[Cyclopath]

[Randito]

[treeswarper]

[jinx'sboy]

It isnt just ‘houses in the woods’, anymore! A friend has a house inside the city limits of Twisp - she was just notified that her insurance co was dropping her “because of wildfire”. Her house backs up to the Methow River. And she has a fire hydrant in her front yard.

[treeswarper]

[Schroder]

I live on the beach and have had no water damage insurance for the past several years. The only thing available is FEMA coverage for a maximum of 20% percent of the house value at a cost of $2000 a year, which wasn't worth it to me. I know this house won't be here in 30 years but then neither will I.

[Malachai Constant]

Gee if only someone would have warned us that this sort of thing could happen, same as it ever was.

[Chief Joseph]

I am looking into my options for personal health and dental insurance. I had insurance through United Healthcare since I retired, previously I was insured through the labor union at work. My income has now increased to over the monthly income limit for UH, the limit being $1677 monthly. I need a new insurance provider for about 3 years until I am eligible for Medicare. Any helpful advice-recommendations?

[Tom]

Sounds like you no longer qualify for medicaid. Most of us who aren't covered by an employer plan get our health insurance thru the state exchange marketplace. I believe open enrollment ends Jan 15, so you want to sign up and pick a plan before then. If you are in a lower income bracket, but not low enough to qualify for medicaid, look at the silver plans. They are generally the best value as they are heavily subsidized via "cost sharing reductions". See here: https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/silver-health-plan/

[Malachai Constant]

My wife is younger than me so she enrolled in a state silver plan. The premiums were lower and the coverage better than Medicare.

[Chief Joseph]

Thanks Tom, the silver plan that you linked appears to be through the same company as I had and I am looking at other options. I have never shopped for HI so I am finding the myriad of choices a bit over whelming. Plus, to further complicate things, I would like to find a carrier that is accepted at the nearest hospital and clinic (Newport, WA.) as well as the Everett Clinic and local hospitals in the Everett area. Plus what of the large deductibles? I typically only go to the doctor once per year for my physical. Do most cover prescriptions? Again, I don't use a pharmacy often at all. Co-pays and maybe a HMO provider would work for me? Also are there any companies that combine health and dental that might fit my needs? I appreciate the help, sorry so many questions. O' one more ?....the open enrollment ends on 1-15, what happens if you miss the deadline?

[Tom]

If you qualify for the cost sharing reductions the silver plans are a no brainer. Just pick the one that covers the doctors you want to be in network. For the first few years we naively selected the gold plan but eventually looked at the silver plans and thought there must be some mistake because they were not only cheaper but had lower deductibles and out of pocket due to the cost sharing reductions. As far as what happens if you don't pick a plan by January 15th? Did you ever watch Lost? What happened when they didn't press the button? Do you really want that? Seriously though, I think you might not have coverage for pre-existing conditions and there might be some tax penalty for having gaps in healthcare coverage. As far as dental, none bundle it AFAIK. You might want to consider going without dental insurance unless you have issues. It's one of those things you can just buy it the month before and be covered the next, or you can purchase a discount plan with some dental providers like BriteNow. My recollection is something like $100 for the discount plan and you pay out of pocket which can be cheaper than buying insurance depending on your needs. That said, the super smart smile plan I linked above isn't that expensive.

[Anne Elk]

I agree for the most part with what Tom said, CJ. For the 20 years I was self-employed I couldn't afford health insurance, period. But I was healthy. I knew better than to subscribe to the rock-bottom cheapo plans (bronze) under Obamacare. That came along just in time since about a year after I enrolled I was diagnosed with a serious illness that required hospitals, etc. One problem over the first 3 years of my enrollment was that the insurance companies I picked kept dropping out of participation because they weren't making enough $$ for the insurer. What I've done for dental "insurance" has worked well for me for over 30 years: a minimum of 3 visits/year to the dentist for a cleaning. Sometimes every quarter. Cheapest CYA ever - especially for one who's a lazy flosser. Anything amiss going on, they catch it right away (this includes one annual set of xrays). I haven't had a cavity in decades, no nasty stuff like root canals, extractions, etc.; just a few crowns. All my younger siblings have had dental work that frightens me.

[mike]

We've found the SHIBA volunteers very helpful

[Malachai Constant]

Usually had health insurance from employers, DOD, private firms, later got it from Lynda working, or bar association. In Canada give paid health employer paid vision and dental. Some delta plans pay part of dental after a couple months.