Employers who have self insurance for health coverage

Mary,

Have you considered purchasing your own health insurance?  Cobra is not cheep and where I live I had cobra at over $500 a month and at the time I purchase my own health care for $150 a month. My current premium is $330 a month in FL for a PPO surgical plan with $2500 deductible and $7500 out of pocket a year. This is not Obama Care.  

Self insurance for a small employer will become a hardship for a small company.  I am self employed and I always found having health care insurance gave me peace of mind.  Then I go cancer and really needed it. Possibly your husband can come to a compromise with his empolyer and see if they will pay your premium or a part of it to keep you off their plan. 

Tom

Hi Mary,

My first thoughts are yes, you are worth it so whatever you do, move forward knowing this.

I do think health record information is kept confidential, so while an employer may see their premiums rise due to claims, I am not so sure they could ever know exactly who or what caused it.  Its an important reason why so many of us choose to remain as silent as possible regarding our condition.  There will be unintended consequences of "going public".  If your situation is unknown by employer, and your husbands co-workers, he may be safe from any retribution from employer.  But if not, and your feeling is that his employment may be threatened then you should look into purchasing an individual plan, like self-employed people do.  I'm one of those, and while no fan of Obamacare, it did allow me to purchase the highest level plan available which may seem like a hefty premium, but compared to the coverage I received is a tiny drop in the bucket.  All plan premiums like mine will skyrocket by more than 27%-35% in my state this next year precisely because of people like me, but again, I am certain my health care expenses so far have easily exceeded $250k, and continue to grow.

Hi Mary,

My first thoughts are yes, you are worth it so whatever you do, move forward knowing this.

I do think health record information is kept confidential, so while an employer may see their premiums rise due to claims, I am not so sure they could ever know exactly who or what caused it.  Its an important reason why so many of us choose to remain as silent as possible regarding our condition.  There will be unintended consequences of "going public".  If your situation is unknown by employer, and your husbands co-workers, he may be safe from any retribution from employer.  But if not, and your feeling is that his employment may be threatened then you should look into purchasing an individual plan, like self-employed people do.  I'm one of those, and while no fan of Obamacare, it did allow me to purchase the highest level plan available which may seem like a hefty premium, but compared to the coverage I received is a tiny drop in the bucket.  All plan premiums like mine will skyrocket by more than 27%-35% in my state this next year precisely because of people like me, but again, I am certain my health care expenses so far have easily exceeded $250k, and continue to grow.

Hi Mary,

My first thoughts are yes, you are worth it so whatever you do, move forward knowing this.

I do think health record information is kept confidential, so while an employer may see their premiums rise due to claims, I am not so sure they could ever know exactly who or what caused it.  Its an important reason why so many of us choose to remain as silent as possible regarding our condition.  There will be unintended consequences of "going public".  If your situation is unknown by employer, and your husbands co-workers, he may be safe from any retribution from employer.  But if not, and your feeling is that his employment may be threatened then you should look into purchasing an individual plan, like self-employed people do.  I'm one of those, and while no fan of Obamacare, it did allow me to purchase the highest level plan available which may seem like a hefty premium, but compared to the coverage I received is a tiny drop in the bucket.  All plan premiums like mine will skyrocket by more than 27%-35% in my state this next year precisely because of people like me, but again, I am certain my health care expenses so far have easily exceeded $250k, and continue to grow.

Mary – employers who chose to self-insure most likely purchase a stop loss policy from an insurance company that will cover catastrophic claims that exceed a specified dollar amount so the entire cost of your medical bills are not born by the employer.   Also, keep in mind that the $250,000 cost is full retail – even a self insured medical program will have negotiated discounts with medical providers and pharmacy providers.  Your husband's employer would face a significant legal risk if they terminated his employment due to your medical bills.  You are worth every penny of the cost – focus your efforts on beating this disease.  Take care.

Mary – employers who chose to self-insure most likely purchase a stop loss policy from an insurance company that will cover catastrophic claims that exceed a specified dollar amount so the entire cost of your medical bills are not born by the employer.   Also, keep in mind that the $250,000 cost is full retail – even a self insured medical program will have negotiated discounts with medical providers and pharmacy providers.  Your husband's employer would face a significant legal risk if they terminated his employment due to your medical bills.  You are worth every penny of the cost – focus your efforts on beating this disease.  Take care.

Mary – employers who chose to self-insure most likely purchase a stop loss policy from an insurance company that will cover catastrophic claims that exceed a specified dollar amount so the entire cost of your medical bills are not born by the employer.   Also, keep in mind that the $250,000 cost is full retail – even a self insured medical program will have negotiated discounts with medical providers and pharmacy providers.  Your husband's employer would face a significant legal risk if they terminated his employment due to your medical bills.  You are worth every penny of the cost – focus your efforts on beating this disease.  Take care.

Mary,

Have you considered purchasing your own health insurance?  Cobra is not cheep and where I live I had cobra at over $500 a month and at the time I purchase my own health care for $150 a month. My current premium is $330 a month in FL for a PPO surgical plan with $2500 deductible and $7500 out of pocket a year. This is not Obama Care.  

Self insurance for a small employer will become a hardship for a small company.  I am self employed and I always found having health care insurance gave me peace of mind.  Then I go cancer and really needed it. Possibly your husband can come to a compromise with his empolyer and see if they will pay your premium or a part of it to keep you off their plan. 

Tom

Mary,

Have you considered purchasing your own health insurance?  Cobra is not cheep and where I live I had cobra at over $500 a month and at the time I purchase my own health care for $150 a month. My current premium is $330 a month in FL for a PPO surgical plan with $2500 deductible and $7500 out of pocket a year. This is not Obama Care.  

Self insurance for a small employer will become a hardship for a small company.  I am self employed and I always found having health care insurance gave me peace of mind.  Then I go cancer and really needed it. Possibly your husband can come to a compromise with his empolyer and see if they will pay your premium or a part of it to keep you off their plan. 

Tom