4 ms·

Do you have some sort of special private insurance? 85k /yr is unbelievable to me.

lotsofpulp 4y ago
I wonder if 65+ health insurance plans are allowed to price insurance based on the insured’s health, since the Affordable Care Act pricing rules only applies up to age 64. If so, I can see someone with chronic ailments with high probability of things like heart attack, stroke, and other high cost events cause a premium that high.
- wrycoder 4y ago
  You don't stay on private insurance after 65 in the US. You go on Medicare. 85K per year is unbelievable and the OP isn't responding.
  - Blammar 4y ago
    See above.
    - wrycoder 4y ago
      Thanks. Yeah, big penalty of you don’t switch to Medicare.
- WeylandYutani 4y ago
  Being old is one of those preexisting conditions insurance probably doesn't like.
Blammar 4y ago
Sorry for the lack of an immediate response. Yes, both of us are over 65. The insurance was a high end PPO with no lifetime max and $20 copay. My wife is a cancer survivor, and I take drugs to minimize my cancer risk. Additionally, the premium growth rate accelerated considerably after 65. We did not actually pay $85k for a year but that was going to be the price. We were told what the new premiums would be, and instead of paying the $85k (paid monthly in installments), I switched immediately to the MA plan and told my wife, let's see how this works out. She held on for six months, then ran into the stalling, and then it took her another six months before she could get on the same MA plan. The reason our MA plan works is that it's offered by the same medical center we happened to use 100% of the time on our previous insurance. So we didn't need to switch any physicians. Regarding predatory MA's, my wife's surgeon, who was trying to get the approval for her surgery, told her, "This isn't going anywhere, you're past the time to switch to medicare, get an MA. However, be sure you avoid these companies." Yes, we switched to medicare late, and we are reminded of that every month when we pay the penalty. (I should mention our current MA plan is a HMO, not a PPO -- my typo.)
- landemva 4y ago
  > I take drugs to minimize my cancer risk. What is this about? I take laetrile via raw bitter apricot seeds, and generally avoid sugar and avoid many carbohydrates.
  - Blammar 4y ago
    Look up Barrett's Esophagus and the recommended treatment for it.
- ceejayoz 4y ago
  > Yes, we switched to medicare late, and we are reminded of that every month when we pay the penalty. Doesn't the high-end PPO count as creditable coverage to avoid the penalty?
  - Blammar 4y ago
    Hmm. It wasn't that we didn't have coverage -- that's a separate penalty instilled by the ACA. It was that, after 65, you're supposed to be on Medicare. Period. And they way they enforce it is they charge you extra when you do finally get on it (presumably after your private insurance becomes just too expensive...) I'd be delighted to be proven wrong, but we were told repeatedly, including by Medicare itself, we Shall Be Penalized.
    - toomuchtodo 4y ago
      There is a late enrollment penalty, and it can be substantial (ie paid for the remainder of your lifetime). https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-penalties https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-p...
    - ceejayoz 4y ago
      > It was that, after 65, you're supposed to be on Medicare. Period. And they way they enforce it is they charge you extra when you do finally get on it (presumably after your private insurance becomes just too expensive...) https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-penalties https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-p... "It’s important to sign up for Medicare coverage during your Initial Enrollment Period, unless you have other coverage that’s similar in value to Medicare (like from an employer). If you don’t, you may have to pay an extra amount, called a late enrollment penalty." The penalty is intended to stop people from saving money by forgoing insurance entirely, then hopping on when they get sick. Ask your insurer if they can provide a certificate of creditable coverage for the period. I wonder if a quick consult with a lawyer with relevant experience would be of use.
thayne 4y ago
That's more than the median income in the US
lostlogin 4y ago
It’s utterly incredible. A gold plated plan where I live for a 65 year old couple who smoke and have a child is about US$10k for a year. https://join.southerncross.co.nz/quote/step2 https://join.southerncross.co.nz/quote/step2
- tyingq 4y ago
  I was paying $2700/month 13 years ago for a higher-end family plan when I owned my own business. I'm not surprised then, if I paid $32k/year 13 years ago, that some plan today might be $85k. US health insurance is indeed crazy expensive. You will see some people paying less, but that's because large businesses subsidize costs, some of them only use the big insurance companies for administration, and pool their own funds to pay from. What individual people pay varies wildly.
  - lostlogin 4y ago
    Socialised healthcare is not a utopian dream and is riddled with problems. However I can’t see how costs of even a fraction of those cited here don’t motivate people to demand change. A heart bypass graft, cancer treatment or a joint replacement every year could be paid for and there would be cash left over (but not in the US obviously).

I wonder if 65+ health insurance plans are allowed to price insurance based on the insured’s health, since the Affordable Care Act pricing rules only applies up to age 64. If so, I can see someone with chronic ailments with high probability of things like heart attack, stroke, and other high cost events cause a premium that high.

wrycoder 4y ago
You don't stay on private insurance after 65 in the US. You go on Medicare. 85K per year is unbelievable and the OP isn't responding.
- Blammar 4y ago
  See above.
  - wrycoder 4y ago
    Thanks. Yeah, big penalty of you don’t switch to Medicare.
WeylandYutani 4y ago
Being old is one of those preexisting conditions insurance probably doesn't like.

Blammar 4y ago

Sorry for the lack of an immediate response. Yes, both of us are over 65. The insurance was a high end PPO with no lifetime max and $20 copay. My wife is a cancer survivor, and I take drugs to minimize my cancer risk. Additionally, the premium growth rate accelerated considerably after 65. We did not actually pay $85k for a year but that was going to be the price. We were told what the new premiums would be, and instead of paying the $85k (paid monthly in installments), I switched immediately to the MA plan and told my wife, let's see how this works out. She held on for six months, then ran into the stalling, and then it took her another six months before she could get on the same MA plan. The reason our MA plan works is that it's offered by the same medical center we happened to use 100% of the time on our previous insurance. So we didn't need to switch any physicians. Regarding predatory MA's, my wife's surgeon, who was trying to get the approval for her surgery, told her, "This isn't going anywhere, you're past the time to switch to medicare, get an MA. However, be sure you avoid these companies." Yes, we switched to medicare late, and we are reminded of that every month when we pay the penalty. (I should mention our current MA plan is a HMO, not a PPO -- my typo.)

landemva 4y ago
> I take drugs to minimize my cancer risk. What is this about? I take laetrile via raw bitter apricot seeds, and generally avoid sugar and avoid many carbohydrates.
- Blammar 4y ago
  Look up Barrett's Esophagus and the recommended treatment for it.
ceejayoz 4y ago
> Yes, we switched to medicare late, and we are reminded of that every month when we pay the penalty. Doesn't the high-end PPO count as creditable coverage to avoid the penalty?
- Blammar 4y ago
  Hmm. It wasn't that we didn't have coverage -- that's a separate penalty instilled by the ACA. It was that, after 65, you're supposed to be on Medicare. Period. And they way they enforce it is they charge you extra when you do finally get on it (presumably after your private insurance becomes just too expensive...) I'd be delighted to be proven wrong, but we were told repeatedly, including by Medicare itself, we Shall Be Penalized.
  - toomuchtodo 4y ago
    There is a late enrollment penalty, and it can be substantial (ie paid for the remainder of your lifetime). https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-penalties https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-p...
  - ceejayoz 4y ago
    > It was that, after 65, you're supposed to be on Medicare. Period. And they way they enforce it is they charge you extra when you do finally get on it (presumably after your private insurance becomes just too expensive...) https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-penalties https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-p... "It’s important to sign up for Medicare coverage during your Initial Enrollment Period, unless you have other coverage that’s similar in value to Medicare (like from an employer). If you don’t, you may have to pay an extra amount, called a late enrollment penalty." The penalty is intended to stop people from saving money by forgoing insurance entirely, then hopping on when they get sick. Ask your insurer if they can provide a certificate of creditable coverage for the period. I wonder if a quick consult with a lawyer with relevant experience would be of use.

thayne 4y ago

That's more than the median income in the US

lostlogin 4y ago

It’s utterly incredible. A gold plated plan where I live for a 65 year old couple who smoke and have a child is about US$10k for a year. https://join.southerncross.co.nz/quote/step2 https://join.southerncross.co.nz/quote/step2

tyingq 4y ago
I was paying $2700/month 13 years ago for a higher-end family plan when I owned my own business. I'm not surprised then, if I paid $32k/year 13 years ago, that some plan today might be $85k. US health insurance is indeed crazy expensive. You will see some people paying less, but that's because large businesses subsidize costs, some of them only use the big insurance companies for administration, and pool their own funds to pay from. What individual people pay varies wildly.
- lostlogin 4y ago
  Socialised healthcare is not a utopian dream and is riddled with problems. However I can’t see how costs of even a fraction of those cited here don’t motivate people to demand change. A heart bypass graft, cancer treatment or a joint replacement every year could be paid for and there would be cash left over (but not in the US obviously).