Insurance - The Latest Outrage

Junebugfairy · Oct 15, 2009

just an employee and a child will cost less than an employee and a spouse.. think about it, children on average are healthy, they do not have hbp, obesity related illness, and other age related complications.

obviously there are sick children, i am simply saying that on average children cost less than adults, so obviously two adults will cost more.

Spritenurse1210, BSN, RN · Oct 15, 2009

Do they give you a choice of plans? Maybe if you chose an HMO over a PPO the premium would be lower, but your deductible would be higher.

AnnaN5 · Oct 15, 2009

Does your spouse need the insurance through your work? Our health insurance at work is similar, a bargain for just the employee and employee/children but employee/spouse is kind of expensive. My husband has health insurance through his work so I waived coverage for him with my employer so we both get our insurance through our own employer.

kids · Oct 15, 2009

Actually, anyone complaining about premiums and dissing a "gov't run health plan" need only know that premiums rise because your non-gov't health plan needs fatter profits every year...and that's why they are fighting tooth and nail against the public option--they don't want any competition that might force them to lower their prices and play the game the way it is supposed to be played in a capitalists society.
They want to eat their cake and your cake, too.

Premiums rise because your employer chooses to pay a smaller portion of your premium.

Your employer decides how much your insurance will cost, not the insurance company.

Your employer decides how good or bad your insurance is and what your out of pocket expenses for copay, etc will be when they purchase the plan.

I am so grateful for my husband's insurance through his employer. His premium is 100% paid for by them. The "family" coverage, which includes spouse and any/all children, is $69.24 per month for medical. The dental rider is $9.24 per month. Our RXs are $5/10/16 co-pays depending on whether or not it is an older, cheap generic, a new drug or a non-preferred brand name. My son's Xopenex is one of the $16 drugs. So is his Prevacid Solu-tab. He's almost 8, so we're gonna switch him to something he can swallow that will come from the $5 list of stuff. Our OV or Urgent Care co-pays are $30. The ER costs us $100.
Reading everyone else's insurance woes just makes me really grateful for our insurance. I used to whine and complain about it until I saw what the hospital wanted to charge me for insurance. A family insurance plan costs $300 per month through my hospital employer. You would think hospitals would be able to offer their employees a "cream of the crop" plan like my husband's employer offers. Kinda sad, isn't it?

Our family has very similar sounding insurance through my husband's job for a low cost also. Our average out of pocket is around $1500 a year including monthly doctor visits and 6 daily meds for a chronic illness (2 of them name brand).

Why do we have such good and afordable insurance?

Because our husbands' employers values their employees.

They purchase a very good, comprehensive plan with low deductables and don't pass the burden of paying for it on to their employees.

I don't think it's the evil, greedy insurance companies who need to be brought in check, it's the greedy employers making a buck on their employee's backs that need to be cracked down on.

mediajunkie650 · Oct 16, 2009

jen sorensen at slowpoke comics:

Neveranurseagain, RN · Oct 16, 2009

What gets me is that some people still want socialized, government sponsered free or cheap higher education, yet refuse to even consider healthcare, as a socialized, government sponsered free or cheap venture. Which is more important? Saving lives or paying for your education?

StNeotser, ASN, RN · Oct 16, 2009

As to the question why do health care workers even have to pay such rates for insurance, an insurance co. rep once said at one of our benefit meetings "You don't understand, nurses are a very high risk group to insure" Went down like a lead balloon..................From an economic standpoint, the risk for injury and infection are incredibly high compared with the office worker. From an ideological standpoint it seemed heinous she would even mention it.

As to being "punished" for being married...............try living on one wage once your spouse leaves. Some people are divorced for very valid reasons and don't feel the urge to jump into another relationship for the economic benefits.

nickola · Oct 16, 2009

"...gov't mandates that are coming in daily."
What are you taking about, coming in daily?
Get the facts and stop the opinionating.

I don't think that was an opinion- it's the same thing administration has been telling us where I work too. We don't LIKE it, but gov't control (aka socialism) is coming- get used to it b/c it's only going to get worse.

nickola · Oct 16, 2009

The "punishment" is your employer *strongly encouraging* you to look elsewhere (such as the spouse's employer) for your spouse's coverage.
The case for changing our mindset to separate employment from health coverage grows by the day ...

I would be dancing in the streets if my employer offered insurance at these rates!!

tewdles, RN · Oct 16, 2009

"Premiums rise because your employer chooses to pay a smaller portion of your premium.

Your employer decides how much your insurance will cost, not the insurance company.

Your employer decides how good or bad your insurance is and what your out of pocket expenses for copay, etc will be when they purchase the plan."

The employer gets to decide based upon the rates the insurance company offers them. Surely the employer (consumer) does not set the price for the provider of the insurance.

MikeyBSN · Oct 16, 2009

When I was in college I had school health insurance. When I got a job I needed to wait until I was off probation to be eligible to apply for health insurance, and after that I had to wait until the begging of the "enrollment period". I was a healthy non-smoker, and I wrote a check to COBRA every month to the tune of 336 dollars. I'm sure it's probably even more now.

kids · Oct 16, 2009

"Premiums rise because your employer chooses to pay a smaller portion of your premium.
Your employer decides how much your insurance will cost, not the insurance company.
Your employer decides how good or bad your insurance is and what your out of pocket expenses for copay, etc will be when they purchase the plan."
The employer gets to decide based upon the rates the insurance company offers them. Surely the employer (consumer) does not set the price for the provider of the insurance.

Of course the employer doesn't set the price for the provider of the insurance.

The employer chooses how much of the premium they (the employer) will pay and how much of the cost they will pass onto the employee.

If your insurance sucks it's because your employer chose to offer you a plan that sucks.

If your insurance is expensive it's because your employer chose to have you (the employee) pay more of the premium so they (the employer) can pay less.