81 Comments - govt - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:35 am: pretty happy with it. but feel it ties me to the job. - Greg B. - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:35 am: I pay for my own health insurance. I have an HSA. Works perfectly. The costs are reasonable — about $125 per mo. for $2,600 deductible. - Rich Miller - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:36 am: You forgot to disclose whether you’re in a gvt or private health insurance system. - San Juan - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:36 am: I have an HMO through the state. I am concerned that co-pays are increasing and coverage is decreasing. CMS has recently moved one medication for diabetes from the “especially effective” category which kept it at the same lower co-pay as generics to the most expensive co-pay which will cost our family hundreds of dollars this year in year two of a wage freeze. - Six Degrees of Separation - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:38 am: I’m on an HMO that is employer-paid with an additional employee contribution for dependents. Mostly satisfied with quality of care and cost; have had negative issues obtaining referrals and out of network care, and dealing with their “cost containment” staff and their paperwork especially when injuries are involved. Deductibles keep rising over the years, but I can afford it. - Ray del Camino - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:38 am: I work for a public educational institution; we have a great plan through a private insurer. - Pothole - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:39 am: I’m happy with my plan - HSA - private employer-provided. My employer covers my entire premium and puts about $200 into my HSA each month. It’s nice being single, young and healthy. - phil - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:39 am: I’d prefer to get medical care for free with no negative consequences, but I like my doctor and my child’s doctor and since the cost comes out of my paycheck, I don’t miss it. So yes, i am happy with it. - Skeeter - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:39 am: Both my wife and I have plans through private insurers (both provided by employers). My plan is pretty good, although when I add the family the cost goes through the roof. My wife’s is less expensive, but with far less coverage (we get what we pay for). I continue to be boggled that certain things are not covered by the plans — speech therapy for toddlers for instance. It reminds me that too often how well children do is dependent on the economic status of the parents. - OneMan - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:40 am: Private insurance, very happy with it. Then again the plan costs about half a much as the same basic plan did at the last company. They take very good care of us when it comes to our health plans. - phil - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:40 am: private, BTW - Sleepless in Chicago - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:43 am: I am self-employed. I pay for my own coverage with a private for profit insurer. I have a high deductible plan with an HSA. It’s a PPO, not an HMO, so I can go to any doctor I want who participates with the insurer. I am quite happy with the plan. - Plutocrat03 - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:44 am: We have private insurance and have no problems with the coverage except for the occasional paperwork snags. Would I like it to be cheaper? Of course. But I would like the cars, appliances and food I buy to be cheaper as well. - Bluefish - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:44 am: I am quite satisfied with my employer provided plan in which my kids and I are enrolled. It covers most items and the deductables are not too bad. My wife’s government employee plan - not so much. The new plan is not so bad but the old one was a constant battle to get them to cover simple items. - Vote Quimby! - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:45 am: After state layoff, we are now on wife’s school-based plan. The state plan is probably too generous…I had $12,000 surgery and paid only $150. But school plan is good but don’t have vision option…still very thankful and happy we have it for us and two family units! - Cindy Lou - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:48 am: Overall happy with insurance, state employee with a HMO plan. Had a lot of trouble with early HMO but am very pleased with current one which I have changed drs more than once just to stay with this HMO. Biggest problem is the immediate demanded copay if using ER. Ever have a copay demanded while just arriving and still on Ambulance cart? I have. The instant demand could be cause to not get immediate treatment for some. Not sure this year, but not all HMO cover the diabetic supplies, which was a consideration for me in chosing my plan and provider of the HMO. - Snappy - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:50 am: I have a major medical only plan that I bought myself (I’m unemployed right now). The cost is acceptable, but I don’t know about the coverage as I have fortunately not had to use it. It does not cover any preventative or regular care or any prescription drugs, so while I’m happy I have *something*, I’m not pleased in general &, as someone with a chronic health condition, I’m especially panicked. - Cheryl44 - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:52 am: I have a Blue Cross PPO through the university where I work. I pay a third of the premium, the U picks up the rest. I’ve never had to use it for anything that wasn’t run of the mill, so I have no clue what they do in the event of a real problem. Once I retire I’ll be in Medicare, because that’s all that is offered. I too would like to not have my insurance tied to where I work. - Gathersno - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:59 am: I’m happy because I’m on Medicare and Blue Cross backup. But my social conscience moves me to support the effort for those who can’t get it or who must pay exorbitant premiums due to pre-existing conditions or whatever. I always thought that expansion of Medicare downward in age coverage was the way to get it passed, but that would take too long for those who are young and uninsured. - Greg - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:59 am: My private high-deductible plan is perfect for me as a young, single guy. Insurance isn’t cost effective, but behavior-warping, when used for predictable and/or minor expenses. - The Doc - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:03 am: BCBS PPO thru my employer, partially subsidized. Coverage is excellent, and premiums & copays are very reasonable. - Judgment Day Is On The Way - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:06 am: I’m happy with our plan - PPO, high initial deductable, with employee HSA - private employer-provided. My employer covers 67% of each employee’s my premium and puts right at $100 into each employee’s HSA (Health Savings Account) each month. Also covers dental. All employees get the same package. - George - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:09 am: I think Mr. Boltz missed the second half of that statistic (if it is true): 83 percent of people (with health insurance) are happy with their plan… I am happy with my plan, but my employer isn’t because the cost keeps skyrocketing each year. That’s a missing ingredient in this discussion as well. - wordslinger - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:12 am: Public plan through my wife’s school district, Blue Cross/Blue Shield PPO. Family of five, cost to us about $7,200 a year with a low deductible. Same private plan we had last through my employer was about 60% more to us (my employer was picking up a big chunk). Given the cost of health care, the risks of going without and the alternatives, we’re very satisfied. How couldn’t we be? Cost is h - SangamoGOP - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:14 am: My family is covered thru employer provided private care that is outstanding. It has been easy to use and we are able to select from a ton of docs. Prior to coming aboard with this employer, my wife and I were both self-employed and had an HSA with a $5000 deductible for $250/month for a family of four. We were also very happy with that plan to the point of debating to join my employer’s plan or not. - Honest Abe - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:15 am: I am quite content with my coverage. I cannot understand how a small minority of uncovered persons (less than fourteen percent, including illegal immigrants, according to some sources) can force the rest of the population to overhaul a healthcare system that is working to their satisfaction. Tort reform now! - Independent - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:15 am: I have a family plan PPO $500 deductable, $2000 out of pocket, $15 co-pays, $200 emergency room co-pay, $50 for brand name drugs. its $14,500 /year through small private group. I think its to expensive but what choice do I have. I think the insurance companies “hose us”, I wish for single payer. - Anita - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:15 am: We have excellent BC/BS coverage through my husband’s job, although we have to pay the family premium and it is high. We had high-deductible individual coverage with BC/BS for a while that was cheaper (although it didn’t cover as much); that was okay because we are healthy. However, I like the new plan better, even though it costs more, because we can’t be dropped or have our premiums go way up if we have a claim. That made me so nervous about the individual coverage. - Steve - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:17 am: I have had an indivdual family plan with BCBS for 7 years with a 5000 deductible for hospitalization but only a 30 dollar co-pay for office visits. Don’t know what the president is saying when it comes to problematic insurers since BCBS has provided me with great service and great coverage at a reasonable annual rate for two adults and collage age dependent of $5800 a year. If the federal government simply imposed on all providers(hosps, docs, etc) that they not charge uninsured more then the reimbursement rates paid by the dominant insurer in each local market, 95 percent of the problems confronting the uninsured would be resolved. - Dirt Digger - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:23 am: I have BC/BS coverage for my employees and self, costs $200/month/person. $500 deductible/$1K out of pocket. The coverage itself is satisfactory; my cause for complaint has generally been with a lack of transparency on the provider side over billing. That being said, on a previous year with two female staffers the premiums had been $330/month/person on account of the maternity coverage. I can’t say I’m comfortable with the perverse hiring incentives that creates. - Dora - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:26 am: As a State employee with an HMO I’ve been pleased with the medical services. Billing services leave a bit to be desired, but after several phone calls (usually 4-8) things are generally worked out. Me, spouse and young child are covered. My spouse works for a small company where insurance isn’t available; so I’m locked into staying put to provide insurance. Paying private insurance for the level of coverage we have would be VERY cost prohibitive. We’ve also been very lucky that we’ve all been relatively healthy - so we haven’t had to really test the system. Having transportable health insurance without pre-existing condition issues (this has been a big problem for several friends) would be great, and allowing small businesses to pool resources to allow them to get affordable coverage would be very helpful for a lot of people (business owners and workers). - Our Time Has Passed - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:27 am: I am satisfied but not happy. I work for a not for profit wholely dependant on the SOI for funds. The company has persevered in preserving our health insurance and also ofers dental and vision. However the co-pays and deductibles keep growing and the networks especially for specilists shrinking. I have a fmily of six so we use the insurance quite a bit. We have a Medical Savings Account primarily to meet the co-pays and deductibles. The real issue for us is why should we need a medical savings account if I already have health insurance? This is a part of the waste that needs to be cleaned up. - Louis Howe - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:27 am: The simple answer is NO! I have a state sponsored Blue Cross/Blue Shield plan with Physicians Hlth Assoc. My monthly cost is 64.50, which is more than reasonable. However, when I moved from a another region of the state to Springfield, it took over two months before I could see a primary care physician, even though I still had Blue Cross/Blue Shield. I had some minor surgery before I moved and I couldn’t go back to my previous physician for follow up visits without paying an out of network rate, again, I still had BC/BS. I can’t complain about the cost to me, although the taxpayers, through their elected representatives, should be requiring a higher contribution from state employees. In a previous life, I provided health insurance to my private sector employees, so I understand how expensive and out of control our current health system has become for most Americans. Just for the record, I strongly support a federally sponsored single payer health plan. - Mongo - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:31 am: Private insurance through my wife’s employer, premium rose by 30% this year and small agency passed entire cost onto employees. Coverage is inadequate, deductible too high. - Carl Nyberg - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:33 am: I’m uninsured right now, but he are some anecdotes from when I was insured. My employer cut everyone’s insurance one day to save money. The time before that I had issues with “balance billing”. That’s when I pay my part, my insurance pays their part and the health care provider tries to trick or harass you into paying more. And, the one of the times I tried to use my benefits, my insurer gave me a list of providers in their network. By coincidence none of them were taking new patients. So, employer-based insurance has kinda been a disappointment for me and I’m pretty healthy. - Rob_N - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:36 am: George hit the nail on the head. The plan my family and I have is private, through my employer with the company contributing some toward the premium and a 3-times a year contribution into an HSA. It’s one of those high-deductible plans and a series of relatively mild illnesses (but still requiring meds and tests) saw us hitting that $5000/year deductible by May — well before the HSA account had its full raft of employer and employee (me) contributions. True story: I was at the pharmacy picking up our son’s $90/box asthma medication (x4 boxes) last spring and the pharmacist does a double-take at his register screen. He says, “Wow! You’ve got great insurance. This is all covered.” I told him we had actually just hit our $5000 deductible for the year and the smile fell right off his face as he said, “Ouch. Sorry.” And the couple of grand we’re covering out of pocket (my portion of the HSA) is forcing cuts in other spending which means we’re generally not contributing as much as we normally would to the local retail economy. Plus, I can already foresee that the company’s partners will have to debate double-digit increases for next year and it’s only a matter of time before I won’t be able to afford the plan (or the company won’t even offer one). …There’s the rub that George mentioned. – Greg B says he has a personal plan and he covers the premiums on it through his Health Savings Account. I wonder if he’s read up on all the loopholes in his plan and would be able to cover the associated medical costs. Having to make up for those loopholes is where a lot of the medically-related bankruptcies in the US come from. In general, half of all insured people with a serious illness (ie, cancer) get dropped by their insurance plan which switches from covering medical costs to investigating existing conditions. Again, in general, the other half of insured people who do have costs covered (in whole or in part) end up with million-dollar surcharges on future coverage years. Not all company-provided insurance plans can withstand such fees. - Marcus Agrippa - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:37 am: I now have an HSA with a very high deductible - $1500 per individual. I also employ 8 people. We all switched to HSAs because the cost of “regular insurance” kept going up every year and I would switch carriers every year or two. Basically the cost to me for my insurance for me and my family is $1100 a month. I make my employees pay for their family members. For a while I was on gov’t plan. It paid half and I paid the other. I paid about 450 a month and had a $300 deductible. Obviously this was much cheaper and coverage was about the same. - Jake from Elwood - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:37 am: Private plan PPO. Employer picks up most of the premium which is a valued benefit. The plan is a middle of the road plan–pay higher for meds than other plans. No dental however. My son underwent a serious surgery three years ago and I only had to pay about 6% of the cost out of my own pocket. We also have a Section 125 plan which has a tax advantage. So I am pleased overall. - Wumpus - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:43 am: Private-happy. If I went through my employer, I’d be less happy. My spousal unit’s company provides very generous coverage. - zatoichi - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:45 am: Most of the discussion here is what the employee pays. There is little discussion on what the cost of the policy actually is. At our company BCBS PPO is $650 for an employee and $1,800 for family per month. Company pays 2/3 of employee, employee pays all the rest. $1,000 deduct, $2,000 out of pocket. My wife works for a large national firm. Our family coverage dropped to $300 a month, exact same plan. Coverage is great under both plans. The big difference: I work with long term co-workers (read older), she works in a field that has a very high number of employees under 40. - Here's why... - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:46 am: I’ll tell you, Honest Abe, how a “small minority” (I question the 14% statistic) can drive the debate. My family of 4 is currently covered by the state through All Kids/Family Care (for how long, we don’t know). My husband was laid off from his very small company 11 months ago (where our premiums were $1200/month for 80/20 coverage and a $500 deductible/person per year) and when we found out that the COBRA payments were going to be 2/3rds of his unemployment check, we had to find another way. While we got to keep our doctor and our co-pays are low or nothing, we have no dental, no vision and are given short shrift at hospitals. I work part-time with no benefits and I am terrified by the possibility of a major medical incident. By the way, I am medically uninsurable for a private policy because of a health issue that I suffered from 5 years ago, but have no further symptoms of now. Why should decent healthcare be a luxury rather than a right for us? By the way, neither my husband, my children nor I are illegal immigrants. - W - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:50 am: No. I don’t appreciate being on a private plan that tells me where I can go to the doctor and what prescriptions they will pay the full cost for. The letters I get from the company are confusing and seem meaningless. I’m more angry about a family member who’s HMO decided not to pay for all the physical therapy doctors recommended after a surgery. Painful re-injury was the result. In other words, I’m sick of the bureaucracy, restrictions, and rationing of care Republicans pretend will happen under a government plan. I guess it’s OK when the glorious private sector does it. - Rich Miller - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:55 am: Keep in mind that I asked you all to refrain from engaging in that DC debate. Stick to the question, please. Final warning. - Butterfly - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 11:57 am: I am satisfied with my state health insurance plan, but it seems that the prescription part is slowly getting chipped away and certain maintenance drugs are no longer being covered. I get notified of this during open enrollment periods. It has changed every year that I have worked for the state. Additionally, as we all know, the payments to my health care providers are so delayed it is almost embarrassing to go to a routine doctor’s appointment when I know that they are not going to get paid for six months! I pay every month for a very good plan, yet my employer is not keeping up their end of the deal. - Apple - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:18 pm: As a grad student, I have a pretty good plan through my school which costs less than $1000/yr and covers a lot. My self-employed partner has a private, individually purchased, high-deductible PPO through BCBS, which I too was on before I returned to school. I am very happy with his coverage; he had one of those very bad health incidents which everyone dreads, and they covered a lot of it with nary a peep, and he saw only a small premium increase the following year. My coverage through the same company was fine for most things — except that they excluded any of my preexisting back and shoulder problems from coverage. Which would have been a problem had I still been on that policy when I tore my rotator cuff last fall, ouch. But I worry about what might happen to my partner’s insurance if we have to move out of Illinois, as I suspect his medical background will make it difficult, if not impossible, to purchase a new policy on the private market. - Middle of the road - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:28 pm: U of I retiree. Certainly happy with my Health Alliance HMO! Our costs do go up but nothing compared to buying an individual policy on the open market. - Responsa - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:37 pm: Employer provided private PPO. Each year at sign-up we can choose type and levels of coverage based on individual circumstances. I currently choose high deductible. Frankly, this is the way I think all health insurance should be handled in that it marries an individual application of personal responsibily to not over use medical services while still insuring one against extraordinary bills and financial disaster. My high deductible plan carries no individual premium, yet certain yearly tests/exams are fully covered, I pay out of pocket for all other visits and shots, while once beyond the deductible I have protection against extraordinary illness or accidents. I also have dental DMO for which I pay no extra premium (although usually I do have to add my own extra money to pay beyond the allocated amount for say a root canal or crown.) My DMO dentist, by the way, is the same dentist I have gone to for over 20 years. Yes, I am satisfied with my current health insurance situation. - Jimbos - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:37 pm: As a retired state employee, my wife and I are covered under the state plan. We are more or less satisfied with the current levels of coverage, co-pays, etc. Our daughter, who is back in school and working only part-time, is no longer eligible to be included in the state plan. She was covered under her employers group coverage while working full-time, but now must rely on COBRA to remain ensured. Due to pre-existing conditions, see is basically uninsurable outside of a group plan. - Obamarama - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:40 pm: Private employer provided, not happy. I have, what on paper seems to be a very generous plan. BCBS PPO, completely covered by my employer with a low, low $500 deductible. The problem is, it is an individual plan which came with a rider for preexisting conditions and doesn’t include dental. As stated by others, it makes me feel tied to the job as well. - PalosParkBob - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:54 pm: I have a private plan through work, Blue Advantage HMO Illinois. The “COBRA” cost of the plan for my family of 5 is about $12,000 per year, of which I pay about half. Co-pays for visits are $10, and prescriptions usually run about $30 for a month’s pills. We have an HSA in which I put in about $1,200 per year, which just about covers our dental and medical deductables. I’m pretty satisfied with the plan, but of course I wish it was less expensive. The choice of local doctors was good, and the physicians assistants we routinely see for check ups do a more than adequate job. They certainly don’t scrimp on service or recommending preventive care tests, such as colonoscopies and stress tests. When I was consulting on my own, I only took out catastrophic care insurance and paid the full amount up front for minor care. Prescription costs were pretty steep, and “private pay” was charged to me at a far higher rate than insured or government rates. What I think would be fair is for the state to offer catastrophic care insurance to anyone who wants it, and set the rates according to the “prevailing rates” for private insurance without subsidy. Medicaid covers more than the poor and Medicare covers the senior, so catastrophic care insurance would prevent devastating financial consequences for those who are “between insurance” for far lower costs than the $5,200 per person rates that Medicaid costs. I also used to work for Greg and his boss, former UI trustee Niranjin Shah. How’s that for strange bedfellows? - Retired Non-Union Guy - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 12:55 pm: Retired state employee with state HMO … pretty happy overall, they stepped up and paid for some extremely expensive medication when needed for my son and have even ended up paying for things I was told were not covered. But not happy with the State’s plan to hit the under 65 / non-Medicare retirees with costs if they can get away with it … they bribed us to take the early retirement, partially with the health care “promise”. Now it is a totally different story for my son, wife & grandson … - orlkon - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:01 pm: Government covered and no, no, no, and NO! - D.P. Gumby - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:01 pm: No and No. Currently insured through state’s Health Alliance. Cannot predict from year to year what the benefits will be viz drugs, deductibles, co-pays. Oldest daughter graduated, so lost ability to insure, wasn’t eligible for insurance yet at part-time job and had emergency appendicitis before could get her on anything private. U.S. shouldn’t allow gaps in coverage like that to exist. Finally got her insured, but had to take advantage of charity programs from hospitals and doctors as her barely above minimum wage job (working in a different hospital)provided no money. Parents w/ state retirement insurance constantly inundated w/ bills from doctors/hospitals because backlog of billings because insurance delays in paying and never can figure out what they are supposed to pay and what hasn’t been paid by insurance. What this boils down to is vast amount of waste in the administrative/bureaucratic process that, if eliminated, would cover the expense of providing medical services to those w/o. In contrast, very satisfied w/ most medical services. It’s fighting w/ the insurance industry that’s the biggest problem. - Small Town Liberal - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:08 pm: I have a employer subsidized PPO with a HSA. Pretty happy with it, I’m single, no kids and healthy so I haven’t had to use it much. - anon - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:18 pm: I dont know about anyone one else, but my benefits get cut each year and the cost raises. To not reform what is going on right now is crazy. Plus, at the current increases, how can a small business afford to keep covering employees? 8- 10 % insurance premium increases cant be in anyones budget. - Little Egypt - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:33 pm: Insured through retired employee PPO plan. Am happy with it, although prescription deductibles are rising. I offset that by getting dr. to prescribe generics which cost less out of pocket at Walgreens than going through insurance. Monthly cost is reasonable, considering this day and age. Quality of dr. selection is very good, same for hospitals/clinics. - One of the 35 - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:37 pm: Very satisfied with my BCBS HMO Illinois plan. I work in local government where the municipality pays 92% of the premium cost. The HMO network in the Chicago metro area is one of the best in the country for both quality and choice. The deductibles are comparatively low with an excellent array of covered services. Working with the primary care physician to obtain pre certification is essential for the plan to work properly. The deductibles and co pays were recently raised in response to local municipal revenue down turns. - Cubs Fan - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:41 pm: BCBS of Illinois here. I have not used it so I am not sure how much I like it quite honestly. I work for a VERY large Publicly traded corporation and am in management, so I get relatively cheap health care ($78/Mo). I feel fortunate. - jt - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:48 pm: yes,private. - paddyrollingstone - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:51 pm: BCBS plan - great plan - very expensive - $15K per year. - Red Bird fan - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 1:54 pm: I have PPO policy through my employerm who pays 80% of the premimum. I’m fairly happy with the benefit but like most of the other posts have seen my share of the premimum and co-payment rise 10% plus annually. - Southern Illinois Voter - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 2:01 pm: IL Dept. of Corrections retiree - happy with my plan. Our costs have risen, but I’m not complaining….just thankful to have it. - siriusly - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 2:29 pm: I am unhappy with the cost. I have a private health insurance plan for our family of 4, we pay more than $1,000 per month. I live in one of the collar counties. I think health care and health insurance rates cost more here than they do downstate. The plan itself is okay, but I have a high deductible too. My dental insurance I get from my employer, it is a great plan and pays for almost everything. I don’t know what they pay for it though. - 4 percent - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 2:34 pm: Wife is on the state plan while I have a private plan though work with BCBS. Both are great. - Lefty Lefty - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 2:36 pm: I am an employer who pays for my staff’s health care. I have a BCBS HMO that I like since our doctor is in-plan. If he leaves BCBS, I have at least a minor problem to work on at that time. We have had very few issues with the coverage that has included minor surgeries and ER visits for the kids. Related: the reason I have HMO coverage with BCBS is because an employee of mine and myself were in need of better insurance coverage. My employee had a personal reason, and my wife’s COBRA coverage after “retiring” to have our children was ending. After long aggravating phone calls I determined that individual health care in the country is a huge problem. As the COBRA coverage was expiring, I learned that having a C-section is a pre-existing condition. In all likelihood, my wife would have another C-section when pregnant again, and no individual health care plan covers them if you had one already. None. So I made a group of 2–myself and my employee at the time– and we made a “group.” Then all of the protections written into state and federal law (for groups, not individuals) kicked in, and the second C section was covered. I hope I don’t get deleted for referring to the current issue. The reason I bring it up is only to make clear that if I had individual coverage I would have said I hate it. - Cook County Commoner - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 3:01 pm: Employer is self insured and uses United Healthcare to administer its plan. My companion has Blue Cross and Blue Shield and developed Rheumatoid Arthritis while on Blue Cross. She cannot drop BC/BS because she now has a pre-existing condidition. Premiums for her about $450 a month. If we married and I put her on my coverage, I could not sleep at night knowing that if I lost my job and coverage she would go uninsured after COBRA ran out. The whole American system is ridiculous. We’re both about 60, and this is a dangerous age without coverage, awaiting Medicare at 65. Both plans are expensive, with lifetime caps and costly deductibles and co-pays. I would like to see the entire insurance model scrapped. We need healthcare payment plans, not insurance which incentivizes insurers to cherry pick the healthy. Competing, private, national health payment pools would be interesting. I have experience with the VA, and I would, at least for now, keep government out of directly providing and managing healthcare any more than it already is. - DuPage County Commoner - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 3:22 pm: I am of average health. My health insurance is fine. Cost is not cheap but the coverage is reasonable. Nothing is free in life. Let’s create some jobs and we won’t have to worry about this as much! - Downstate Commissioner - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 3:59 pm: Am insured through retired wife’s former school dist plan, which I am pay myself. Pretty good plan, but too expensive, and going up-am looking for private plan. Two years away from Medicaid. If costs continue to rise, may have to consider dropping it ,and quitting taking meds. Food is more important than medicine to me… Anyone who says that our current health insurance is okay in this country is totally out of touch with reality… - DuPage Dan - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:01 pm: I have BCBS HMO thru my employer - State of Illinois. I carry my wife and son on the plan. I have had minor problems over the years but am please with it currently mostly because my doctor and her staff understand the system and we work together to try to avoid some of the typical problems. I have had some medical issues over the years w/some surgical procedures to go along with them. I am blessed to be in good health now. Some of the co-pays have increased as well as some Rx costs. Minor problems when I compare to others who struggle with high costs/no insurance. - Irish - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:07 pm: My insurance is through the State, I pay for my wife’s though the State. I am okay with our insurance except for the following. I do not like being forced to do mail order for drugs. This is one of the things I would like to see the health care reform target. I have seen mistakes made in filling prescriptions. There is no checks and balances going mail order. The local pharmacist knows me and knows my health issues he tells me when medications will not interact well and the doctor changes the prescription. I also do not think it is right for the insurance to charge you an exorbitant co-pay to force you to mail order. I was actually paying less for my prescription through the local pharmacy than is being paid through mail order so saving money is not the benefit to go mail order. I have had the insurance question whether I really need the prescriptions my doctor has precribed. They have never seen my nor do they know my medical situation. They are just trying to get out of paying for the prescriptions. I also am tired of having to call and beg the health care providers to not put me in collection because the State does not pay their bills. They are just starting to pay for services I received last November. It is demeaning and makes me look like a loser when the bills aren’t paid. They don’t pay my wife’s bills either even though I have paid the premiums on time for her insurance. It is the same situation as the pension. I pay for it, they use my money to fund their special projects, and then they don’t have the money to put in the fund where it was supposed to go. I also pay for my daughter’s insurance as she is still in school. Same situation. Now they are trying to get us off of the plan we have and want to put us in an HMO. The problem is there isn’t any HMO that serves my county and the county where my daughter goes to school. Of course they don’t care because in Springfield and Chicago they heave many HMO’s to choose from. The same is not true for us in rural areas. So having State insurance isn’t everything that it is cracked up to be. - The Intern - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:14 pm: I have limited coverage through the University I attend at about $750 per year with a $200 deductible on emergencies. Covers nothing preventive (like annual women’s screenings or physicals). I was uninsured for 5 years and currently owe over $6,000 on medical bills from a gallbladder removal 4 years ago. I am not satisfied with my coverage. My parents are small business owners and do not have coverage, otherwise I would still be eligible under theirs as a student. - Greg B. - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:41 pm: Hey, I know it’s off subject but to just to put Rob N. at ease. I’m well past the two year deadline for an insurance company to rescind my policy in Illinois. And the Illinois has guaranteed renewal… and it’s also written into my policy. Thank you caring, though. You big softy. - Dave S - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:46 pm: Happy with it (private), but it needs to be portable. Ties to many people to their job. - Call Me Al - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 4:50 pm: HMO through community college. Medical is okay, but dental is puny. Also, while my employer nominally pays 80%, I guess I am one of the few that realizes that everyone actually pays 100% of their own insurance, through lower salaries. - Rob_N - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 5:31 pm: Thanks for the info Greg. You might want to double-check the policy’s loopholes all the same. Rescinding your policy and having an out to avoid covering a condition are not necessarily one and the same. And if you go bankrupt (for whatever reason) we all end up paying for your debts in one way or another. That’s the point to the debate. - state employee - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 6:35 pm: Short answer is NO because I feel tied to my job. I am healthy but in case if a health issue may develop, insurance and med bills would be too costly to pay on my own. I would like to strike out on my own and have my own business or go back to school. If I had for example, single-payer healthcare (Medicare type of coverage, affordable), I would more easily do this. But meantime I feel trapped in any big-employer job due to needing health care insurance and benefits. Now have an HMO through the state and haven’t used it yet. Low premium of $65/month and low co-pays. Switched in July from the Quality Care plan/Cigna into the HMO plan b/c of threats of drastic increases employees would have to pay toward premiums. Also the state-administered plan with Cigna was VERY slow to pay providers, like 5 months. Many employees and retirees were even referred to collections over late bills (who had this insurance) because providers weren’t being paid timely. In addition to my own reasons for wanting single-payer, dear family and friends have no insurance and this bothers me very much, it’s a moral issue too. - Boone Logan Square - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 6:51 pm: No. Employer-based HMO with poor dental, high copayments, and a limited network of doctors. - Boone Logan Square - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 6:52 pm: And, if my last answer was unclear, the system is private. - ZC - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 7:04 pm: BCBS through my university job, have no idea if I like it because I’ve been blessed to stay very healthy. I second another commentor’s post about the “cost” however - I do think even some of the posters here do not really know the “cost” of their health insurance, because they are factoring in only what they pay, not what they in effect lose in wages. - wordslinger - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 8:09 pm: Dental? Doesn’t exist in the private sector, far as I can tell. - Rob_N - Monday, Sep 14, 09 @ 10:43 pm: Word, I failed to mention in my reply above that my private employer does include minimal dental. Any actual dental work beyond the basic “mint or strawberry” cleaning is not covered. If my dentist finds a cavity or worse it’s out of pocket to fix it. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.