We are required to have health insurance in MA

Kapalua · March 2010

and the state hasn't imploded.

the program was implemented by a republican governor-and was hailed at the time as being innovative and a breakthrough.

It's not perfect of course-but I assure you it's not like living under a communist regime here!

To be clear-I'm not well versed on the bill that just passed, but the program sounds similar and so I just thought I would point that out.

Jodi&Joe · March 2010

Really? Do you get fined if you don't have it? What if you are low income and can't afford it?

kittycarr · March 2010

No plan is going to be perfect - there are too many people in the US and each and every one is a completely different individual with a different voice on the subject. As soon as each and every individual comes to know this as a fact and that not any one plan will cater to every need they have, then.........f*ck, I just forgot where I was going with this.

Lightning and thunder just struck again and scared my thoughts right out of me.

elm1032004 · March 2010

The plan in MA is causing a huge budget problem though. It was supposed to lower the costs here and it hasn't at all, they have gone up.

https://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2009/03/02/mass_healthcare_reform_is_failing_us/

docmay25 · March 2010

As far as I know, they don't fine you. We have not had insurance for the past 2 months. My dh is unemployed. I work part time. We make too much money to receive state funded insurance, but can't afford private insurance. We will have insurance as of this week, but it is difficult for us to afford. We receive a certain amount from unemployment to put towards insurance, but they don't send the check until a month or so after we have to pay the insurance company.

So, it is great for MA government to tell me I have to have health insurance and of course I want it...but what do I do when I am a middle income family who doesn't qualify for state insurance and can't afford private?

elm1032004 · March 2010

Docmay

Actually they do fine you when you file your taxes each year, which is why you need the 1099HC to file.

Jodi&Joe · March 2010

docmay25:

As far as I know, they don't fine you. We have not had insurance for the past 2 months. My dh is unemployed. I work part time. We make too much money to receive state funded insurance, but can't afford private insurance. We will have insurance as of this week, but it is difficult for us to afford. We receive a certain amount from unemployment to put towards insurance, but they don't send the check until a month or so after we have to pay the insurance company.

So, it is great for MA government to tell me I have to have health insurance and of course I want it...but what do I do when I am a middle income family who doesn't qualify for state insurance and can't afford private?

You do what we do, pay out of pocket! I have spent $387 since 01/01. That was one well visit for Joey, with shots and all. And one sick visit for Cam. That is about $900 LESS than ONE month's premium. And I would have had to pay three month's premiums at this point -- meaning we would have spent OVER $3000 at this point. And next week, make that $4000 for paying April's premium.

We are currently shopping for catasprophy insurance (should something serious happen) with a high deductible/low monthly premium. Even that is about $200/month PER person...and that's with a $10,000 deductible and 80% coverage after that deductible.

Insurance is a legalized mofia. I will keep every damn penny I can OUT of the insurance companies. They can suck it as far as I'm concerned.

And no, I don't use the ER for visits. My kids pedi is fine with us paying out of pocket and Joe and I, for the rare times we use healthcare, go to a walk in. Costs me $75/visit. Why anyone would even want insurance is beyond me?! (Again, aside from a catasrophe). But I'm guessing there are plenty of Nesties that will now point out the error of my ways.......

eclaires · March 2010

Jodi have you looked at HSA plans at all? I assume that they are available privately too.

Basically, you could put some money into an account pre-tax to pay your out of pocket costs, and the premiums are low (ours were REALLY low - like $500 for the year). Our HSA plans covered well visits and preventative care (like physicals for adults), and we paid OOP for everything else. Anyway, we'd put the difference between premiums (employer subsidized so less than private probably) in our HSA each year, and we always came out pretty far ahead. Our deductible was kind of high, but we always made sure we had enough to cover it in the event of a big medical issue.

Honestly, while I'm happy w/ our current insurance (it's basically a cadillac plan - I will pay $10 to have this baby), we pay a LOT per month for it, and for us, it's really unnecessary for the way we go to the doctor.

Our insurance for a year (incl what MH's employer pays) is $21,000. Do you think we use $21,000 worth of care a year? I can tell you we may this year with having a baby since I'll have a c/s. But otherwise, not even close. With our HSA plan, our deductible was around $6k for the family, and we paid a LOT less per year. In the end, we would come out far ahead.

docmay25 · March 2010

Great, one more thing to worry about with this damn health insurance. I am sure dh knows about this, as he is our insurance and tax person, not me. But I will make sure he knows.

Kapalua · March 2010

https://www.mahealthconnector.org/portal/site/connector/

this is the program that is intended to bridge the gap for uninsured people.

Like I said-I'm not well versed, and I know it's not perfect...

Jodi&Joe · March 2010

I haven't looked for an HSA E but that sounds like something I would definitely be interested in. I will mention it to our insurance guy next time I talk to him.

We have been so slow moving with this --- mainly because it all totally overwhelms me so I just avoid it! I know, not smart but the truth.

I need to get on the catasrophe policies asap though. Joe's 65ft in the air as we "speak" --- that boy needs some coverage!

aprilmomtobe · March 2010

Well, no, we haven't imploded,. but it's cost over a billion $$ and the budget is a freaking mess. And now everyone is upset about how they are going to slash EI, etc. etc. Everything cost $$$!

kittycarr · March 2010

I prefer a high monthly premium versus deductibles and coinsurance. I'll gladly pay $800/mo or so to have a $10 copay at the doc, no deductible, $0 coinsurance, $50 outpatient services, etc. If the deductibles didn't reset for like two or three years, I'd do it maybe but I have a problem even paying $200/mo for a $5k ded and even a 10% co.

JenniC1135 · March 2010

Jodi, consider yourself very, very fortunate that nobody in your family has any type of health problems. It doesn't have to be a catastrophe to cost an arm and a leg if your kid has allergies or a bad injury. Would that match your old monthly premium? Maybe not. But what if it were something more serious - cancer, diabetes, etc.? Under current law, if you didn't have insurance on the day you were diagnosed, an insurance company could refuse to cover you for anything related to that condition. My dad is in chemo every other week for the rest of his life, at a cost of about $20K a pop. He's not a poor man, but that would have broken him in just a few months. Going without insurance at any time is not a risk worth taking, in my opinion.

hopefulmom · March 2010

People that have a $5 or $10 copay usually have a higher cost per month...but not always. My SIL has always had MESSA (she worked for them...now retired) and she has never, ever had a copay for office visits, prescriptions, etc. Her girls were on her insurance until they were 27 years old (and neither of them went to college) because the employer never required documentation. She paid nothing per month for her insurance. I'm really surprised at the great insurance some people have throughout the country provided by their employers. My DH has worked for GM for almost 30 years as an engineer and we've always had kind of crummy insurance (IMO). Right now we pay monthly about $300 and have $7,500 deductible (that is for salary). A lot of people think GM salary workers are the ones getting all the perks but that is not the case (not even when it comes to vacation, sick, etc). My DH works 14 hour days and is paid for 8. Matter of fact, if he had been working as a union worker on the line (or elsewhere) he would be making more then he does now...per hour for just the 8 hours. Seeing what people on here get from their employer for health insurance is surely an eye opener. The way I look at it...we basically have catastrophic insurance. Wish we lived in a different state!

Jodi&Joe · March 2010

JenniC1135:
Jodi, consider yourself very, very fortunate that nobody in your family has any type of health problems. It doesn't have to be a catastrophe to cost an arm and a leg if your kid has allergies or a bad injury. Would that match your old monthly premium? Maybe not. But what if it were something more serious - cancer, diabetes, etc.? Under current law, if you didn't have insurance on the day you were diagnosed, an insurance company could refuse to cover you for anything related to that condition. My dad is in chemo every other week for the rest of his life, at a cost of about $20K a pop. He's not a poor man, but that would have broken him in just a few months. Going without insurance at any time is not a risk worth taking, in my opinion.

Yea, this is definitely the downside and I do worry about that. We'll see where we go from here. Stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Want a personalized experience?

We are required to have health insurance in MA

Re: We are required to have health insurance in MA

Choose Another Board

Search Boards