The Monday before Thanksgiving DH's boss tells him his job is being phased out as of 12/31. (Happy Holidays!!) Anyway the good news is he was unhappy anyway and is now really seriously pursuing a new job. Because he is a consultant he has been lucky enough to shore up a couple of contracts that will keep us going for @ 6 months. Anyway, the only thing I am nervous about is the health insurance. We can pay to stay with the insurance plan we have under the COBRA plan but were wondering if there isn't a better deal out there since we are paying $700 plus now for a family of five. Anyone have any suggestions and/or advice?

By Bobbie~moderatr on Thursday, December 16, 2004 - 11:45 pm:

going to bump you to the top.... No clue.. Got to be someone out there self employed or that knows someone that is that they can ask...

However... When I worked for a Ped we had a couple of non insured self employed people that just had a separate account set up for medical and they paid cash for all visits.... If you are paying out $700 a month you could surly start an account for medical. And they just carried hospitalization insurance but I don't know any of the particulars on that.

By Pamt on Thursday, December 16, 2004 - 11:54 pm:

You can probably find a better deal. The important thing is to keep continuous coverage and don't let it lapse even for a day. If you do have a lapse then any pre-existing conditions won't be covered any more, whereas they will be if you have a certificate of coverage from your insurer. Just do a google search on individual policies. The coverage may not be quite as good, but you should be able to find decent comprehensive coverage for less.

I have been looking into this myself recently since I carry the health insurance in my family and I have to go to school full-time for at least 2 consecutive semesters as a requirement for my degree. Don't know how I can go to school full-time and work 20 hrs/week, so I've looked into alternative coverage. It was going to be $400-500 a month for a basic 80/20 plan with a $500-1000 deductible for my family of 4. We HAVE to have insurance though b/c one son has asthma, one has reflux, and I have a recurring medical problem as well.

By My2cuties on Friday, December 17, 2004 - 12:00 am:

That doesn't sound too good to me, but different states have different prices on things, My dh does not get insurance through his job we go straight through Farm Bureau.. for a family of 4 it is $250 a month and the co-pay for doctor visits are $15 and the meds are $10 ER visits are $25. But you may have a better coverage plan, extended hospital stays are we pay up to $500 or $1000 then they pay the rest. Anyway, good luck maybe someone knows something about this particular insurance you have.

By Christylee on Friday, December 17, 2004 - 12:34 am:

look into www.unicare.com I have used them in the past for my son and my dad has my sister on it. You can get individual or family policies. I think for just my son it was $48 a month but it's worth looking into.

By Kathym on Friday, December 17, 2004 - 08:24 am:

Thanks everyone!!!!

By Lauram on Friday, December 17, 2004 - 11:21 am:

If I did COBRA with my work policy, two years ago I know it was $1400 a month. So that sounds pretty good to me!