Health Insurance woes
By dorannmwin
@dorannmwin (36392)
United States
February 5, 2013 8:17pm CST
In the past Tom has been lucky enough to be able to get employer provided health insurance. Well this year when their insurance came up for renewal, the company was not able to get accepted into a group plan as it is a relatively small business, there are several older employees and at least two of the employees are recent cancer survivors (my husband among that group). So the company decided to have the employees apply for individual policies and the company will subsidize that expense.
They all had to apply for blue cross and of course Tom was rejected. So he has to get in the state access pool. Now this is not really expensive insurance, but they are requiring that he pay two months upfront and the check cannot come from his employer. This means we are broke till they reimburse us for the check.
Anyone else been through similar?
2 people like this
5 responses
@ShyBear88 (59283)
• Sterling, Virginia
7 Feb 13
That sucks to hear. I haven't been in that kind of situation. I have had to deal with at the end of my last trimester getting mediciade because I didn't know I didn't have ob coverage under my insurances.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
12 Feb 13
That is something that is a pain in the behind as well. In fact, that is something that I've been through as well. With mine, I thought I was paying extra to have the OB rider on my insurance and I only learned that I didn't have it when I was denied a claim after I'd been through a miscarriage.
@ulan12rc (222)
• Qatar
6 Feb 13
Too bad for your husband hope that company will reimburse it immediately. Luckily we don't experience that situation, in my previous company they provided medicare for all employees in different types but all the same it is very satisfying for everyone. The company pays all the fees in the insurance agency in annual basis and in return the agency assist us in every situation needed, they are very accommodating.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
7 Feb 13
They are treating this situation like they treat all of their business and they will be reimbursing their employees on a net 30 basis. This means that we are going to be out of the money until the 1st of March. It is just a few weeks, but it is a few more weeks than we were planning on being out money.
@jillhill (37354)
• United States
6 Feb 13
I had the same insurance company for 14 years and never turned in a claim....one day I get a notice that they are cancelling me....why? They put me in a block of others that were all turning 50..it's a perfectly legal thing for them to do.....I wrote my congressmen and attorney general and told them that they had made a promise to cover me...and they should be held to the promise since I never missed paying my bill.....I told them if I had taken all the money they had from me then just dumped them I would be in jail for felony theft! I think the insurance companies need to be made accountable for their customers.....I got robbed of 14 years of paying into a company that just ditched me!
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
7 Feb 13
I believe that something like what you've talked about happening with you where they dropped you just because of your age is something that is going to be illegal after everything with the health insurance and health care reform goes into effect over the next couple of years.
I think that it is wrong to drop a person simply because of the fact that they are getting a little bit older.
@dawnald (85135)
• Shingle Springs, California
6 Feb 13
When i got laid off, I got lucky. My former employer is paying my health insurance for a year. But in August I have a challenge to find insurance if this company I am working at doesn't hire me on (I'm a contractor). The agency has insurance, but it's expensive. The ex can put the kids on his, but again, it's expensive. Individual insurance will be expensive too. At least if I get on a policy with pre-existing condition exclusions I know that starting next January that's not allowed any more. Not fun...
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
7 Feb 13
I would hope that by the time that August rolls around that many of the reforms that will have to be fully in effect by 2014 will be starting to be available. If that is the case, I don't think that you will have the challenges in finding insurance for yourself (and for your children) that you will have if you were looking for individual insurance right now.
@savypat (20216)
• United States
6 Feb 13
You have just run into one of the reasons for Obama care. Under this program insurance cannot be denied for existing or previous conditions. It's coming but I don't think it's in effect yet. We have been so lucky to be government workers and now retired we still have perks. For many years we were lower paid but now we get the pay back. Anyway you look at it a working career is difficult, Choices that you make can cause long term reactions. No one can see the future, we just know that we were very lucky in our choices. Hang in there things will improve for you and health is priceless. Blessings
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
7 Feb 13
You are right that Obama Care isn't fully in effect yet. However, the reason that Tom was able to get this Kentucky Access health insurance is because of the fact that Kentucky was one of the first states that said that they would run their own risk pool and they already have it started. I suppose my husband is one of the first several thousand people in our state that is a member of one of the risk pools.
