Living Without Healthcare Insurance: Is it Ever an Option?Suppose you are self employed or run a small business. You are likely paying for your own healthcare insurance. Now suppose you and your wife are relatively young and relatively healthy. You may be looking at what you are paying in monthly premiums for even an affordable private health insurance policy, and wondering is it really worth it? This is what one couple did recently in Florida. They owned a dog grooming business together, and earned about $90,000 a year. They were purchasing private individual health insurance for themselves and one child. However they felt that they were paying an awful lot for a minimal low-cost health insurance policy, and were getting very little back in return. The high copays and the high deductible amount meant in addition to the premiums, they were also paying quite a bit out-of-pocket for medical expenses. So they decided to bite the bullet and drop the health insurance. At first it seemed like a good idea. They were saving on the monthly health insurance premium. In fact when the wife became pregnant with the couples second child, she was able to negotiate her own deal with her doctor for delivery services that actually cost $2,000 less than what they would have paid if they still had their health insurance coverage. Then something unforeseen happened. The baby was born with a congenital defect. It will leave her legally blind, and she will require regular care that will amount to thousands of dollars annually, and may require surgeries that will cost in the tens of thousands of dollars. Now not only will the family have to go out of pocket for all of these unexpected medical expenses, it may be difficult or even impossible for them to get affordable health insurance now that the child has a pre-existing condition. Stories like this one are not as uncommon as you might think, and they are illustrative of why it is important never to take the risk of living without health insurance. Living without adequate health insurance coverage is especially risky if you have a family. Health insurance experts agree that you should not purchase more health insurance than you need, or than you can afford, but you need to have the protection from financial ruin that unexpected medical expenses can bring. The couple in this illustration probably could have benefited from the advice of a qualified insurance broker or health insurance agent. The professional could have steered them in the direction of an affordable health insurance policy, appropriate for the needs of their family. As it turned out the daughter was able to qualify for a state sponsored health insurance plan for children under SCHIP, and the rest of the family qualified for a high deductible health insurance plan with a well known insurance company, that included wellness visits, for less than $150 a month. 2 CommentsLeave a comment |
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I get a bit scared when I hear stories like that one, because I am in a very similar situation. My husband and I will be self-employed beginning next month and when I leave my job to become self-employed we will lose our group health care and our insurance. Also, there doesn’t seem to be any good maternity coverage available. Most of these companies require you to wait up to a year before pregnant and on top of that they will only pay a max of around $2000. Do you have any advice or recommendations for a plan with good maternity coverage. Please don’t suggest that I stay in my job, because we really want to go into business for ourselves, but I would also like to get pregnant soon, especially now that I can spend more time at home.
Comment by Elizabeth — June 6, 2009 @ 7:27 am
Hi Elizabeth,
I am in a similar situation as yourself. Were you able to find any coverage? I am getting so desperate to find a solution.
Thank you,
Carey
Comment by cakanga — December 13, 2009 @ 7:41 pm