't cover much, so I'd like to know what am I paying for exactly?! It's insane how much these insurance/drug companies can get away with and it really makes me sick!

Do you think these astronomical hikes are due to the current healthcare talks? Maybe insurance/drug companies are covering their tails in case the new gov't option comes through? I could just be paranoid but it really makes you wonder.

The insurance companies are going to use the health care bill as a scapegoat. The truth is, and the media fails to tell us, your premiums would have gone up anyway and it's been happening for years. At my last job, my health care costs went up every year and I was seriously considering dropping it in order to keep more money in my dwindling paycheck. I worked for a small company so we didn't have major bargaining power.

 

[dr.mel_PT]

The insurance companies are going to use the health care bill as a scapegoat. The truth is, and the media fails to tell us, your premiums would have gone up anyway and it's been happening for years. At my last job, my health care costs went up every year and I was seriously considering dropping it in order to keep more money in my dwindling paycheck. I worked for a small company so we didn't have major bargaining power.

My premiums have increased year over year as well, but nothing as drastic as a 50% increase. We also never had such a high deductible on medications. I think a lot of insurance companies are pulling what-ifs with the proposed health bill and are increasing their greedy pulls on us while they can.

 

[igglesfan]

Insurance companies unfortunately own us A bit of a different scenario, my father-in-law was rushed to the hospital by ambulance recently and needed open heart surgery. Let's just say, thankfully they were able to stabilize him for a week until the insurance company decided they would pay for the procedure given the fact that the ambulance took him to the "wrong" hospital.(Meaning one they don't participate with!) He is finally on the recovery road but we are just holding our breaths waiting to hear from the insurance company on what they don't cover Something has to be done about these companies.

 

[hiitdogs]

All of that is why that greedy bunch should be regulated!!

 

[BuffyR]

I'm fortunate to work at a place that pays 100% of my healthcare costs and also funds a health savings account to pay deductibles and copays. I also live in a state where health insurance is regulated so we can't be denied coverage for pre-existing conditions. That being said, I'm totally disgusted with insurance companies raising premiums and denying coverage when people get sick. Something has to change. While I don't think the current health care reform bill is perfect (I favor a single payor system), it is at least a good start. Those of us that are fortunate enough to have good affordable coverage should not think that one day we could not be among the uinsured.