Need Health Insurance Advice..

How long ago was your previous job? I'm paying $120/week for family coverage with my company. I did have options and the $120 is after the credit for good health screening.

Without getting too political, just remember that anytime a politician says they're going to make (or name) something "affordable" you can bet it probably won't be affordable.

By the way, most large employers do pay a portion of your health insurance premium. In my opinion, that's been one of the biggest myths of the whole system. I.e. people think their $400 per month ($4,800 annually) premium is paying the bill. Some employers are paying 50% of the premium (another $4,800 annually). Thus, almost $10,000 gets paid in every year for you and in return, you get the privilege of paying a "low" $35 co-pay. :(

My old company, I left about a month ago, was an oilfield company.

I'm not sure this insurance has any copay benefits. From what I gather, I'll have a $2500 deductible that has to be met before insurance kicks in, then they pay 80%

It's sort of like the insurance I had at my last job, not really "health insurance", but rather what they call "catastrophic insurance". It really only works when there Is a major issue.

The problem is, I'll likely never use $2500 worth of medical coverage in a year's time. This means that my insurance will never actually kick in to pay anything. Unless something serious happens, I'll never see a dime of benefit from it. I'll end up paying $300 to $400 per month in premiums, AND I'll have to cover 100% of any office visits and treatments out of pocket.

Sambo says:

The problem is, I'll likely never use $2500 worth of medical coverage in a year's time. This means that my insurance will never actually kick in to pay anything. Unless something serious happens, I'll never see a dime of benefit from it. I'll end up paying $300 to $400 per month in premiums, AND I'll have to cover 100% of any office visits and treatments out of pocket.

That's what insurance is about - saving your a$$ if you get in a predicament. Suppose you said the exact same thing about your car insurance:

The problem is, I'll likely never use $2500 worth of liability coverage in a year's time. This means that my insurance will never actually kick in to pay anything. Unless something serious happens, I'll never see a dime of benefit from it. I'll end up paying $300 to $400 per month in premiums, AND I'll have to cover 100% of any accidents and injuries that are my fault.

Insuracne is a legal bet. I've paid roughly $100/month for years (liability comprehensive and collision - the whole ball of wax, and a $500 deductible, too!) and never had to pay out anything. But the instant I skid into a car crossing the intersection, I'll be glad I had it.

At my current job I pay $46.85 for health, dental and vision for my wife and I. We have a $4050 deductible. My wife is diabetic and all our insurance does is get us a discount on her meds. We cannot afford to go to a regular doctor and must use a low cost clinic. The insurance is what used to be called major medical. I rest easy knowing that if we ever have a health emergency, the most we will have to pay is $4050. Don't know if this helps you at all.

The ACA is also known as the Unaffordable Care Act. Its nice to know that the Govt. can now tell folks what they must buy. I am sure the Govt will do a great job when they have total control of Healthcare. NOT

I understand how it works, just don't necessary like it. I remember having insurance that had a $20 copay. That was all you had for doctor visits. Now, we have to cover the full office visit until that $2500 deductible is met, then insurance starts paying their 80%.

I guess this is the result of all the aca mumbo jumbo going on.

I understand how it works, just don't necessary like it. I remember having insurance that had a $20 copay. That was all you had for doctor visits. Now, we have to cover the full office visit until that $2500 deductible is met, then insurance starts paying their 80%.

I guess this is the result of all the aca mumbo jumbo going on.

ACA means employers have to offer healthcare options. In knights case - it appears they offer only one option, and it appears to be very costly.

Now - don't know what the "employer contribution" is for this plan you've mentioned - but if YOUR END is $400+ a month - it better be a REALLY GOOD ONE.

I got my plan off the healthcare.gov site (exchange - since Florida doesn't have it's own - smart on their part). I pay $460 a month - and the government gives me an "advance tax credit" of $400 - so it's an $860 plan. PPO (way better than an HMO - no referrals required, and most of my Docs got off HMO) $0 deductible, $2,500 max out of pocket.

As Errol illustrates - it's all a "crap shoot" (gamble) until you need it. And, unless you have conditions you are aware of (the only real benefit of the ACA - eliminates restrictions on pre-existing conditions for marketplace policies), you are paying on the "off chance" you might need it.

In my case - I got the "good policy" this year - because I have pre-existing stuff I wanted to take care of. For example - I went into the hospital 3 months ago, for "outpatient hernia repairs" for 3 hernias - that turned into 5 hours on the table, 4 days in the hospital, 6 hernia and a $70,000 bill - of which, my end was $500.

So the $4K I will lay out for my insurance premiums this year - was well worth it. The $4K I laid out LAST YEAR WAS NOT - because I didn't use it.

THE REAL BURDENSOME provisions of the ACA are going to start hitting full force next year - when O is out of office. Premiums are skyrocketing, both on the exchanges and the private policies - penalties are going up and up - employers are cutting hours and employees to keep costs reasonable. The whiney lib cry-babies are in for a rude awakening.

Rick