Health Care Prior to Medicare?

[dmccarty]

IIRC Obama care had some significant premium reimbursements depending on your income. If you're both retired, it might be a good option. But I've also heard that the premium rebates are supposed to end either this year, or sometime soon.

I found this on the rebates/subsidy ending, Obamacare's 'subsidy cliff' eliminated through 2025

Who really knows if it will end.

What is scary/interesting, is the price comparison in the link with and without the subsidy. Basically, without the subsidy, the premium payment in one example, though a different state, was about what I and my employer are paying for health care coverage. The cost is more than we pay for a mortgage, house insurance and property tax....

 

[Bendboater]

You might want to consult with an independent insurance broker. A good one should be able to lay out all the options for your situation.

 

[dmccarty]

I retired 8 years ago at 55 and kept my company's insurance as a retiree at close to $1,000/mo for my spouse and I, for a Platinum health plan. No regrets. We will continue that until something better is offered. The Affordable Healthcare plan might look less expensive, it's not an apples to apples comparison. It's closer to the Silver option offered by my previous employer. If I was younger and healthier I'd downgrade from the Platinum plan.

If we could keep our work insurance for $1,000 a month we would but the cost is several times that amount.

The ObamaCare policies I have looked at are similar to our current plan. Deductibles and out of pocket are a bit higher but still similar to our current health care plan.

 

[caver]

COBRA at 55. It's up to about $714 a month.

 

[dmccarty]

You might want to consult with an independent insurance broker. A good one should be able to lay out all the options for your situation.

I figured we would but I want to see what the TBN Mind Trust has to say.

Over the years, there have been some very informative conversations on TBN regarding retirement, Medicare, and to a lesser extent, health care prior to Medicare. Health care prior to Medicare gets a mention here and there but I have not seen a specific conversation on the subject.

 

[WM75Guy]

NC Farm Bureau offers medical insurance thru BCBS in addition to other benefits. Membership is pretty cheap. We have Texas Farm Bureau AgAdvantage farm insurance, vehicle insurance, and an umbrella policy.

 

[dmccarty]

NC Farm Bureau offers medical insurance thru BCBS in addition to other benefits. Membership is pretty cheap. We have Texas Farm Bureau AgAdvantage farm insurance, vehicle insurance, and an umbrella policy.

View attachment 2809051

We are NCFB members so they would be who we would talk too about health insurance. I think we did a few years ago and the price was high but I think that was before ObamaCare and us knowing how much my employer pays. Course it is still expensive either way you look at it.

 

[Bearsixty7]

I hope you don't get caught by the fine print.

Which post is this in response to or was it just a general statement?

The fine print on most anything is pretty concerning.

 

[RustyA]

Here's the fine print I ran into...retired July 2022 and used an exchange plan in Wisconsin to bridge me to April 1st 2023 when I qualified for Medicare. Got a 1099 for the difference in premiums for six months for 2022 taxes and three months for 2023 taxes. Basically I owed federal and state taxes for the premium reduction rebate as taxable income for those two tax years.

 

[dmccarty]

Here's the fine print I ran into...retired July 2022 and used an exchange plan in Wisconsin to bridge me to April 1st 2023 when I qualified for Medicare. Got a 1099 for the difference in premiums for six months for 2022 taxes and three months for 2023 taxes. Basically I owed federal and state taxes for the premium reduction rebate as taxable income for those two tax years.

OUCH! That is a gotcha that I did not know!

Unreal.....