Health Insurance

12/6/2012

Health Insurance

Health insurance is like so many things in life, you only worry about it if you don't have it.  But if you don't have health insurance and don't qualify for aid then paying for medical care is a problem - a big problem.  In 2013 insurance companies can continue to deny individual's coverage because of their medical history.  All of that will change in 2014 but if you need insurance now a year is a long time to wait.

Our oldest son will fall into this uninsured land in March when the company's insurance policy is being cancelled.  We're being cancelled because as an employer we must have 75% participation in a group plan and we don't - and never will - reach that number.  My drivers just can't afford health insurance and unfortunately the company can't afford to pay for them either.

Here's the kicker.  In calls with health insurance providers, I've been told that our son will automatically be denied coverage and will be forced to go into assigned risk (probably cost the earth) and he can't do that UNTIL the policy expires in March.  So I'm betting that there's going to be a period next year where our son will be without health insurance and that's not good.

The interesting part is that the questionnaire he completed so that an agent could begin looking for a new provider was literally a half sheet of paper.  It only asked what medicine he is currently taking and why.  That's it - and with that tiny bit of information - he is already considered ineligible.  Does that make sense to you?  It certainly doesn't to me.

I did some research on health insurance and what I found disturbed me.  There are 44 MILLION Americans who have no health insurance and another 38 MILLION have inadequate coverage.  Those are scary numbers.  According to the 2012 Census Bureau numbers there are 314,165,191 people living in the United States.  That leaves 270,165,191 of us with some kind of health insurance, even if it's subpar.  I know that this country can and should do better.

It's sometimes difficult to sympathize with someone else's problem if you don't suffer similarly.  However, when the problem hits close to home it becomes a different story.  I guess our son and the millions of uninsured Americans will wait for 2014 and hope that the new Exchange Program works.  

P