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Today was the first day of annual enrollment at my company and I expected the costs to go up a bit, but for the last five years the costs just continue to go up and up and co-pays go up and up as well as out of pocket costs. I have UnitedHealthcare PPO (I only go for PPO and this is the only option with my company) and hardly use it. But, the cost per paycheck will be over $20. The first year I had a plan like this (5 years ago - but with Blue Cross Blue Shield), it was $40 a paycheck and in 2011 it will be nearly $140 a paycheck!
Seeing this information sure gave me a wake-up call. No caffeine needed today! Anyone else get quite a shock with their annual enrollment?
Well, mine is just the same as it always has been. 0 copays, 0 out of pocket expenses. No limits on any coverage, all perexisting conditions covered and I pay $O per month for this medical coverage. Me and everyone else in this country that believes that medical care is a matter of human rights have the same universal medical coverage. You know what? It costs our government only 60% of what the USA government pays per capita for the coverage they supply for Americans. That 60% is not including the TRILLIONS of dollars that go to the insurance industry down there. Where does all that money go???? It's just such a pile of garbage when you try to make profit making industry out of the business of saving peoples lives. It's just a totally inherent conflict of interest. To me having been brought up in a system where there is no profit motive It's actually obscene to think there is a huge industry cashing in on serving the sick.
I don't know...you pay for your healthcare in the form of taxes mostly so I wouldn't say it is entirely free for Canadians. I have some Canadian friends who are not happy with the system who see Doctors in the U.S. (specialists mainly because the wait is shorter among other reasons). I will say that I am happy with my coverage and I suspect more people in my company go for the HMO option because it is more affordable yet they usually sacrafice service for that cost-savings. I am just glad that I don't have children yet!
I don't know...you pay for your healthcare in the form of taxes mostly so I wouldn't say it is entirely free for Canadians. I have some Canadian friends who are not happy with the system who see Doctors in the U.S. (specialists mainly because the wait is shorter among other reasons). I will say that I am happy with my coverage and I suspect more people in my company go for the HMO option because it is more affordable yet they usually sacrafice service for that cost-savings. I am just glad that I don't have children yet!
.1% of Canadians have ever gone to the USA for nedical treatments. .2% of Canadians have ever had medical treatments in the USA. These are snowbirds, tourists etc. The biggest problem in US healthcare is the fact that so much of the money is going to third parties that add zero to actual healthcare services. That and rampant corruption within the system.
Sure Canada has challenges in universal coverage but those will be met. How many Canadians go bankrupt because they are sick? How many struggle for decades to pay medical bills? None do and that's the way we like it here.
Just one fact that I think is interesting. GM says that it costs $2500 per car more to build in the USA than it does in Canada in health care costs alone. That is what Obama keeps saying that the US system has to be reformed or the country will get less and less competitive and lose more and more jobs because of the ever increasing costs of health care.
I don't think that a universal system would work in the USA though because it's been proven over and over again that the government can't run anything well and effiecient there.
None of this canada vs. us stuff has anything, to do with the topic: how much as your (not your country's, but you personal) health plan changed from 2010 to 2011? If your country doesn't have "health plans" (because it's a universal system), then the topic has nothing to do with you.
To answer the actual question:
My co-pays went up. From $3 for a 90-day supply of prescription meds to $5. My office visits went up from $5 to $10. Hospital visits didn't have a co-pay, and now they're $50 if it's outpatient, and $150 if I get admitted.
Considering that I'm not paying for my health care plan and the cost of the plan itself is paid for by my employer, I'd say it's still a terrific plan. Also considering that we don't have to fund the plan out of our taxes, like some countries do, it's pretty awesome.
Well, mine is just the same as it always has been. 0 copays, 0 out of pocket expenses. No limits on any coverage, all perexisting conditions covered and I pay $O per month for this medical coverage. Me and everyone else in this country that believes that medical care is a matter of human rights have the same universal medical coverage. You know what? It costs our government only 60% of what the USA government pays per capita for the coverage they supply for Americans. That 60% is not including the TRILLIONS of dollars that go to the insurance industry down there. Where does all that money go???? It's just such a pile of garbage when you try to make profit making industry out of the business of saving peoples lives. It's just a totally inherent conflict of interest. To me having been brought up in a system where there is no profit motive It's actually obscene to think there is a huge industry cashing in on serving the sick.
Well, it is not exactly true. First the US government actually pays about the same for health care for the population as the OECD average. The difference is in what the population gets back from that. Which isn't much in the US.
When other countries pay 8 % of their GDP in taxes for health care, everyone gets first-class health care in return. When the US citizens pay 8 % of their GDP in taxes, most get no health care in return and have to pay the same amount again to insurance companies to get health care.
Our co-pays, coverage, etc. did not go up; however, my employer switched from one provider to another (ticking off a lot of people, including myself), and our premiums went up about $90 a month for single coverage. Also, my employer previously paid all premiums; that has ended.
Our co-pays, coverage, etc. did not go up; however, my employer switched from one provider to another (ticking off a lot of people, including myself), and our premiums went up about $90 a month for single coverage. Also, my employer previously paid all premiums; that has ended.
We had that happen last year and it really ticked a ton of people off. They went from two levels of PPO to one - one was a plus option (lower deductible, lower maximum out of pocket expense) to just the regular option and they changed the HMO provider entirely which upset a lot of people. I just hate that my out of pocket maximum has been increased from $5,000 to $10,000. The only significant co-pay that changed was the ER visit going from $100 to $150. My employer currently splits the premium. I pay half, they pay a little more than half.
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Anyone else get quite a shock with their annual enrollment?
The only significant co-pay that changed was the ER visit going from $100 to $150. My employer currently splits the premium. I pay half, they pay a little more than half.
