need affordable (I know it sounds funny) health insurance

in NJ

[walkman]

Going through Horizon BCBS of New Jersey is about $385 a month for an HMO ($30 copay), and I'm wondering if there's a cheaper way to get it. I'm on my own (incorporated) but I'm the only employee.

does any fellow NJ business owner have any ideas for a cheaper solution?

They have other cheaper solutions but they have a lot of fine print. I am healthy but who knows. For a few hundred dollars I can't risk bankruptcy because of medical bills...

[ergophobe]

they have a lot of fine print

Yeah. Watch out. If the lifetime limit is under a few million dollars, it's not serious coverage. Check the insurance ratings of any provider. There are a variety of websites.

In California it's pretty much Blue Cross, Blue Shield or Kaiser.

[SEOMike]

Ditto in Kansas... but don't expect it to be cheap!

I did hear about this small business group plan that places you in a "group" of other small business owners in order to attain the rates and benefits of large companies.

My insurance is outrageous. My buddy works for a Fortune 500 company and pays $9.50 a month for a FAMILY plan with a $25 copay. Makes me sick.

[rogerd]

Depending on what your needs are, you might consider catastrophic coverage. This is a bit easier to obtain and a lot cheaper, but don't expect it to help with standard doc visits and prescriptions. Rather, it kicks in after a fairly large deductible to preven a major illness from wiping you out completely.

A few years ago I had to arrange coverage very quickly when a COBRA plan was canceled, and this was a reasonable approach until I was able to get a small business plan going with more normal coverage.

If you can get into any kind of group coverage (professional group, local pool, etc.) it will help immensely. Check with people like your local Chamber of Commerce.

Good luck, health insurance for a one person business is a challenge.

[4crests]

Not sure if it works in your state, but we go through the National Association of Self Employed (NASE).

They have pretty good rates and quite a few benefits not found elsewhere. Website is: NASE dot com

They send a salesman out to your house. Costs $120 consultation fee, but it might be well worth it. We reduced our insurance from $850 a month down to $280. They key is to cut through the stuff you don't need and choose a package that fits you. We are a family of Four by the way. For a single person it should be as cheap as $100-$150 a month for just major medical through NASE.

I haven't had to file a claim through them yet, but my Sister and Mother both have, and everything went great. Another salesman tried to tell us that NASE was hard to deal with, but so far my Sister and Mom have been very happy. Could just be salesman talk.

Does anyone else here us NASE?

[walkman]

"National Association of Self Employed"

I will definitely try that. Thank you fo rthe suggestion. Even if the copay is made $100, I don't care. I'l probably use it once every 2-3 years. I just want to be covered if I get hit by a bus or something major.

Do you have their "home-office protection" thing? They say that for $420 you get business liability among other things. Any idea for how much that is?

thanks again,

[walkman]

there goes my hope. Their Health insurance is not available in NJ.

[peterdaly]

Look into and ask your local chamber of commerce. They may have a group plan, and if not, they may have suggestions.

[vkaryl]

Don't laugh.

Check with your local Costco. (You do have them there, don't you?)

[Webwork]

NJ health insurance rates are regulated. The good thing is you can get coverage as an individual. The bad thing is there are not that many bona fide providers. After considerable research I went with Aetna. The pricing comes down to expectation of use: Do you expect many visits to doctors? Do you expect a hospitalization? If no, and you've got some extra cash, then accept higher co-pays and deductibles for a lower rate. If a large deductible would ruin you then buy the extra coverage.

[synergy]

I just bought a package from NASE. The salesman was really cool, honest, and up front. He told us packages and configurations that made the most sense for us as newlyweds.

The package is absolutely awesome. Our deductibles are a bit higher than average, but that's because we wanted our monthly payment lower. There is a nearly endless list of services and benefits specifically for small business owners that come with NASE membership.

Oh, did I mention that you can get 100% of your health insurance costs deducted from your taxes?

[benefits.nase.org...]

Here's how:
Hire your spouse as an employee of your company and pay him/her for at least 8 hours of work per month. Take the check, deposit it back into your account. Now since you and your spouse work together, you health insurance can be considered a complete business expense.

This is how it was explained to me by the salesman. It's a loophole in the system, and is perfecly legal.

[walkman]

Hi synergy,
their health insurance is NOT available in NJ. I had no choice to sign up for BCBS HMO at $385 a month. NJ really sucks when it comes to this. I can afford it, but that's not the point. A family would be looking at $1200 or so a month. How many average families have $1200 a month to pay for it? I looked at PA and CT rates, at least half off. It's scary.

[buckworks]

Reading threads like this makes me count Canada's Medicare system as one of my greatest blessings.

[walkman]

"Reading threads like this makes me count Canada's Medicare system as one of my greatest blessings. "

you can't go without it. I'm in great health, but who knows what happens. Between surgeons, nurses, hospital etc. a week in a US hospital can bankrupt you so I can't take that chance. I just wish it was more affordable. You pay one way or another. "Free" healthcare isn't free, you're paying at tax time as suppose to monthly. One thing about US, the care is great if you have insurance.

I think a solution would for the Government to act as the ultimate isurer on extreme cases like cancer, transplants, AIDS etc. Here in NJ the insurance companies can't turn down anyone --and it's unfair to be denied insurance if you have cancer or AIDS -- but the rates go up for everyone.

[choster]

Insurance is about managing risk; a larger pool means lower average risk means lower average cost. Add to this the weird employment-based health insurance system in the US (as I understand it, a side effect of tax laws affecting manufacturers during World War II), plus the fact that the health care system is inextricably tied to other "broken" systems (notably workers compensation and malpractice liability) and you see why cheap individual health insurance as such is only offered to healthy 25 year-olds.

I'd seriously look into joining industry associations (especially in industries with many self-employed or freelancing) which may offer group purchasing or discounts. AIGA for instance has an agreement with TEIGIT, which does offer plans for New Jersey, though I have no idea whether this discount would be worth your time (or the membership fee). Other than that, I can only suggest some of the comparison shopping sites such as ehealthinsurance.com, insweb.com, and ebix.com. Good luck.