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Post Info TOPIC: I need to change my health insurance monthly payment/deductible....UPDATE!
CarrieS


Marc Jacobs

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I need to change my health insurance monthly payment/deductible....UPDATE!
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Right now my monthly payment is $247, 1800 deductible, and they keep raising that monthly payment every year. For the next year, I'm wanting to drop my monthly payment & raise my deductible, just so I can get a smidge of relief in my monthly bills, but I'm not sure which payment/deductible plan to switch to. To be quite honest, I couldn't afford my current $1800 deductible IF something major were to happen to me, so the 2 options for me to move up to, don't particularly scare me. I'm 29, healthy, only go to the doc once a year for my annual appointment because I'm never sick, so take that into consideration.

And again, I'm looking at doing this change for a year, and then re-evaluating my financial crap at that point and possibly lowering the deductible again. 

Sooo, which of these would you switch to?  I'm only having trouble deciding between the 2 because I'm not sure $18 is worth a $1200 jump (from the $3k to $4200)
-$213 monthly payment, $3000 deductible
OR
-$195 monthly payment, $4200 deductible.

I know it's going to sound obvious to go with the lower deductible, but again, none of my deductibles are something I can afford if something were to go wrong, except via use of my CC.

Oh, and no, my employer does not pay for insurance.  I work at a church with 6 full-time employees, so it's not an option.

I just don't know what to do!

-- Edited by CarrieS at 11:36, 2008-08-06

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cahabo


Kate Spade

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RE: I need to change my health insurance monthly payment/deductible....
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I don't think it would be worth raising your deductible only to save $216 a year. You never know what is going to happen. A better option would be to find a way to decrease your spending in another area if possible.

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erin


Chanel

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i agree! totally not worth it to lower your deductible! i had to get two mri's a few years ago, and each mri was like 3k! (covered by insurance, fortunately)

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CarrieS


Marc Jacobs

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The problem I'm having is that they'll probably be raising my premium again in a few months, which is going to push my limits on what I'm willing to pay. I mean, if it hits $300 in the next few years, that's not affordable for me anymore. Not to mention they stopped covering blood work too, so I feel like I'm getting kind of screwed.

I was talking to my boss about it and she actually suggested trying the Farm Bureau (I'm in Iowa), since they have much lower premiums. I did look and I'd pay about $132/month with a $2500 deductible, but no BC coverage (I'm on Depo and I believe those shots are around $90 uncovered). I think I could deal with that though.

I can't afford my current $1800 deductible either, without using my CC, so a jump to $3000 isn't a big deal, at least not to me. The lower monthly payment IS a huge deal though.

I seriously go to the doctor once a year, for my annual appointment, so other than an accident, I'm pretty damn healthy.

This whole thing is just ridiculous to me....I'll just move to Canada and pay higher taxes in turn for cheap healthcare *Sigh*

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Metric


Gucci

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CarrieS wrote:  

This whole thing is just ridiculous to me....I'll just move to Canada and pay higher taxes in turn for cheap healthcare *Sigh*

Please do! We could hang out biggrin



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Suasoria


Chanel

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I'd probably go with the $3000 plan. It would be easier to raise $3000 than $4200 if you needed to, and the monthly difference is appreciable.

However, the Farm Bureau plan plus $90 a month out of pocket is a slightly better plan, if everything else is equal. Then, you'll just have to lobby congress to get them to force insurers to cover birth control. (Ironic eyeroll here.)

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Cortney1982


Chanel

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Why is yours so expensive?  I kept mine outside of work and it's $124/m $1500 deductible. 

I would not increase your deductible to save a few bucks.  It's already really high and if something were to happen that you needed care for, that would really suck!

ETA:

Have you thought about shopping for another insurance provider?  I went through ehealthinsurance.com and they had lots of plans from different companies and you can see their ratings.

-- Edited by Cortney1982 at 21:39, 2008-08-04

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relrel


Marc Jacobs

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CarrieS wrote:

but no BC coverage (I'm on Depo and I believe those shots are around $90 uncovered). 



Just as a side thought, have you checked out Planned Parenthood? I just looked and there's one right in Ames and thier shot price is less than the $90 you're paying now. Here's straight from the website:
Costs $35$75 per injection, plus any exam fees

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CarrieS


Marc Jacobs

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Suasoria: Well it'd be $90 every 3 months, so not even as bad as $90/month :)

Cortney1982: I use BCBS, so I have no idea......Saving $30/month though would mean a lot to me at this point. I'm trying to balance all of my bills and living a little, so it's a fine balance. Not to mention that they will raise my premium again soon, probably to around $265/month, is my guess. It's not going to get any cheaper and will eventually not be affordable for me. I have also thought about looking at other insurers, but I did that the first time around 2 years ago, and there were very limited options for here.

Relrel: I have gone to PP in the past and when I got insurance that covered BC, I just started getting my shots from my GP. I'd swear that it was close to $90 the last time I paid all of it out of pocket though, even from PP, so prices may have dropped since then.

I'm seriously looking into doing the Farm Bureau, through BCBS (since that's how you have to do it), since $132/month is a LOT better than $247/month (and this will be higher in a few months anyways).

Thanks for all the thoughts ladies!

-- Edited by CarrieS at 13:45, 2008-08-05

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CarrieS


Marc Jacobs

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RE: I need to change my health insurance monthly payment/deductible....UPDATE!
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UPDATE:  I went to meet with the new insurance agent here and I now have a standard rate (meaning that's all they could quote me, so it could end up being lower or higher) of $181 a month AND my new deductible is $1500! biggrin

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HeatherLynn


Gucci

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Aww yay!! Glad it seems to be working out.

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Cortney1982


Chanel

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See, it pays to shop around!



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CarrieS


Marc Jacobs

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Well, it wasn't really shopping around since I'm still with the same insurance provider. This is just another option under them.

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