Insult on injury with my healthcare premium

[wtmusic]

A couple of weeks ago I posted about Anthem/Blue Cross raising my family's annual healthcare premium 38% to $26,760:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x810881

After I complained, Anthem suggested I request "risk adjustment factor review". I did, and here's the result:

We have evaluated your request to review your group’s Risk Adjustment Factor. We are pleased to inform you that your group has been approved to receive an adjustment from 1.10 to a 1.09 effective April 1, 2011.

This presumably means I'll save a whopping $22 every month off my $2,230 monthly. Whoop-ti-freaking-do.

Meanwhile, as I shop for any other company with which to do business, I got this nice letter from the DOJ's antitrust division (I had filed a complaint):

Dear wtmusic:

Thank you for contacting the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. The Citizen Complaint Center has reviewed your complaint, and we have forwarded it to the appropriate legal staff for further review. We have your information on file and should legal staff need further information, they may contact you in the future. If you have not done so already, you may wish to contact your State Attorney General.

We appreciate your interest in the enforcement of federal antitrust laws.

Sincerely,
Citizen Complaint Center
Antitrust Division
Department of Justice

Sic 'em!

[louis-t]

1. Funny you should mention it....

I just got another hike from BCBS of MI. 2 rate hikes in 3 months. The first one they blamed on Obama and the second they just said they got it approved by PSC or whatever.

[spin]

2. That's what happens when the politicians are bought and owned ...

by the big corporations and the healthcare industry.

[louis-t]

4. I think the first one was out of spite.

Insurance companies can now raise rates out of "spite". Lovely.:eyes:

[wtmusic]

3. I'm surprised they even bother with the artifice of an excuse anymore

"Here's the new rate chump, take it or leave it."

Always the bottom line.

[notesdev]

5. Just out of curiousity

What would be your yearly medical expenses if you paid cash only and had no insurance?

[hardcover]

6. We don't buy insurance for the yearly expenses. We buy it for the unforeseen big bills

My BC was raised again too and I'm so fed up. If I chance going without it and have a heart attack or get cancer, I'd loose everything I own.
Insurers are pigs.

[wtmusic]

7. ^ correct

since I already pay my own bills with my deductible anyway, I should just do what another poster suggested and get a $10,000 deductible to cover major medical issues.

Want to find another insurer first.

[bvar22]

10. The problem with that is....

...if you had a bad health problem or even a moderate accident,
they would STILL get everything you own through the 20% co-pay.
I can't afford 20% of a an even moderate Hospital Bill.


Thats what really chaps MY ass about the "historic" Health Insurance Reform.
In civilized countries, the term "Medical Bankruptcy" is unknown.
Even AFTER ALL the provisions kick in in 2014,
Medical Bankruptcy will STILL be Big Business (as usual) in the good ole USA.
:patriot:

[wtmusic]

11. You're absolutely right.

This is the breaking point for me. Another company, another plan. Or no plan at all.

:grr:

[Scuba]

8. Who knows? That's why they (used to) call it "risk sharing". n/t

[notesdev]

9. That nobody actually knows is the issue

That's how they keep the double digit percent cost hikes going year after year after year... all the actual costs are hidden from you, making you unable to make decisions based on cost, letting them run up the price to whatever they can get away with.

$23k/year is an incredible amount of money, especially if there are also deductibles to pay. That's 2/3rds of the average per capita income! It's a new car, and in some places half a house or better. Shouldn't we know more about where the money is going and what things actually cost?