This is MY opinion. This is not necessarily how you should choose your plan, it's just how I did....
My wife and I are relatively healthy, we rarely go to the doctor (and for that he loves us). I get up every morning and hit the gym before going to the office. She makes amazingly healthy and delicious, well balanced meals. And we hike almost every weekend.
We were paying close to $500 a month for health insurance we never used. (That's $6,000 a year btw) After becoming licensed to sell health insurance, I quickly learned about things called HSAs (Health Savings Accounts). These are high deductible health care plans which allow you to pay for EVERYTHING up to a certain deductible. Bad idea right, that's a lot of money out of my pocket! For some people, yes, an HSA is a bad idea. However, for my wife and me, it makes a lot of sense.
Our monthly premium was more than cut in half, saving us over $3,000 a year.
Problem - what if I have to go to the doctor? Well, I pay what the insurance company would pay. In our case, somewhere in the neighborhood of $75 instead of our prior $10 copay. That's pretty steep, except when I look back and remember that I'm saving about $250 a month, so I can afford to pay for at least three doctor visits that month with what I just saved!
If, Heaven forbid, I have a major hospitalization, I have to cover up to my deductible, which I strategically placed at around $3,000 (the amount I've saved a year) and then my insurance covers 100% of the rest! Good deal, and for all that heartache (and body-ache), I break even. If I don't have to go through crazy hospitalization or other numerous testings that will cost me an arm and a leg, I end up ahead and, if the past is any forecaster of the future, I will almost every time! Oh, did I mention that the money I put into my HSA is TAX deductible!? Now, not only do I end up ahead, but I can take tax deductions for my own money.
That seems to make good sense to me. Does it make sense to you?
My wife and I are relatively healthy, we rarely go to the doctor (and for that he loves us). I get up every morning and hit the gym before going to the office. She makes amazingly healthy and delicious, well balanced meals. And we hike almost every weekend.
We were paying close to $500 a month for health insurance we never used. (That's $6,000 a year btw) After becoming licensed to sell health insurance, I quickly learned about things called HSAs (Health Savings Accounts). These are high deductible health care plans which allow you to pay for EVERYTHING up to a certain deductible. Bad idea right, that's a lot of money out of my pocket! For some people, yes, an HSA is a bad idea. However, for my wife and me, it makes a lot of sense.
Our monthly premium was more than cut in half, saving us over $3,000 a year.
Problem - what if I have to go to the doctor? Well, I pay what the insurance company would pay. In our case, somewhere in the neighborhood of $75 instead of our prior $10 copay. That's pretty steep, except when I look back and remember that I'm saving about $250 a month, so I can afford to pay for at least three doctor visits that month with what I just saved!
If, Heaven forbid, I have a major hospitalization, I have to cover up to my deductible, which I strategically placed at around $3,000 (the amount I've saved a year) and then my insurance covers 100% of the rest! Good deal, and for all that heartache (and body-ache), I break even. If I don't have to go through crazy hospitalization or other numerous testings that will cost me an arm and a leg, I end up ahead and, if the past is any forecaster of the future, I will almost every time! Oh, did I mention that the money I put into my HSA is TAX deductible!? Now, not only do I end up ahead, but I can take tax deductions for my own money.
That seems to make good sense to me. Does it make sense to you?
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