health insurance

[thejackal]

what, if anything, are '09 thruhikers doing about health insurance? i will be quitting my job and would like health insurance while hiking. however, paying $300 or $350/month for cobra or whatever is something i would definitely like to avoid. anyone have any advice? cheap and decent is what i'm looking for...

thanks

[jersey joe]

I had the same dilemma before my 02' thru....I wound up hiking without any insurance...a gamble i suppose.

[Skyline]

Cheap and decent health insurance is what many of us are looking for. On or off the Trail. Haven't found it yet.

[cravj1988]

For less than $80/mo, you can get major medical insurance (some call it catastrophic coverage). On my '07 thru hike I bought this insurance from State Farm (d.b.a. Assurance Health Co). This insurance is what our grandparents used to have. You pay the first $4000 in a year and then the insurance kicks in 100% of expenses after that. It is similar to car insurance. You take care of the tune-ups, but if you break a leg and need to be evacuated, you are only charged $4000

[wrongway_08]

I havent had health insurance for.......... ever. So not having it on my thru-hike was nothing new for me.

I only knew a few people that had problems that cost money to fix, and none of them were overly espensive. I think the worst was a dislocated shoulder/broken foot - both happened to the same lady at different points along the trail.

A hiking partner I was with got strep throat and needed to go to a doctor on Sunday, that of course ment going to the hospital in a small town. The bill was a bit steep but no where near a $4,000.00 deductable.

If it is going to worry you, get that $80.00 a month insurance. The less that worries you on the trail, the more you can enjoy the trip. I would see if they have anything with a smaller deductable, $4,000.00 is still a big bummer and you'll have to mess yourself up good to reach that amount.

[spencerb]

I just recently graduated school and had to buy my own health insurance. I don't need major coverage, just for the really bad stuff.

I found the best option comparing quotes from this web site: ehealthinsurance.com

[MoBill122]

Man... I wish I could buy catastrophic coverage or anything for $80 a month. I do have catastrophic coverage and it cost me closer to $250 a month, with a $5000 deductible. Biggest variable is age with insurance, and its not cheap at my age of 56 !

[bigcranky]

Yeah, if I quit my job and kept the COBRA coverage right now it would be close to $1000 per month. Yikes.

[splash1986]

To be honest, you are probably more at risk for injury walking on a city sidewalk than on the trail. That being said, I would strongly encourage you to get covered, do some research and see what you can find. While the insurance is expensive, it is much much much more expensive to sustain an injury/get seriously ill and not be covered. Having to pay completely out of pocket for medical bills (especially if it involves extended hospital stays) can be financially devastating. Also, do you belong to any organizations? Some organizations offer benefits, health included. Might be something to look in to.

[bfitz]

If you have any conditions that might affect coverage like diabetes or something, cobra may be your best bet.

[Bare Bear]

If you are a certified diver.........yeah I know, not hiking. BUT
Divers Alert Network DAN offers a medical evacuation from anywhere in the world for $99 a year. The AT is never far from a town but if you hike elsewhere like I do at times then it is a great ADDITION to basic health care.

[beerandpizza]

ehealthinsurance.com

[take-a-knee]

Jim Bridger never had an HMO or COBRA.

[jesse]

You don't need health insurance for a hike, you need health insurance for life. The best coverage is the health savings account qualified plans. Somewhere in the $2,500 - $3,500 range for the deductible.

[Skyline]

You don't need health insurance for a hike, you need health insurance for life. The best coverage is the health savings account qualified plans. Somewhere in the $2,500 - $3,500 range for the deductible.

What we all need is health insurance that does not include an underwriting element. Pre-existing conditions would evaporate from the vocabulary, so everyone would be accepted without conditions. In that scenario, there is no reason why anyone would not have health insurance.

It doesn't have to be a huge government entitlement that provides coverage for 100% of the citizenry, but government must be the catalyst that creates the framework so the private system work for everyone, and is affordable for everyone based on their ability to pay.

This would allow any of us to go on a hike and be covered while hiking.

Health savings account might, or might not, be a part of this system.

[burger]

Health savings accounts are a joke. The only people who can afford to put money in the accounts are people who make enough to afford putting a few thousand dollars away for a rainy day. Those people probably already have employer-provided health care or enough money to buy their own. People with little money and no health insurance aren't going to have the extra money to save up for that rainy day.

Skyline is right. Private, public, whatever, the system needs to change so that either everyone can afford to buy their own health care or everyone is given it. It's really a moral issue, not an economic one.

[jersey joe]

Just giving everyone health coverage is not the answer.

[burger]

Getting back to the original poster's question, I'm planning to shell out $400 a month or whatever to pay for a decent health plan when I'm hiking next summer (1 month on the AT + a PCT-thru hike). Even if insurance costs me $2400 over 6 months, it might cost me more than that for an MRI and doctor's bills for just one knee injury!

Personally, I'd suggest staying away from those catastrophic care plans with high deductibles. A lot of those plans only cover 80% (the actual number varies) of your expenses after the deductible. So, if you end up in the hospital (it happens--read some trail journals), you could still be on the hook for thousands of dollars.

In the end, not having decent health insurance is a bet that you'll stay healthy. How lucky do you feel?

[wrongway_08]

In the end, not having decent health insurance is a bet that you'll stay healthy. How lucky do you feel?

Hmmm.... really lucky. So far I have saved..... around..... $42,000.00 by not having it.

But will be needing to get it in about 6 - 8 years.... family heart problems on the guys side. Maybe sooner.....

Sorry had to drop in my smart a$$ 2 cents worth.

Really, not a lot of $4,000.00 worth of deduct problems occur on the trail. The %'s are on your side. May the force be with you .

[take-a-knee]

Health savings accounts are a joke. The only people who can afford to put money in the accounts are people who make enough to afford putting a few thousand dollars away for a rainy day. Those people probably already have employer-provided health care or enough money to buy their own. People with little money and no health insurance aren't going to have the extra money to save up for that rainy day.

Skyline is right. Private, public, whatever, the system needs to change so that either everyone can afford to buy their own health care or everyone is given it. It's really a moral issue, not an economic one.

Are you the long-haired maggot who (at a debate) asked Bill Clinton to think of us (Americans) as his children?