Retiree medical benefits

[Cardinal]

If you are retired living on a fixed income you may qualify for help from the hospital. Check with the payment office usually there is a program available. I believe the chairman of the VEBA was a pres. or vp of BC/BS of Michigan. HMMMM I wonder, naw I'm sure he's working for all us retirees on a fixed income.

[Lifter]

By any chance is this the so called 'cadillac insurance' that everyone was talking about during the obama care discussions. If so I would hate to see what the "model T' insurance would provide.

I wasn't going to stick my 2cents in, but....

 

Part of what seems to be going on is that Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Michigan is chartered as a nonprofit. State bailed them out when they went bankrupt in the 1970's, as a condition of the bailout of BC-BS of MI is that must take everybody and anybody that applies and they must be chartered as a nonprofit institution (sort of Michigan's public option). All rate increases are subject to state approval, with the Attorney General, be they Democrat or Republican, holding a very, very hard line on rate increases. Like BC-BS of MI wants 20% and they only get 5%, and I'm not kidding either.

 

As a result, with every other health insurance company competing against Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Michigan, health insurance premiums in Michigan are less than they would be else where in the USA.

 

I used Sam's Club's business services section (Link Here then under Extend Health, you see a link "website", then the next page "Find the Right Coverage For You), and then "shopped" for health insurance by zip code, starting with 48121, Ford World Headquarter's Dearborn , MI zip code.

 

 

Used myself, a 50 year old male and my wife a 49 year old female, non-smokers.

 

BC-BS of MI, Flexible Blue II 1500, $3000 deductible, 20% coinsurance, $8000 max out of pocket - $739.29 per month

 

Humana's Portrait Share 80/1000 Plus Rx & Unlimited Doctor Visit Copay, in Michigan, has $1000 deductible, $4000 max annual out of pocket, for $757.90 per month.

 

Atnea PPO 1500 has $1500 deductible, 20% coinsurance and ZERO annual out of pocket. $695.00 per month in Michigan

 

 

Changing the zip code to 44101, Cleveland, I ran the same search.

 

Anthem Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Ohio won't even offer a policy like BC-BS-MI - closest, @ about $400 a month premium has only a $500 deductible, BUT 50% copay and $8000 annual out of pocket limit.

 

 

Humana's Portrait Share 80/1000 Plus Rx & Unlimited Doctor Visit Copay, in Ohio, jumps to $939.41 per month for the same policy that runs nearly $200 a month less in Michigan.

 

Atnea PPO 1500 in Ohio is not the same plan as in Michigan. It costs only $651.00 a month BUT in addition to the $1500 deductible, 20% coinsurance, the max annual out of pocket jumps from $0 to $6000, a very big difference.

 

You can play with it for other states, but it ends up coming out the same - the same amount of money spent per month, per person, in Michigan buys more health insurance than it does in any other state, only because BC-BS of MI is chartered as a nonprofit and every other insurance company has to drop their rates to compete or leave the state of Michigan.

 

The problem that retirees like my parents are having, and this affects my parents ability to relocate from Michigan if they want to, is the way the VEBA, as a Voluntary Employee Benefits Association was chartered, or maybe (and I don't this for any fact) allowed to be chartered. As I understand it, the VEBA "guarantees" that they spend X number of dollars per month, per retiree. Not guaranteeing the same coverage per month,per retiree, but that they spend the same per month, per retiree. If that's the case, then the coverage you have in Ohio, in Indiana, etc, verses the coverage in Michigan, is strictly because of the way that insurance competes in Michgan verses the rest of the country, and that's out of the UAW's hands.

 

I may be wrong, but probably not, but that probably makes a class action lawsuit impossible.

 

I can also tell you, that verses the retiree coverage my Mom & Dad had, in Michigan, pre-VEBA, verse under the VEBA, has deteriorated. Their copays on prescriptions shot up by double or triple, although I don't have the number in front of me, and one of my Mom's prescriptions, Protonix - an acid reflux medicine - is no longer covered at all - $450 for a three month supply, out of pocket, because the VEBA told her, she can get Priolsec over the counter. Problem is Prilosec doesn't work on her, and she can't take the generic form of Protonix or another medication because she gets bad side effects. Plus their copays on doctors visits are higher than they used to be, etc.

 

Michigan retirees coverage has changed as well, but no where near as bad as non-Michigan residents. That said, it's because of the way the VEBA is chartered (you're going to have to speak to an attorney who is very knowledgeable about that for more explanations) and because of the competitive situation in Michigan withe BC-BS of MI being a nonprofit.

[longball]

I'm afraid that as of Jan. 1 we will have to pay income tax on our medical benefits.....I believe the UAW is paying in excess of $12000 for my insurance.... that will increase my taxes by about $3000... Being under the Ohio policy makes this a real kick in the balls.

[Len_A]

By any chance is this the so called 'cadillac insurance' that everyone was talking about during the obama care discussions. If so I would hate to see what the "model T' insurance would provide.

I don't have a clue on that.