How much money comes out of your paycheck to pay for health care benefits?

[mzmolly]

We pay about $360 per month and have $30 co-pays for meds and Dr.s visits. We also have caps and deductibles for various treatments/supplies which add up to a minimum of $42 monthly.

[ThomWV]

1. $367 a month, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Family Option, Federal Employees Health Program.

[xsquid]

44. It's going up to 400

after the first of the year. Standard option.

[Brickbat]

2. It's part of a collectively bargained package.

Mr. Brickbat is paid an hourly wage, and his health insurance is "paid" on top of that, so it depends on the hours he works in a month. We have no co-pays for office visits; meds run about $6.

[stray cat]

3. Less than 100/month; 20 copays - its a good deal

[mzmolly]

5. Excellent

deal!

[here_is_to_hope]

4. 40.00 an eighth...n/t

[The Gunslinger]

43. sounds like a good prescription plan.

[SharonAnn]

6. So your employer pays about two or three times that for you instead of paying you.

[NNN0LHI]

7. My payroll and retirement checks have been lower in lieu of medical coverage

Exact dollar amount I don't know?

Don

[ananda]

8. $280 a month for what is turning into not much of anything.

Aetna pays less and less out of pocket, and won't even
cover routine mammogram screening any more.

This is a company that is getting bolder and bolder in
doing less and less for more and more profits.

Ugghh.

[tammywammy]

9. About $25/week

For health insurance (Aetna), dental, vision, term-life, disability, etc. Single person. No co-pays doctor visits done on a percentage, and most of that's covered by a fund set up by the company (I've never gone over the amount set up), preventative medical visits are covered 100%, and prescriptions are done on a percentage (1 week of 2 a day heavy duty antibiotics cost me $0.58, my monthly generic birth control is $2.18). If I have to pay all my deductibles, it would cost $2000 total for the year and once you fulfill the deductibles everything's covered 100%.

Also, the term life and disability are extras that I signed on for. I really wouldn't want to know what the company's share is. It's gotta be a lot higher, but I'm sure since it's a Fortune 100 company, they've worked out a good deal with Aetna.

[Heddi]

10. Medical is $240 a month for Mr. Hed and I. Another $100 a month for

dental and eyeglasses. We have the cheapest plan offered by my company. I have a $500 copay if I go to the hospital, $200 for an ER visit. After that 80% is paid...supposedly. The best plan would cost $600 a month just for me, $800 for both of us. Per month.

Medical Copays are $25. My birth control is $50 a month. Can't seem to be Rx'ed a medicine that is less than $40 a fill.

Oh and my husband and I are both nurses....We're in our 30's, no children, no medical problems, nonsmokers.

I feel very lucky.

Our previous insurance was about $900 a month for both of us for medical and it covered NOTHING.

So we feel blessed....

[mike_c]

11. Whatever it is now, it is going to get a lot worse....

eom

[FrenchieCat]

13. Prove it, instead of just talking without evidence.

we're waiting.

[mike_c]

23. you know as well as I do that one can only predict future events...

...and not "prove" them. Nonetheless, I believe there is a very high probability that an HCR bill with individual mandates but no employer mandate will undermine all rationale for employer provided group insurance, and force LOTS of people out into the private insurance market over the next five to ten years, where the costs are SIGNIFICANTLY higher.

See http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7236599

[FrenchieCat]

29. In otherwords, you ain't got shit but a link of you making pronouncements.......

which doesn't mean a thing.

You are wrong. You will be proven wrong.
and you will have to live with that shit....
and I, for one, will never forget,
how you determined that 30 million people getting
something they have never had was worth less to you,
than speculating about shit that won't happen.

[The Gunslinger]

48. How do you know he will be proven wrong.....

Are you making pronouncements?

Anyone that thinks a mandate that everyone buys into for profit insurance is going to drive costs down and will benefit the middle class is wrong.........and that is my pronouncement.

[LoZoccolo]

30. So do not make things up. n/t

[boppers]

55. "with individual mandates but no employer mandate"..

In other words, in your made up world, you have made up numbers that don't have anything to do with actual reality, where both bills have individual and employer mandates and exceptions.

[mzmolly]

17. I sure hope not.

:(

[FrenchieCat]

12. Self employed pay $1,241 per month, with $75.00 copays

for a family of 4.

We are self employed.

We had our Mortgage modified...
and now our health care is higher than our modified mortgage. :(

[mzmolly]

16. Sheesh!

Do you know what your monthly cost will be under the new legislation?

Nate Silver has an estimate here if you're interested in taking a peek?

http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/12/why-progressives-are-batshit-crazy-to.html

[FrenchieCat]

31. I think we will be helped by the exchange.

If we can pool with others who are self employed,
this is bound to reduce our cost.

[girl gone mad]

35. It sounds like wishful thinking.

First, only some self-employed will qualify for the exchange, not all. Judging by the amounts you are able to pay right now, I qquestion whether you would qualify. Perhaps your family will qualify for the high-risk pool, where your rates will remain very high, maybe even higher than they are now, since the government will be picking up the slack and allowing insurers to charge even more than they do now. If you can qualify for subsidies, you'll be fine, but it sounds like your income may be too high.

Under no circumstances is the industry going to give up their profits to help self-employed people get better rates. I have not seen anything in the bill that will encourage, let alone require, them to do so.

[FrenchieCat]

62. They will allow us to pool with other self employed via the exchange.

That is in the bill.

Part of the point is that the self employed pay more than everyone else,
cause we have no employer to offset our benefits.
Same goes for our Social Security. We pay 15.3% of our net business income
no matter how much schedule A deduction we have, cause we have to pay
employer/employee share as opposed to only employee share.

[aikoaiko]

14. $400 for a family of 3. $20 co-pays.

Dental is another 100/month.

[Iggo]

15. I'm afraid to look. (n/t)

[undeterred]

18. I have no paycheck and no health care benefits.

[mzmolly]

20. I'm

very sorry to hear that. I hope you'll get coverage soon?

[FLDCVADem]

19. $203 bi-weekly

or about $5300/year, Aetna is our company. $15 co-pay for office visit, one annual preventive visit per person w/no co-pay, $25 co-pay for specialists. We have to stay in-network, but the Aetna network is huge, so no issues there. We can self-refer to specialists. I'm incredibly happy with the coverage, and have never had a problem with them not covering something. We have this coverage through my husband's employer, but if it keeps going up, we're going to go back to TriCare - TriCare sucks, but it's free.

[tammywammy]

26. I've never had a problem with Aetna

Even back when I was 18 (I was covered under my parents, and they work for the company I now work for), I had back problems. For years in and out of doctors, MRIs, physical therapy, nothing ever not covered and no hassle about it either. It was under the HMO back then, now it's not, but I've not had a problem so far and I've not heard of any other employees having problems.

[glowing]

21. $550.00/ Month

[sueh]

22. 450.00 a month for employee & spouse with co-pays of $20 or $40; pharma $10/$30/$50/25%...

Humana PPO. Sucks...too expensive...and it's only for 2 people.

[Cleobulus]

24. My monthly income is about 1200 a month(after taxes) ...

Monthly premiums from my work alone, to just cover me would exceed over 10% of that income, something I can't afford, so I don't have insurance.

[treestar]

25. Self employed $440 quarterly

Very high deductible. It is for disasters. Check ups and tests I just pay out of pocket.

[FreakinDJ]

27. $875 a month too much

a really good PPO plan, Dental, and Vision, that will probably be taxed thanks to this Fucked Up bill the Senate came up with

[mzmolly]

28. I hope not.

I'm under the impression that if you don't have insurance you'll be taxed?

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/27384_Page2.html

The bill requires every American, with few exceptions, to carry health insurance. To enforce this individual mandate, the Senate Finance Committee created the excise tax as a penalty for people who don’t have insurance – and it can run as much as $3,800 a year per family.

...

STEPHANOPOULOS: I wanted to check for myself. But your critics say it is a tax increase.

OBAMA: My critics say everything is a tax increase. My critics say that I'm taking over every sector of the economy. You know that.

[dflprincess]

32. My employer is moving to one of those "consumer driven" scams

The premium payment coming out of every check is only $45 but, because we're expected to pay into a "health savings account" (as they're called) I have another $100 taken out for that plus another $50 for the FSA to cover any dental or vision expenses.

In addition, this consumer driven program has a $1,200 deductible - prescription drugs are not covered until you hit the deductible, but preventative test like pap smears and mammograms will be paid for even if the dedcutible is not met. In addtion to the dedcutible, there's "co insurance" payments so I could have another $1,500 in out of pocket expenses for a grand total of $3,700 - plus anything else Cigna decides isn't covered, just becasue they can.

And there is a limit to how much you can put in your health "savings account" each year. And it's less than what the maximum out of pockets are.

[Red State Rebel]

33. $40.00/month $10.00 copay for OV

I'm fortunate I work for a very generous doctor. I can opt for a cheaper insurance for $0 if I want.

[doc03]

34. Nothing comes out of my check, there is a $15 co-pay

for doctors and a $50 co-pay for ER visits. We pay 10% of medical bills up to a maximum of $1000 per year total. Of course now we will probably be taxed because some a--hole in Washington decided it is a Cadilac plan.

[udbcrzy2]

36. Expensive plan

My spouse's employer pays between 1100 to 1500 monthly per our union contract (which is 5 yrs and we're in the 3rd yr now). The union then processes the claims. Our deductible is 250.00 each plus we pay a copay of 15/25 each visit. Our meds are between 15 to 35 and up depending on your drug. We also get 90 day supplies through a mail off deal which let's us pay 2 copays for 3-months of drugs. We have dental 1500 yrly and eyeglasses without a deductible. It's still very expensive for us because our docs like to prescribe expensive meds.

The union workers have not had much of a raise (50 to 1.50 per hour) in the last 3 yrs. The union also sucks. They are very weak. I guess a union is as strong as it's members.

[stopbush]

37. I'll let you know when I have a paycheck.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

38. $0 but I pay $142/yr for enhanced dental coverage

I seem to need a root canal a year since I had some bad fillings a number of years ago, it gives me an extra $1000 in coverage for a total of $2500.

[Sparkly]

39. We pay almost $2,000 a month, for two of us (self-employed)

This for a basic HMO, with copays etc. .. It is our single biggest expense, and we are still afraid of losing it.

[medeak]

50. whoa...didn't think anyone was higher than us

[Sparkly]

52. Yup, $22k a year

Incredible! And if he has another heart attack, we could be dropped.

[etherealtruth]

40. $280 per month, $2,000 deductible, $40-80 co-pays

My former spouse insures our children.

I can afford the health insurance through my employer .... I really can't afford the health care. I keep the insurance in the event that something catastrophic were to happen.

[applegrove]

41. None. I live in Canada. I just pay for health care with a 5 % tax on all the unnesscessary

junk I buy and that pays for my health care. If I decide to save my money then I still get free health care.

[mzmolly]

45. Sounds

marvelous! :hi:

[applegrove]

51. It is.

[The Gunslinger]

42. Mine doubled from last year

and I have to spend $500 before it even kicks in. I see nothing that is going to make it any cheaper.

[TreasonousBastard]

46. None. My healthcare is the VA coverage for VietNam era vets...

and is OK, but far from perfect. I'll never know if they misdiagnosed an eye problem that caused me to go blind in one eye, and even if they did, there's no compensation. Other than that, they've dealt with most problems, including a cataract in the other eye, reasonably well. A few years more and I'll be in Medicare so I might have some more choice in doctors and treatments. But, from what I've seen with others, including my mother, Medicare isn't what it's cracked up to be according to some around here.

Haven't been insured since the mid 90's when I was in several HMOs and they sucked big time-- both ended up bankrupt.

My brother, btw, has had several hundred thousand paid for his wife and kids and their medical problems-- by an "evil" insurance company.

[medeak]

47. $860 per month for husband alone

he has Parkinsons. He can't work anymore and selling our company and given quote of $46,000 a yr for new plan

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

49. About $700/month

$350 from me and $350 paid by my employer. So for a family of four, I'm paying about $8500 per year, not counting copayments.

[Blue_In_AK]

53. $800 a month out of my husband's pension. n/t

[dorktv]

54. $16.

I know I know, but I have no children or spouse.

[mrmpa]

56. Nothing-Union works well

I'm single so I pay nothing for health, vision and dental coverage. Co pays for health are zero for my primary care physician, $30 for specialists. $25 copay for emergency room visit, but it's waived if I get admitted + the hospital I go to takes 10% off the bill if it's paid within 10 days. If I'm admitted to the hospital, I pay nothing. Prescriptions are generic $5 and $25 for non generic. My medicine costs me $140 for mail order 3 month prescription, versus $140 a month.

Vision copay for me is $150 toward glasses every 2 years and dental copay is 2 exams and cleaning a year at no cost and 20% copay toward other services.

Bet you though, that my plan is probably one that would be considered high end, and I'll have to pay taxes on it.

[bertman]

57. $864 per month for wife and me. Company pays about $160 of that. $2500 ded. each,

various copays ranging from $15 to $45.

I make too much money to get VA coverage, which is kind of a bummer since we live right next to UNC and Duke and they are the ones who provide the VA docs.

In two and a half years I'll be sucking on the government tit on Medicare, but will probably need a supplemental policy. My inlaws have a supplemental that has made their medical situation much better than if they were on straight Medicare.

edited for more info.

[MilesColtrane]

58. Since I'm self employed 2.9% of my gross income goes to Medicare.

I don't have private insurance, and I'm still 18 years away from being eligible for Medicare.

It would be nice if it still existed in some form in 18 years.

[WillowTree]

59. About $75/mo, including dental and vision care and the coverage is excellent.

No copays for any medical care. $6-$30 copays for Rx depending on the drug prescribed. There are copays for non-routine dental work, but considering I had over $5,000 in dental treatment last year and only paid about $1,2000 out-of-pocket, I'm not complaining.

[gardenista]

60. Over $1,000 a month for COBRA/$3,000 Deductible

We are rapidly drowning, don't know how long we can hold out. I have pre-existing conditions that will exclude me from any other coverage.

[HughMoran]

61. $700/month. Will go to $1050/month soon - this is not even a full family plan

This is what it costs at a small business to get health insurance.

This bill will help quite a bit for us at small businesses.

[mzmolly]

63. Very interesting responses.

Thanks guys. :)