Getting rid of insurance...

Submitted by Sonova_Vondruke t3_z7vd9k in personalfinance

So my health insurance is unaffordable and unusable. Next year we are now basically only going to be covered by our local hospital and a separate auxiliary group... I talked to someone with the hospitals assistance program and they said I might qualify for a health service discount, but can only check if I don't have insurance.

Basically it works like insurance, but there are no premiums and I have to use doctor's within their health system. You just have to be poor enough to qualify. Now, I'm thinking maybe to save myself $6,000 a year in premiums for a service that I can't use until my stupidly high deductible is met (almost the end of the year and we're not even halfway through our deductible). .. for pretty much the same, if not better service by joining this program. The copay option my employer offers is nearly half my paycheck. I was considering getting rid of insurance already since it literally does nothing for me.

The problem is I don't know I can qualify.. they can't tell me with me still having insurance. It's dumb . I know. But nothing I can do.. so it's a gamble .

My question is... has anyone here used something like this? Or does everyone get paid a livable wage and don't have to worry about poor people problems?

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KReddit934 t1_iy8dnf0 wrote

Sometimes these low-income programs are not available if you have an employer provided health insurance available, so read the fine print.

Becoming poor to avoid paying co-pays seems counter intuitive. Wouldn't it be better to earn more so you can afford to pay your co-pays?

Also, were you enrolled in a high-deductible plan last year or a PPO or HMO?

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Liquidretro t1_iy8h0hw wrote

Is that the only insurance plan your employer offers?

Why are you earning so little?

It sounds like about $1000 a paycheck?

How many hours are you working?

The minimum wage in Florida is $11 an hour. So 40 hours 4 weeks a month is $1760 gross, or about $1470 after tax.

Have you considered other jobs or a second job?

I think your plan of gambling without insurance and hoping to qualify for assistance through the hospital to cover all your medical bills is an incredibly large gamble that is almost sure to backfire somehow and end you up in medical debt. If you were young and healthy it's probably less of a risk but still not a great idea. Have you looked into any state based aid programs you might qualify for instead?

Edit: OP replied to this comment and you can read it in the post history but it's not showing. It seems they are only working about 30 hours a week. So step one is to work full time 40+ hours a week.

It sounds like a new, better job might be in order to help fix the income problem and hopefully find a company with better benefits.

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Sonova_Vondruke OP t1_iy8t50q wrote

Because I work in Florida.

More like $18 an hour. Take home $1,800 a month.

Insurance is $440 a month. So it's more like $5k a year not 6.

I'm under contract until March 2024 I could could get a second job . But I think I'd rather kill myself than have zero time to actually live my life.

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yeah87 t1_iycwn22 wrote

If your insurance plan premiums cost more than 9.12% of your household income, then your insurance is considered 'unaffordable' by the government and you are allowed to shop on the marketplace for an insurance plan and may qualify for premium tax credits. Might be worth checking out.

https://www.healthcare.gov/have-job-based-coverage/

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dcdave3605 t1_iy9rhkl wrote

Time to look for a better job. Benefits should be considered when finding one.

Are you paying for just yourself or a family for insurance?

You need insurance.

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lost_in_life_34 t1_iy8av4l wrote

I don't know about the recent laws but you might be required to carry health insurance or pay an extra tax. my wife's plan is an HSA type plan but they pay part of the deductible as well.

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one thing I learned in old age is take care of your body and don't wait for a doctor to tell you to lose weight or do something about your bloodwork. Many of the thresholds for problems are too high and lots of stuff is just BS to get you to pay for prescription drugs

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yeah87 t1_iycw695 wrote

> I don't know about the recent laws but you might be required to carry health insurance or pay an extra tax.

The individual mandate technically still exists, but since 2017 there has been no penalty attached to it.

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