Health Care: "If it's good enough for Congress it's good enough for you"

[ElsewheresDaughter]

i have heard some of the presidential candidates state that everyone should have the option to buy into the exact same healthcare insurrance coverage that congress has...my question: just how much will that "exact same plan" plan cost me as an individual?

it makes a nice sound byte but i wonder what that plan will cost me to buy into....anyone know?

[MercutioATC]

1. It depends on what candidate's healthcare plan is adopted...

They have different plans with different buy-in rates.

I'm covered under FEHBP (the system they're talking about). Depending on the area of the country in which you live, you have the choice of a dozen or so plans ranging from HMOs to PPOs to standard PPV plans. These are all plans offered by major insurers (Aetna, Blue Cross, Kaiser, etc.). To be included in the FEHBP, the insurers have agreed to meet certain requirements set forth by the government (minimum levels of care, no exclusion for pre-existing conditions, etc) and each individual plan has its own individual premimum (Blue Cross might be $150 per month while Aetna is $167 and Kaiser is $98). You choose a health plan and have the option of changing it once per year during a national "open season" period.