At Get Rich Slowly, they’re asking how much everyone spends on health insurance. My answer got kind of long for a blog comment, so I decided to post it here:
I get medical/vision from my employer, through Aetna. For me+spouse+children, the premium is $232 per month. Part of it is taken from my paycheck pre-taxes (i.e. it lowers my taxable income). I’m not sure what percent of the total cost this is, but I know it’s heavily subsidized by my employer. (Also, this doesn’t include dental, which is extra.)
The plan is a complex “health fund” (Aetna also offers the standard PPO or EPO, but that would be boring and the premiums for those plans are higher).
The first $1500 of medical/drug expenses each year are covered 100% by Aetna (that’s the “health fund”). If unused, it rolls over to the next year but we use it up about half-way through the year, at best. The next $1500 we pay 100% out of pocket (they call it the deductible).
After that, it behaves more like a traditional PPO. We can go to any healthcare provider. In-network, we pay a 10% co-insurance. Out-of-network, I think the co-insurance goes up to 30%, but there are so many doctors in-network, I’ve never needed to go out-of-network before.
“Preventative care” like yearly physicals and well-child visits are covered 100%.
“Alternative care” such as acupuncture and massage are also covered, up to a certain amount. Physical Therapy (including chiropractic) is covered up to 25 visits a year. Prescription drugs are covered at about the same rate, for generics at least. The 10% co-insurance applies to all these.
For vision, we each get one eye exam, plus a pair of eyeglasses or an order of contact lenses per year.
I think this is a pretty good plan, and I consider myself very lucky to have it as an option through my employer.
How much do you spend on health insurance?
Foundry in the Forest 