[TriLUG] OT: NC insurance options

[Michael Kimsal]

Hrm... I've had the opposite experience with BCBSNC HSA plan.  Premiums
have gone up about 3-5% per year past 3 years, but we also got a refund
($600?) 18 months ago after the national health plan thingy passed.  But
we've also got a high deductiable, and basically just treat it as
catastrophic insurance.


On Thu, Mar 29, 2012 at 7:45 PM, Brian Phelps <brphelps at ieee.org> wrote:

> I don't know if UHC has changed or not but our office had many problems
> with UHC. Basically you pay full price then UHC refunds you.  My infant son
> had breathing problems and we had a VERY hard time getting much of our
> money for what coverage was in our plan.  I felt like I had to be a lawyer,
> accountant, and even then we had collections agencies after us from several
> specialists.
>
> Once that dollar has left your wallet you must justify getting it back from
> UHC and they will reject it over and over.  NOT FUN!  Not practical.
>
> We switched to BCBS and it _was_ better than UHC for a while until the
> Obama healthcare passed.  Then deductibles more than doubled and coverage
> shrunk while premiums went up over 15%.  Just stating the facts here.  Read
> into politics what you will.
>
> Basically we were buying in a large group in a kind of co-op and that
> apparently dissapeared when the new Obama legislation passed.  Don't know
> why this became "illegal" but here we are with shitty coverage and higher
> premiums and deductables.
>
> If anyone does have an alternative for us small businesses please chime in!
>
> On Fri, Feb 24, 2012 at 6:07 PM, Mitchell Amiano <mamiano at nc.rr.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Even with BCBSNC there are different options.
> > Blue Advantage HSA is pretty high deductible but a lower cost alternative
> > to a more traditional plan.
> > There is also United Health Care, which servers small businesses and
> > individuals (http://www.uhc.com/).
> > Check out the Triangle chapter of the Health Underwriters association for
> > potentially other resources (http://www.nctahu.org/).
> >
> > I've heard of some church-based plans, but cannot think of the name; I
> > think they tend to be more like cooperatives than insurance.
> > Another thing to look at is clinics. Raleigh has one:
> > http://www.alliancemedicalministry.org/primary-care/
> > I've heard that cash-basis offices have fairer pricing schedules, but
> > there are few of them around and hard to get into.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Mitch
> >
> > Sent from my living room
> >
> > On Feb 24, 2012, at 12:22 PM, Patwbrewer wrote:
> >
> > > I think there are a few self employed folks in Trilug. So I wanted to
> > ask if there are an options I should consider other than BCBS in NC for
> > health insurance when doing contract/project work.
> > >
> > > Sent from my iPad
> > > --
> > > This message was sent to: Mitch Amiano <mamiano at nc.rr.com>
> > > To unsubscribe, send a blank message to trilug-leave at trilug.org from
> > that address.
> > > TriLUG mailing list : http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug
> > > Unsubscribe or edit options on the web        :
> > http://www.trilug.org/mailman/options/trilug/mamiano%40nc.rr.com
> > > TriLUG FAQ          :
> > http://www.trilug.org/wiki/Frequently_Asked_Questions
> >
> > Mitchell Amiano
> > (919) 410-8008
> > mamiano at nc.rr.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > This message was sent to: Brian <brphelps at ieee.org>
> > To unsubscribe, send a blank message to trilug-leave at trilug.org from
> that
> > address.
> > TriLUG mailing list : http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug
> > Unsubscribe or edit options on the web  :
> > http://www.trilug.org/mailman/options/trilug/brphelps%40ieee.org
> > TriLUG FAQ          :
> > http://www.trilug.org/wiki/Frequently_Asked_Questions
> >
> --
> This message was sent to: mgkimsal at gmail.com <mgkimsal at gmail.com>
> To unsubscribe, send a blank message to trilug-leave at trilug.org from that
> address.
> TriLUG mailing list : http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug
> Unsubscribe or edit options on the web  :
> http://www.trilug.org/mailman/options/trilug/mgkimsal%40gmail.com
> TriLUG FAQ          :
> http://www.trilug.org/wiki/Frequently_Asked_Questions
>



-- 
Michael Kimsal
http://michaelkimsal.com
919.827.4724