Pandemic threat? Anyone else concerned?

[bigredfish]

At the end of the day, those who complain about .Gov subsidies to Insurance/Hospitals have no solution.
The only real solution is bankrupt consumers or .Gov mandated caps on how much they can charge.

At the end of the day I have no problem with .Gov spending some of my money on subsidizing healthcare. They subsidize a lot of other things we take for granted.
I dont pay taxes just so a few politicians can grift their way to becoming rich or for golden ballrooms.

At the end of the day the market will pay up to the point that it won't. Just like Housing, Refrigerators or Cars or Homeowners Ins.
I believe we're at or very close to the peak

 

[David L]

With my SS being around $1500 a month, that is alot of money, $500 a month for medical Ins., for just me, IMO. We paid about $500 a month (paycheck deducted) covering both of us on the wife's work Ins. at her retirement. 80/20 plan, which is what Medicare part A is, except A only covers the hospital, no Doctors, that is where plan B comes in, then add plan D for meds. Her work Ins, covered all of that, kinda like an Advantage plan groups them all together, big difference is/was her work plan was a PPO, we could go pretty much anywhere within a very large network. There was a time she had a plan, around the same cost, actually closer to $400 a month that was 100% coverage, no joke, then it went to 90/10 when Obamacare was forced on our nation, then those 90/10s went away with her last coverage being a 80/20. Think she told me the 90/10 was still available but at triple the cost. But no Gap Ins, may have offered one but we did not have it. She now has Medigap which I don't fully understand. She is on a (G plan), F is no longer offered. G's (premium) is supposedly cheaper than F, we know this due to one family member and few friends on F, but G has a more up front cost, think she has to met a deductible of close around $300 a year where I think F does not have a deductible that has to be met. But don't get me wrong, the wife is still asleep for me to confirm.

 

[bigredfish]

You’re right. that employer insurance covered both, 80/20

Try having a major surgery and covering the 20% yourself …Medicare A/B plus Gap covers %100

Social Securuity was never intended to cover 100% of your living costs after retirement.

 

[David L]

You’re right. that employer insurance covered both, 80/20

Try having a major surgery and covering the 20% yourself …Medicare A/B plus Gap covers %100

Social Securuity was never intended to cover 100% of your living costs after retirement.

I hear ya. We are pretty much are living off our SS, with the wife making more. I was Self-employed which guess paid in SS less than her or they went back on my earlier years of working as an employee at companies, which I made alot less, not sure.

I know we can cut more cost in our monthly spending plus the interest we make on investments will be still enough to live on. We have pretty much got our big purchases behind us, those were paid for out of our savings. Plus any future major issues/problems will have to come out of our savings too but our finance guy keeps telling us to spend half of our savings on trips/vacations (guess when you retire they are no longer called vacations since every day is a vacation to us, lol) Our financial plan has us dying at 90, which we are both hoping we don't live that long.

But add a major medical bill and all that changes. Our biggest living expense is Insurance...home/auto/medical...to me that sucks...it is like gambling, sink a ton of money in hoping you get something out of it, a return.

Thanks again for ya'll's insight/help...

 

[tigerwillow1]

She is on a (G plan), F is no longer offered. G's (premium) is supposedly cheaper than F, we know this due to one family member and few friends on F, but G has a more up front cost, think she has to met a deductible of close around $300 a year where I think F does not have a deductible that has to be met.

You hit on another way the some insurance companies are lining their pockets. I'm "stuck" in an F plan when I'd rather be in a G plan. The reason: The annual premium for F with my company is substantially higher than their premium for their G plan plus the ~$300 deductible. A few years ago I inquired about switching from F to G. They said sure, but you'd have to go through medical underwriting, in real life meaning they wouldn't let me switch. Absolutely no changed exposure for them to let me change, but the didn't want to give up those extra $$$.

Here's an example from the current prices, which are age and geographic area dependent. I'm not trying to pick on one company, but this one takes the prize for the biggest price differences.

For the F plan:


The G plan:


That's $1,044 more per year for the F plan that will pay out $283 more. The "trapped" F plan people are being stiffed for $761 annually!

 

[bigredfish]

I hear ya. We are pretty much are living off our SS, with the wife making more. I was Self-employed which guess paid in SS less than her or they went back on my earlier years of working as an employee at companies, which I made alot less, not sure.

I know we can cut more cost in our monthly spending plus the interest we make on investments will be still enough to live on. We have pretty much got our big purchases behind us, those were paid for out of our savings. Plus any future major issues/problems will have to come out of our savings too but our finance guy keeps telling us to spend half of our savings on trips/vacations (guess when you retire they are no longer called vacations since every day is a vacation to us, lol) Our financial plan has us dying at 90, which we are both hoping we don't live that long.

But add a major medical bill and all that changes. Our biggest living expense is Insurance...home/auto/medical...to me that sucks...it is like gambling, sink a ton of money in hoping you get something out of it, a return.

Thanks again for ya'll's insight/help...

You’re in good company

 

[bigredfish]

Oh boy!

They want you dead way before 90

 

[David L]

You hit on another way the some insurance companies are lining their pockets. I'm "stuck" in an F plan when I'd rather be in a G plan. The reason: The annual premium for F with my company is substantially higher than their premium for their G plan plus the ~$300 deductible. A few years ago I inquired about switching from F to G. They said sure, but you'd have to go through medical underwriting, in real life meaning they wouldn't let me switch. Absolutely no changed exposure for them to let me change, but the didn't want to give up those extra $$$.

Here's an example from the current prices, which are age and geographic area dependent. I'm not trying to pick on one company, but this one takes the prize for the biggest price differences.

For the F plan:
View attachment 247241

The G plan:
View attachment 247242

That's $1,044 more per year for the F plan that will pay out $283 more. The "trapped" F plan people are being stiffed for $761 annually!

We had a family member switch from F to G, a couple of years ago. Don't know what company but guessing United Healthcare AARP, because she has mentioned AARP several times over the years. Don't even know what it took for her to switch, she said her agent did it for her. My wife has an agent too, if you call them that. Consultant that is, we went to one of those Medicare gatherings at a restaurant after recving a flyer in the mail, several years ago, and the wife liked the guy and has used him for her Medicare and SS. No charge but he is part of a Financial group where he tries to sell her Annuities. I will probably reach out to him myself.

 

[bigredfish]

 

[David L]

No shots for me/us. Sadly, we found out the rabies shots for our dogs have the gen altering mRNA crap in them now too.
Really don't know how we all can avoid it, it is in our food now too...mRNA vaccines in livestock...

 

[bigredfish]

 

[bigredfish]