purchasing insurance separate from employer?

[mrsklamc]

We're getting ready to start our family and the only thing keeping me from being a SAHM is the insurance. Mine is currently fully funded; but if we have to pay through DH's company it will cost over $400 a month just for me.

Is there a good place to start looking independently?

 

[LizinSTL]

We're getting ready to start our family and the only thing keeping me from being a SAHM is the insurance. Mine is currently fully funded; but if we have to pay through DH's company it will cost over $400 a month just for me.

Is there a good place to start looking independently?

IMO, it's seldom cheaper to go outside a group plan. There's less of a guarantee for your rate if you go private too. Most private plans charge crazy high premiums for women of childbearing age even if maternity is excluded. Talk to a broker in your area and get some quotes. You may find it's best to pay the group rate w/ your dh's employer.

*** note- my comments are based on finding a plan w/ like coverage.

 

[JeMarie6]

The Blue Cross Blue Shield plans are pretty competitive so I would get a quote from them at least, but you also need to be careful. On an individual policy pregnancy is often considered a pre-existing condition and may not be covered if you happen to get pregnant before the individual plan took effect (even if you didn't know yet you were pregnant!). Group policies are different. Make sure you know what the policy covers especially related to both infertility and routine and complicated maternity. Compare rates as well as deductibles/coinsurance/out-of-pocket maximums, routine/preventative benefits, office visit copays and prescription costs.

 

[hockeyprincess]

We have had private insurance for about 4 years now. I love it. We have currently a $5000 family deductible (yes it sounds like alot but stay with me here) but we get the discount from the dr's for having insurance. We also have a prescription card which helps. We are fairly healthy and don't visit the dr much, our kids are almost 5 & 9 so out of the "well-baby" every month/every other month checkups, etc.

Our other option is a nice, cushy policy thru work, to the tune of $800 per month for all of us.

Think outside the box a bit: Why pay $800 PER MONTH scared1 for one, two, maybe three visits to the dr per year! My goodness that's alot of money. This way, we are paying ONLY for what we use. If we go to the dr we pay, if we don't go, we still only pay our premium, which is around $100 per month.

Now 4 years ago, we paid nearly $300 per month. When I "stepped out of the box" I was quite scared, and worried--OH MY WHAT IF..... this or that happens. Well, if it happens you make the payments and after you hit the deductible we're covered 100%. So maybe this year I'm out $5,000 that I can pay on every month, because of some major, catastrophic event. BUT maybe I'm only out $1200 for the premiums and that's it. Better than $9,600 thru work, or in your case 1/2 that, $4800 per year. (BTW our policy thru work is thru Anthem BC/BS and WOW is it expensive)

I have every year, raised my deductible to lower my premium. I (knock on wood) have never been disappointed. The most major thing that has happened in the last 4 years is when our son broke his arm. And even that didn't bankrupt us.

Check around, call all local insurance agents and ask if they offer health insurance. Also HSA's are becoming increasingly popular. Get different quotes, different scenario's, and shop around. Check on the internet, that's actually where I bought our most recent policy. Oh--BTW--we have never added maternity coverage on any of our policies. It's outrageous and we probably would not have any more children. If we would, of course provisions would need to be made.

But this has been a BIG budget saver for our family and I have never regretted it. Being informed is your best defense. If you have any questions feel free to PM or contact me!

 

[mombare]

We have had private insurance for about 4 years now. I love it. We have currently a $5000 family deductible (yes it sounds like alot but stay with me here) but we get the discount from the dr's for having insurance. We also have a prescription card which helps. We are fairly healthy and don't visit the dr much, our kids are almost 5 & 9 so out of the "well-baby" every month/every other month checkups, etc.

Our other option is a nice, cushy policy thru work, to the tune of $800 per month for all of us.

Think outside the box a bit: Why pay $800 PER MONTH scared1 for one, two, maybe three visits to the dr per year! My goodness that's alot of money. This way, we are paying ONLY for what we use. If we go to the dr we pay, if we don't go, we still only pay our premium, which is around $100 per month.

Now 4 years ago, we paid nearly $300 per month. When I "stepped out of the box" I was quite scared, and worried--OH MY WHAT IF..... this or that happens. Well, if it happens you make the payments and after you hit the deductible we're covered 100%. So maybe this year I'm out $5,000 that I can pay on every month, because of some major, catastrophic event. BUT maybe I'm only out $1200 for the premiums and that's it. Better than $9,600 thru work, or in your case 1/2 that, $4800 per year. (BTW our policy thru work is thru Anthem BC/BS and WOW is it expensive)

I have every year, raised my deductible to lower my premium. I (knock on wood) have never been disappointed. The most major thing that has happened in the last 4 years is when our son broke his arm. And even that didn't bankrupt us.

Check around, call all local insurance agents and ask if they offer health insurance. Also HSA's are becoming increasingly popular. Get different quotes, different scenario's, and shop around. Check on the internet, that's actually where I bought our most recent policy. Oh--BTW--we have never added maternity coverage on any of our policies. It's outrageous and we probably would not have any more children. If we would, of course provisions would need to be made.

But this has been a BIG budget saver for our family and I have never regretted it. Being informed is your best defense. If you have any questions feel free to PM or contact me!

You are right on track! We had a personal plan for several years, and I always took the worst case scenario....$5000 out of pocket, plus premiums. We would have been paying $650 per month for our healthy family of 4...that alone is $7800, plus the deductible and co-pays to reach out of pocket max. It was such a good deal, and even better deal when we didn't go to the doctor. Our plan even paid for well-child visits (through Fortis), but NOT maternity. There is a state program in MN I could have jumped on if I had become pregnant, though. Maternity can add quite an expense - if possible could you stay on your work plan until after the baby is born?

Anyway, as to where to look....we knew a few people who sold health insurance, so we shopped around. State Farm also sells the same Fortis plan we had, but we didn't purchase it from them. Make sure you get several quotes, because plans can vary greatly!

Good luck!

 

[Crystal824]

Before I got a job that offered insurance, I had a private policy with Blue Cross/ Blue Shield. For a single female in my mid 20's the premium per mo. was about $150.00 per month. There was a $1,500.00 deductible and a co-pay of $20.00 for dr.'s visit. All in all it wasn't too bad.

 

[bumbershoot]

This is a nicely timed thread, thank you!

Is it possible for, say, the working spouse and the child to be covered under the employer, but the non working spouse have an outside plan (like a high deductible plan)?

Hubby's gotten into contract work with a big employer in Seattle that doesn't like directly hiring people if they don't have to, and we got the paperwork about the head hunter company's insurance after he'd accepted the job (ugh), and it's naaaasty. Good insurance, but nasty premiums once you through in a spouse and a child (of course if we had more than one child we'd consider it to be cheap! but for one, not so much). For him it's almost nothing, for him and DS it would be doable...add me into the mix and it's just so much.

So is it possible to have us covered from different places, if we could find me a high deductible plan that worked premium-wise???

 

[hockeyprincess]

This is a nicely timed thread, thank you!

Is it possible for, say, the working spouse and the child to be covered under the employer, but the non working spouse have an outside plan (like a high deductible plan)?

Hubby's gotten into contract work with a big employer in Seattle that doesn't like directly hiring people if they don't have to, and we got the paperwork about the head hunter company's insurance after he'd accepted the job (ugh), and it's naaaasty. Good insurance, but nasty premiums once you through in a spouse and a child (of course if we had more than one child we'd consider it to be cheap! but for one, not so much). For him it's almost nothing, for him and DS it would be doable...add me into the mix and it's just so much.

So is it possible to have us covered from different places, if we could find me a high deductible plan that worked premium-wise???

I really don't see why not???? There's no law that says you must be on your spouse's employers insurance that I know of....and actually if I were to get pregnant (not planning but you know, in case) that is my plan. Put me back on employer's insurance totally and keep hubby & kids on the other plan. My employer pays 90% of my premium but NONE for spouse/kids.

I would work it out however it works best financially for you. Right now, it's all about the bottom line. Don't line the insurance company's pockets, take care of your own! Insurance companies (in my opinion) play on the average joe american being uneducated and scared to death of not having "good" medical coverage. I think as long as you're educated to your policy, well, most medical insurance is good. It just depends how much it's going to cost you out of pocket before they cover 100%. I'd so much rather pay IF and WHEN something happens, than pay to "insure" (nice play on words there, huh? LOL) that something doesn't happen.

Good luck!

 

[princesslily]

We have been thinking about dropping out of my husband's work insurance. It's 700 a month and a 3000 deductable. The only thing stopping us is my diabetes. I don't think we can find it any cheaper. We could really use the money but are afraid of the diabetes.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

My job doesn't offer health insurance so I have my own for $70 a month through Anthem (I've never had any medical problems, take zero medications [except B/C but I only pay $5 a month for that through my dental plan], don't smoke, rarely drink, work out regularly, and go to the doctor about once a year for a check up). It's a $2,500 deductible and $20 co-pays. It doesn't cover maternity (which I couldn't find anything reasonable that did) so I don't know what I'd do if I ever got pregnant. DBF doesn't have health insurance at work either. In fact the last two jobs I've had don't offer health benefits and they're decent jobs (paralegal). I've just come to expect a time when more and more employers will get out of paying for (or offering) health insurance plans for their employees. It's kind of nice to know I have it on my own and my employer can't just take it away from me.

 

[kaismahma]

I have always had coverage thru my employer or my husbands employer. But wanted to chime in here with a few pieces of advice. (I have worked for BCBS in MN and Health Partners. Now an HR Admin.) When looking at policies and comparing prices ask to see their drug formularies. All insurance companies have them. (Some will have them right on line.) Basically it is a book that tells you what you would be expected to pay for prescription drugs. Most have several tiers. If you are on a monthly med it is benefical to look at how prescriptions are reimbursed and your costs. One plan that may charge less may have horrible prescription coverage another plan may only be 50-100 more a month but their coverage for your meds is way better.

Also look into your state's HIPPA Legislation. In MN if you have not had a lapse in coverage for more than 30 dayser before going onto the new plan you should not be subject to pre-existing exclusions. You should get a letter in the mail from the old carrier and then make sure to call the new carrier and send them a copy. This can save you a lot of headaches later with claims being denied.

Lastly when looking at plans find out if wellness visits (physicals) and immunizations are covered even with high deductible plans. Most do have 100% coverage for these not requiring you to meet any deductible. We have a high deductible plan at work for our employees and the above is offered along with 100% coverage for pregnancy-prenatal, postnatal & delivery. (This is mom only, child would have to be added to the plan for coverage.)

Just my 2 cents hope this helps someone.

 

[disneymarie]

We're getting ready to start our family and the only thing keeping me from being a SAHM is the insurance. Mine is currently fully funded; but if we have to pay through DH's company it will cost over $400 a month just for me.

Is there a good place to start looking independently?

I have a contact with a person that assist in insurance needs at group rates. It is a group, as in work from home, self employed persons insurance. This cost might even been offset if the employer is not paying 100%, if there is alternate insurance at some companies, the employee portion is given as a bonus.

 

[bumbershoot]

Since replying in this thread, I've spent some time looking around. If you're not in the non-covered states, State Farm does have medical insurance. Not in WA, as WA has a "you can't exclude pre-existing conditions" clause, and many insurers threw in the towel when that happened in WA.

But I've looked on Regence, Group Health (my Allstate agent suggested I look there as that's what his boss uses for their little group), and UHC, and they all have individual plans! I was surprised.

While chatting with my former State Farm agent, she gave me the name of the independent broker she uses for her OWN office employees, and she sent me a huge PDF of what they have for my age bracket (many cover the info I found on my own today).

It's very interesting! And it really shows that hubby's now-former employer hasn't really been putting THAT much towards insurance coverage, LOL...it's just that the temp/head hunter agency puts even less.