Health Insurance Rant #3,642

[next_to_normal]

UGH. The organization that I work for decided to switch insurance plans, undoubtedly because it's cheaper for them. They didn't give us any choice of plans, but our HR lady's all, "Our premiums have been reduced, isn't that nice for everyone!"

Well, sure, as long as you don't actually use your insurance.

Because while the premiums have been reduced, all the co-pays have gone up, and some of them have DOUBLED. But hey, as long as you don't go to the doctor, you're saving money! Isn't that NICE?

On the other hand, if you're someone like me, who uses a lot of health care services, the savings from the lower premiums is wiped out pretty quickly. Sure, I'm saving $20 a month on premiums, but it's now $50 every time I see a specialist (which I generally do once a month because of the Crohn's), instead of $25. $50 every time I see my therapist or psychiatrist (also previously $25), which I had been doing twice a month, but now I think we'll be cutting back. $70 for chemotherapy (aka my Remicade treatments), which used to be $25. If I have to go to the hospital again, it's $500 per day instead of $100. Prescription drugs now $10 for generic and $35 for brand name, and by the way, I take five of them (and at least one I can't get as a generic). This shit adds up.

I have multiple preexisting conditions, which means that I almost certainly couldn't do any better if I tried to get health insurance on my own. Premiums would be through the roof - assuming I could even find someone to insure me. So I'm stuck until 2017 when the health care reforms kick in (assuming the country hasn't descended into anarchy they haven't been repealed by then).

And I know, I should be thankful I have insurance at all. And I am, because otherwise I'd be paying my entire salary toward medical costs. But, seriously, it is pretty ridiculous when you have insurance and still can't afford care.

This all comes after a scare with my therapist, where the insurance just decided to stop paying for my visits and I was looking at a pretty steep bill. We managed to get that straightened out, and the insurance will (theoretically) provide back payments, but it's been quite a week for health care.

Comments

[randi2204]

I work for a health insurance company. One of the things I've learned is that the plans that we create follow the market. For example, in order to reduce their own costs, employer groups want plans that put more of the burden of healthcare back on the member/employee. That's why we have plans with monstrous deductibles on certain services, and plans with very limited networks of doctors/hospitals... which really creates a class of under-insured people. My state requires that everyone have health insurance or they get whacked with penalties, so they can't afford not to have it, but they also can't afford to be sick, either, which is really sad.

... which is a really long-winded way of saying *sympathy* and I completely understand. Having smaller premiums is not so much "YAY!" as people think it is.

[next_to_normal]

Yeah, I'm sure the move was to save the employer money. They've been cutting back all over the place, why not this, too? :\