Health insurance in the first few months?

[Boiler 45,516]

21 minutes ago, purem4g1c said:

that is quite a scary thought, would short term health insurance be optimal in my situation? because in 6 months when I get my EAD I was going to open a business and get health care through my business (?)

Not sure opening a business makes much difference, maybe from a tax perspective?

[SalishSea 17,829]

5 hours ago, purem4g1c said:

that is quite a scary thought, would short term health insurance be optimal in my situation? because in 6 months when I get my EAD I was going to open a business and get health care through my business (?)

Get healthcare through your business?  Like a group plan for 50 employees or something?

[NikLR 13,227]

To the OP. My husband works for the govt.  We have a plan called a HDHP, high deductible health plan.  Basically we pay everything until our deductible is met at 3k.  Now the insurance can change the prices charged by the provider by allowing or disallowing them as per their agreement.  I try to see providers that are in my network but its not as strict as an HMO about that.  For instance 2 years ago I went to urgent care.  It's like going to a walk in clinic.  I was charged $700ish by the urgent care an my insurance said I only had to pay them $150.  This is why we pay them $130 bi weekly.  I dont have a copay and basic preventative care is free.  It wont pay for blood tests but will pay for a pap smear for example.  Drugs are discounted and birth control is free. The plan comes with something called an HSA or health savings account.  Hubs employer puts $1500 per year into that account for our health costs. We can use it or not but it stays in there until we do.  After our 3k deductible we pay 10% of all costs until our maximum amount; I can't recall what that is off the top of my head but I think its like 10k?  Our goal is to have a HSA that covers up to the maximum.  

 

So that's just one plan with one insurance provider.  On top of health  insurance we also have vision and dental.  

 

Each type of plan, how much you pay, how much out of pocket etc is all determined by the employer.  Hubs has more freedom and choice than MOST because of his employer. Most places do an HMO because it's cheaper and simpler.  You see in network providers only and need referrals to specialists.  But there's less guesswork for you.  I have to search out my providers and make sure they're in my network but I can see a specialist without a referral. 

[NikLR 13,227]

Hubs was in the military before so he had no clue how health care worked either.  His stuff was close to a single payer system like Canada.

 

I had to learn it all from scratch.  Now what healthy adults need will be different than those with medical issues and again different if you have kids.  We had a friend who did the same plan as us after leaving the military and found out it wasnt the best for them because the mom fell on her kid on a trampoline, took him to the ER and had to end up making payment plans to the ER.  Since they just went on the plan the HSA didnt have anything in it yet. 

[canadavisa22 202]

On 7/5/2019 at 11:52 PM, NikLR said:

To the OP. My husband works for the govt.  We have a plan called a HDHP, high deductible health plan.  Basically we pay everything until our deductible is met at 3k.  Now the insurance can change the prices charged by the provider by allowing or disallowing them as per their agreement.  I try to see providers that are in my network but its not as strict as an HMO about that.  For instance 2 years ago I went to urgent care.  It's like going to a walk in clinic.  I was charged $700ish by the urgent care an my insurance said I only had to pay them $150.  This is why we pay them $130 bi weekly.  I dont have a copay and basic preventative care is free.  It wont pay for blood tests but will pay for a pap smear for example.  Drugs are discounted and birth control is free. The plan comes with something called an HSA or health savings account.  Hubs employer puts $1500 per year into that account for our health costs. We can use it or not but it stays in there until we do.  After our 3k deductible we pay 10% of all costs until our maximum amount; I can't recall what that is off the top of my head but I think its like 10k?  Our goal is to have a HSA that covers up to the maximum.  

 

So that's just one plan with one insurance provider.  On top of health  insurance we also have vision and dental.  

 

Each type of plan, how much you pay, how much out of pocket etc is all determined by the employer.  Hubs has more freedom and choice than MOST because of his employer. Most places do an HMO because it's cheaper and simpler.  You see in network providers only and need referrals to specialists.  But there's less guesswork for you.  I have to search out my providers and make sure they're in my network but I can see a specialist without a referral. 

Interesting, I've got a lot of research to do. One of the main issues is determining our cost of living and health insurance I can't underestimate. Also, schooling (early years) seems like a big difference. We have free, all-day kindergarden start at 4 years old here, but I've read many states don't have free public school until 6 years old. That's two more years to worry about. But, housing is insane here, so I guess you just buckle down for a few years because it's almost impossible to get into the market here now. 

[NikLR 13,227]

Most of the time you don't get much choice with your insurance company when you go through your employer.  It'd be cheaper than doing it through the marketplace, most likely, but it's not cheap by any means.  I wouldn't worry about health insurance right away tbh.  It's something you get with a full time job. Most part time don't pay for it either. 

[Lemonslice 4,841]

4 hours ago, canadavisa22 said:

Interesting, I've got a lot of research to do. One of the main issues is determining our cost of living and health insurance I can't underestimate. Also, schooling (early years) seems like a big difference. We have free, all-day kindergarden start at 4 years old here, but I've read many states don't have free public school until 6 years old. That's two more years to worry about. But, housing is insane here, so I guess you just buckle down for a few years because it's almost impossible to get into the market here now. 

Finances are only one part of the decision- however, in my experience, with kids, you do get much more for your money in Canada.  Good school districts can mean a crazy mortgage; private schools are another options, but they can cost more than college.  Education system is... different - make sure you do your research about the program, schools, and districts in your area.  

 

We were lucky that my husband's employer provided amazing health insurance (premium paid in full, $300 deductible per year, per person, no co-pay) - but I never heard of anyone having it as good as we did.   Had we have to get health insurance through my employer, it would have been around $200 per month for myself, or $300 for myself + 1 person, or $600 for a family plan - then deductible was $1500 per year).