View Full Version : Health Insurance
I'm graduating from college this May and I feel its a good oppurtunity to attempt the trail (been a dream for what seems like a long while), but I fall out of my parents health insurance almost immediately after graduation. This is my parents main concern is me being without health insurance..... So do most of you hike without insurance or are there any cheap places that would cover me if something serious happened to come up. I've never been to the hospital in my life.... but it still seems like a decent sized risk. Apparently to continue coverage under the same plan or whatever would cost me almost 300 dollars a month and I dont think I'm gonna be able to afford that.
Thanks in advance for any info! -Billy
Toolshed
01-03-2008, 23:41
Billy,
Must be greeat to be so young and have so much future ahead of you. I understand your parents concern. If you do a search (near the top menu bar) for "Health Insurance" you will find a myriad of ideas and opinions, as this has been discussed many times.
Good luck
Tennessee Viking
01-03-2008, 23:41
If you are a very experienced hiker, then you can probably make it without insurance.
Your most common ailments will be allergies, sprains, breaks, dehyrdation, exhaustion, and the dreaded 'D'.
If you have an employer that has health insurance, check for the qualifications. Or see if you can get partial sponsership
The big insurance names here in Tennessee are Blue Cross and United.
Check out www.daveramsey.com (http://www.daveramsey.com) for a lot of good financial advice including insurance. Get a basic plan that would cover a hospital visit (that's where major medical bills occur) with a HIGH deductible; this will give you the lowest premiums. In general, high deductibles equal lower premiums (monthly payments). You may want to waive prescription coverage (this adds a ton to your premiums) and just pay out of pocket for any prescriptions you may need as you need them. There are a lot of generics out there now, so out of pocket may not be as bad as it seems.
jessicacomp
01-04-2008, 00:54
I know that this was posted before, and not that long ago. When it was, I said that I was in a similar situation (2007 graduate) and would get insurance for the trail. I'm rethinking it though, as I have gone nealy 8 months now w/o it and am okay with that.
My feeling is that if people can afford insurance they get it. If not then they don't get it. Affordability is the main factor here.
However, I would like to add that many bad thing can happen to you on the trail. Like Lyme disease for instance. My neighbor got that in her back yard and ended up with Bells palsy in her face. It took over 6 months to get over it.
My advice is get it if you can afford it. If not just be lucky.
Panzer
Well I just thought about another factor called "antiselection". It's an insurance term that means that people that precieve that they won't need insurance won't buy it while people who precieve that they will need insurance will find the money to buy it.
Panzer
HoosierHiker
01-04-2008, 01:58
I'm an employee benefits manager and provide this kind of advice to employees daily. First, see how much it would cost to continue your parent's employer coverage through COBRA. You are entitled to COBRA if your parent's health plan covers more than 50 employees. If you receive your COBRA information, you have 60 days after receiving it to enroll and another 45 days after enrollment to pay the first premium. Basically you have 105 days before you have to pay for coverage. IFnothing happens don't pay the premium. If you get sick or hurt, pay the premium and the insurance company will pay your medical bills. Second, a high deductible health plan for an individual 22 years old from a reputable company should be less than $200 a month. Insurance companies love to insure individuals your age because you're a good risk. Unlike car insurance, your are a good risk for a medical insurer. With a high deductible health plan you are paying for catostrophic coverage - a $20,000 hosiptal bill versus a $100 office visit. I've seen $2,000 deductible plans that have cheap co-payments and drug coverage. just type health insurance into your web browser and look for hits from Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, WellPoint, etc...
The Mechanical Man
01-04-2008, 02:18
If you are healthy, and you can't remember the last time you have visited an emergency ward.
I say, save your money and have fun, I did it, and you can too if you are skillful and lucky.
25 years ago, I was laid off from a high paying job at an iron foundry for 11 months. I grew up in Easton Pa, just a few miles downriver from..................... Ever listen to Billy Joel's, "Allentown"?
I collected unemployment expecting my job back any day, and in that time, I rode about 2,000 miles on my bike for fun, but I had NO INSURANCE.
Probably pretty stupid at the time, but the point is,...................................I made it until I had another job.
If you receive your COBRA information, you have 60 days after receiving it to enroll and another 45 days after enrollment to pay the first premium. Basically you have 105 days before you have to pay for coverage. IFnothing happens don't pay the premium. If you get sick or hurt, pay the premium and the insurance company will pay your medical bills.
I'm not sure that's 100% honest. It may also result in higher insurance premiums for everyone else.
Panzer
Critterman
01-04-2008, 10:50
I've never been to the hospital in my life.... but it still seems like a decent sized risk. Apparently to continue coverage under the same plan or whatever would cost me almost 300 dollars a month and I dont think I'm gonna be able to afford that.
Thanks in advance for any info! -Billy
You can get insurance with high deductable fairly cheap at your age. The last thing you need starting out in life is a large debt due to a medical problem and no insurance. I am no expert but most employee health plans are usaully high dollar plans with relatively low deductables so you can almost certainly find something cheaper than going COBRA with your folks plan. In our area Blue Cross has had some inexpensive plans in the past.
Another unfortunate side effect of going without insurance is having a lengthy "pre-existing condition" exclusion period before your insurance will cover just about anything except a broken bone or infectious disease when you do get insurance again some day in the future. In NC with BCBS it's 12 months. The waiting period makes it hard to convince the uninsured to become insured, since they have to pay so much for so long before they're really covered. And the insurance company really will deny coverage for problems that were not pre-existing in any real sense of the word, meaning the person had never before sought treatment for the problem because they'd never had it before, even if they've been paying the premiums for the last 11.5 months.
(Have I ever mentioned how much I think the medical insurance system/medical system sucks? But I guess that rant belongs in another forum.)
I'd go with the main advice to get something with a high deductible that's as cheap as possible. My daughter was able to score BCBSNC for about $124/month for the couple of years while she was between bachelor and graduate programs.
wga5000,
Insurance carriers and rates vary from state to state. Here in GA, where I am licenced, a 22 y/o male can get covered for $55/month. This plan has a $5,000 deductible, and does not cover routine dr visits or prescription drugs. It is HSA (Health Savings Account) qualified. The only plans I promote are the HSA qualified ones.
Marta,
$124 is in line for young females, because of maternity coverage, If a 22 y/o female does not want maternity coverage the cost is about $60/month.
hammock engineer
01-04-2008, 13:46
Call an insurance agent and ask about a short term insurance plan. I got one for 6 months that cost around $450. It had a $25 deductable, 20% copay, and a max payment from me of $5000. not something to go for a cold, but something for if I fall off the mountain, or the road. just make sure the agent knows the different states you are going to be in. Some only work in certain places. Also tell them that if anything happens, you will be going to the emergency room.
Well worth it. I haven't used it, but I came close.
hammock engineer
01-04-2008, 13:46
Call an insurance agent and ask about a short term insurance plan. I got one for 6 months that cost around $450. It had a $25 deductable, 20% copay, and a max payment from me of $5000. not something to go for a cold, but something for if I fall off the mountain, or the road. just make sure the agent knows the different states you are going to be in. Some only work in certain places. Also tell them that if anything happens, you will be going to the emergency room.
Well worth it. I haven't used it, but I came close.
That should read $250 deductable.
Just wanted to thank everyone for all the excellent advice! It is greatly appreciated and now I have a number of directions to research.
Thanks again soo much to everyone, -Billy
HoosierHiker
01-05-2008, 18:02
I'm not sure that's 100% honest. It may also result in higher insurance premiums for everyone else.
Panzer
It would only be dishonest and make insurance more expensive for everybody else if the insurance company paid any claims and never received their premium payment. If you don't pay the premium, the insurance company won't provide any coverage.
What really makes insurance expensive for everybody is that there's no transparency in the US healthcare system. An MRI can cost $500 or $5,000 even though its the same machine. Also, people without insurance paid at leat 100% more for hospital stays than those with insurance.
I've never advised anyone to go without health insurance, because of prexisting condition clauses in policies. But, federal laws protect alomost everone from these clauses if they are continually covered by health insurance. Never go more than 63 days without coverage or any preexisting condition will not be covered by most insurance companies for 12 months.
The 105 days gives a person a chance to shop around for less expensive coverage. People don't realize what companies pay for health insurance. I've had to tell people that their COBRA will cost them $1,500 a month and they thought we only paid two or three hundred dollars a month for coverage.
Appalachian Tater
01-05-2008, 18:09
I'm not sure that's 100% honest. It may also result in higher insurance premiums for everyone else.
Panzer
It is gaming the system but it is not dishonest because it is the way the law is written. Finding obscure but legal ways to gain tax deductions is gaming the system but it is not dishonest. I always wait to start paying my COBRA, it's like getting a free loan for three months.
whitelightning
01-29-2008, 00:37
I'm considering purchasing a travel insurance plan for my thruhike this year. I found a plan for $240 for six months through www.worldnomads.com (http://www.worldnomads.com). Since I won't be working, I won't have insurance throught my employer. For me, COBRA is way to expensive. This plan seems to be a really good option.
I was with Empire BCBS this summer and paid more than some of those temporary plans, since my home state (NY) generally doesn't offer them. It was expensive, but i'm glad I was covered. I ended up spending a couple hours in the hospital in Mammoth, California with some still unidentified virus (and severe dehydration) that was going around the hiker community. If I'd had to pay that out of pocket, well, i'd be paying it off for years and probably never be going hiking again!
fiddlehead
01-29-2008, 05:19
Never go hiking again? Because of a few hours in a hospital?
WOW!
I say: go hiking, save the money, use it to go hiking again!
2 hospital trips in the USA costing a total of $780 in over 16 years of hiking) (one of those trips was in Mammoth CA too on a brown recluse spider bite)
the other was a brown recluse spider bite in Rutland, VT, cost there was only $150 but that's because the doc was a hiker and was cool about it.
So, let's see, at 16 years of $200 a month...................well, that's a lot of hiking!
Mrs Baggins
01-29-2008, 09:20
My husband was granted a 7 month leave of absence to hike the trail. His company would only continue our health coverage if we paid for all 7 months in advance - $7000!!! We told them to cancel it, when on the web, and found coverage for us and our 20 yr old son (who was still a student) for $700 for 6 months. We took a high deductible and high copay. The 3 of us rarely have any need to see a doctor. And since we had continued auto coverage, that would cover the 3 of us in the event of an auto accident in one of our own cars. (as it turned out we had to leave the trail after just 6 days and then took a 3 month long road trip in our van). As soon as my husband returned to work his company plan was reactivated and that was that.
I'm considering purchasing a travel insurance plan for my thruhike this year. I found a plan for $240 for six months through www.worldnomads.com (http://www.worldnomads.com). Since I won't be working, I won't have insurance throught my employer. For me, COBRA is way to expensive. This plan seems to be a really good option.
I don't think World Nomads covers a thru-hike. They have an X next to "trekking" and next to "outdoor endurance"... I did not e-mail to ask them specifics, but I'm pretty sure they will not cover a thru-hiker.
I know this thread is old, but I have been arguing with my family (parents/sisters... nobody I'm responsible for) about insurance. I don't want it... they think I should get it... I ain't paying what COBRA is charging.... especially since the policy available in my case is a California policy that won't cover me anyway since I moved back to VA now (if I was still working for my company, they have a provision for out-of-staters... but not really through COBRA now that I quit)
So I was reading on this topic, and noticed read up on World Nomad's insurance, their website implies that it does not cover something like a thru-hike.
At this point, I figure I'll go without even though I'm told by many that this is an idiot move.
since we had continued auto coverage, that would cover the 3 of us in the event of an auto accident in one of our own cars.
I don't think your auto policy covers your injury. It covers others who are injured.