HEALTH INSURANCE for USA

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

As we know health insurance in the UK is for the rich/fortunate as realistically thanks to the NHS we dont have to or need to buy health insurance yet.

Here in the US, you have to buy your health insurance and it can be as complacated as car insurance. Now nurses coming from the UK will normally have their health/dental insurance paid for by their company-a big perk of the job. You will have the oportunity to purchase Short term/long term disability insurance and if you come with OGP you have 14 days to complete the forms and return it back to the company. I strongly advice you to purchase this insurance the payments are minimal compared to having no wages, should something unfortunate happen to you. Other nurses coming with different agencies or direct with the hospital please make sure you look into obtaining this cover. Normally the first 15 days of sick leave will not be covered.

You will also have the oportunity to purchase your spouse and dependants insurance via your company, and for the OGP nurses this will be around $270 for your spouse and $550 for your family per month. You can get health insurance cheaper yourself but most companies will not cover immigrants until they have lived in the USA for more than a year.

You will still have to pay towards your health care and this is called co payments and depending on what you access depends on the amount you pay-$25,$50 or $75.

Now if you are unfortunate and have to take more than 30 days off work due to illness. Your health insurance will be cancelled back to the last day/night you worked! This can be a shock because if you have acccessed hospitals/medical care for the said illness you will now owe all the money for this medical attention.

So what happens when your medical coverage is cancelled? A government run company called Cobra, will offer you 18 months of health insurance but you now have to pay for this coverage and it can be quite expensive as it will be backdated to the last day you worked. If you are paying for your dependants via your company their insurance will be cancelled too, so you may be looking at $250 per person/per month, backdated so this will be a considerable amount of money intially to pay out. In order to access Cobra, you may have no choice you can only recieve the coverage if you pay the backdated premiums. Of course the advantage is those huge medical bills are then covered by Cobra.

I do hope you all find this information interesting, please do not hestitate to contact me should you have any worries, concerns or questions.

[letina]

An excellent sticky Kay, and very helpful.....thanks

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

Nothing like experience lol. Something positive has to come out of my misfortune.

[english_nurse]

thanks for the advice, its very helpful to have insight into the little things we dont think about

so let me get this clear in my mind

to take OGP medical insurance cost you $820 per month for your whole family, or did you mean $550?

$820 sounds an awful lot!

is this with no existing conditions?

blimey!!

[ZASHAGALKA, RN]

I don't know about agencies, but if you are working in an US hospital, most hospitals offer reasonable insurance for employees. For me and my children, I pay $95 dollars every 2 weeks for health insurance with reasonable co-pays ($35 visits) and caps and provision for drugs, dental, and glasses.

My employer also offers short term and long term disability (and life) insurance relatively cheap.

Madwife, if your insurance was cancelled backdated to the last day you work, that was a violation of law. It's called COBRA - and that isn't a gov't company, but a law, specifically the: Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986.

COBRA places restrictions on how a company can treat its employees in regards to both health care AND retirement.

Cobra Law does not allow a company to 'cut off' your health insurance or back date your cut-off. If your company did that, then they broke the law. If you were being cared for under a plan, and an employer decided to terminate your relationship (probably because you were out of work) that termination would be effective the date it was decided, NOT THE DATE YOU LAST WORKED. And, in many instances, coverage for an 'event' doesn't end until the event resolves. The whole reason for COBRA is to prevent employers from playing games with your coverage.

And Cobra requires that they allow you to continue to purchase insurance for a time after you lose your job WITHOUT A GAP IN COVERAGE (albeit without the employer's co-pay - so, at a much higher price.)

The following is a link on Cobra Law: but this law is meant as a protection and not a hassle to workers:

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_consumer_cobra.html

~faith,

Timothy.

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

thanks for the advice, its very helpful to have insight into the little things we dont think about

so let me get this clear in my mind

to take OGP medical insurance cost you $820 per month for your whole family, or did you mean $550?

$820 sounds an awful lot!

is this with no existing conditions?

blimey!!

$550 for the whole family.

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

[

quote=ZASHAGALKA]I don't know about agencies, but if you are working in an US hospital, most hospitals offer reasonable insurance for employees. For me and my children, I pay $95 dollars every 2 weeks for health insurance with reasonable co-pays ($35 visits) and caps and provision for drugs, dental, and glasses.

My employer also offers short term and long term disability (and life) insurance relatively cheap.

Madwife, if your insurance was cancelled backdated to the last day you work, that was a violation of law. It's called COBRA - and that isn't a gov't company, but a law, specifically the: Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986.

COBRA places restrictions on how a company can treat its employees in regards to both health care AND retirement.

Cobra Law does not allow a company to 'cut off' your health insurance or back date your cut-off. If your company did that, then they broke the law. If you were being cared for under a plan, and an employer decided to terminate your relationship (probably because you were out of work) that termination would be effective the date it was decided, NOT THE DATE YOU LAST WORKED. And, in many instances, coverage for an 'event' doesn't end until the event resolves. The whole reason for COBRA is to prevent employers from playing games with your coverage.

And Cobra requires that they allow you to continue to purchase insurance for a time after you lose your job WITHOUT A GAP IN COVERAGE (albeit without the employer's co-pay - so, at a much higher price.)

The following is a link on Cobra Law: but this law is meant as a protection and not a hassle to workers:

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_consumer_cobra.html

~faith,

Timothy.[/quote

Cobra definatly back dates to the date I last worked I have spoken to Igoe the company which organises it, they have not broke the law though I wish they had. I can assure you OGP know exatly what they are doing to the letter of the law. I will get coverage from cobra but I have to pay for it. I dont think anybody understands this unless you find yourself in this position. If you read the article you quoted in 'qualifying events' I qualify because I no longer work 36 hours or more. It also says that the insurance will back date to the qualifying event meaning for me the last date I worked. The company's rule state that as a nurse I have to work more than 35 hours to enjoy pre paid insurance if I work less then I am not entitiled to health insurance.

I asked to go back to work part time but was informed that if I did I would still have to pay my own insurance until such time I resumed to 36 hours.

[english_nurse]

$550 for the whole family.

Phew!!!

[nubes]

So tell me, after all the problems you have encountered, would you still consider emigrating to USA as a positive ?

Just wondering as I hope to some year soon!

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

So tell me, after all the problems you have encountered, would you still consider emigrating to USA as a positive ?

Just wondering as I hope to some year soon!

I dont think I am able to answer this question at this moment in time. I have only lived here for 4 1/2 months, and havent had a very positive experience so I cannot fairly comment. I feel I must turn this experience around first. I will leave you to read between the lines.

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

Cobra sent me a bill yesterday for $721 which covers me from the time of the accident to end of April. Then I have to pay $257 every month til I no longer need insurance from them.

My new medicines cost me $387 yesterday. ONe for muscle spasm and the other for pain medication.

[english_nurse]

Cobra sent me a bill yesterday for $721 which covers me from the time of the accident to end of April. Then I have to pay $257 every month til I no longer need insurance from them.

My new medicines cost me $387 yesterday. ONe for muscle spasm and the other for pain medication.

That illustrates the difference between here and the USA, the USA is fine so long as you have a job, and money in the bank, once that goes out of the window, you still have to pay for healthcare and benefits are not the same as the UK, here at least we have the health service to rely on if we are ill, even if sometimes we dont get the service right, it is always there!

im not painting everyone with the same colour brush but, people who live on state benefits here generally do as well as someone who works, because of this the system is under strain as many abuse it