Current predictions are that health care costs could rise by at least 10% in 2007, further straining an already stretched market. The part of the article that I found most interesting was that studies show that Americans spent about the same portion of their annual budget – 6% – on health care in 1960 that… Read more about Families Feeling the Squeeze
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IRS Issues 2007 HSA Contribution Limits
The IRS just announced the HSA limits for 2007. The maximum HSA contribution (not including catch-up contributions) will be $2,850 for self-only coverage and $5,650 for family coverage in 2007. Additionally, the maximum out-of-pocket expense—including deductibles—that employees with single coverage can be required to pay will rise to $5,500, up from $5,250 in 2006, and… Read more about IRS Issues 2007 HSA Contribution Limits
Back To Reality
Sorry about the lack of posts over the last few weeks. Louise and I haven’t been in Colorado since October 23’rd because we were on vacation. We were still able to keep up with all of our health insurance clients by helping get claims paid, solving billing problems, and helping them compare alternate plans. But… Read more about Back To Reality
Battling Prescription Drug Prices
Rising pharmaceutical costs has been an issue in healthcare for quite some time. Television advertising for prescription drugs has resulted in more patients demanding that their doctors give them specific prescriptions, even if something else -or nothing at all – may work better. This practice has been widely criticized, but is showing no signs of… Read more about Battling Prescription Drug Prices
Sending Healthcare Overseas
It probably won’t suprise anyone to learn that US businesses are looking into the possibility of sending employees overseas for medical treatments that tend to be costly at home. Afterall, US businesses have been outsourcing production and customer service overseas for years. So far, only a handful of employees have been sent overseas by their… Read more about Sending Healthcare Overseas
Being Held Accountable
This is a follow up to our last post about how obesity has a huge impact on health care usage, and therefore contributes heavily to skyrocketing health insurance premiums. Most Americans with health insurance get their coverage through their employers. Group health insurance through an employer is required to cover all qualified employees, regardless of medical history. … Read more about Being Held Accountable
Why is the Cost of Health Insurance Rising So Fast?
When people try to explain why health insurance premiums are rising so fast, the common explanation you’ll get is that the cost of healthcare is rising. And, yes, this does have something to do with the reason health insurance premiums are increasing. But it’s not the reason health insurance premiums are so out of control. … Read more about Why is the Cost of Health Insurance Rising So Fast?
The Wrong Idea
I was recently going over some health insurance options with a client. We were comparing some high deductible HSA qualified plans with some lower deductible copay plans. She then asked about some of the really cheap plans she saw on our instant quote engine like Right Start from Assurant. I explained that we don’t recommend… Read more about The Wrong Idea
Ezra Klein Rules!!
Now I admit that healthcare topics may not be the most interesting reading on the internet – for some people. But Ezra Klein is hosting the Health Wonk Review this week and boy, oh boy does he have a way with words! He kept it short, to the point, and most of all… entertaining.
A Greener Earth, Fitter Employees and Lower Insurance Premiums
What if health insurance carriers teamed up with employers to improve employee health, lower the number of cars on the roads, and give employees a discount on their health insurance? What would it take to get people to participate? Here’s the idea: Let’s say a company has 200 employees, and offers health insurance to them,… Read more about A Greener Earth, Fitter Employees and Lower Insurance Premiums
Tax-Deductible Gym Memberships
The Personal Health Investment Today Act of 2006 is currently under consideration in the House of Representatives. Since we are big fans of maintaining health rather than trying to fix health problems after they develop, we think this bill would be a great addition to our myriad of tax laws. Basically, it would allow Americans to… Read more about Tax-Deductible Gym Memberships
Make Love Not Debt Talks Personal Finance
There is a LOT of talk about debt and personal finance over at Make Love Not Debt today. I wish I had the time to go through and read all of them, because there are some really interesting topics in this weeks edition of the Carnival of Personal Finance. My favorite one is from InsureBlog… Read more about Make Love Not Debt Talks Personal Finance
Moral Support for Those Battling Breast Cancer
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we wanted to spread the word about the Y-ME hotline (1-800-221-2141). This is a grass roots support system, founded by Ann Marcou and Mimi Kaplan in 1978. The Y-ME website explains more about their mission and how they provide support and encouragement to those fighting the battle with breast cancer. … Read more about Moral Support for Those Battling Breast Cancer
Free and Reduced-Price Prescription Drugs
With more and more Americans going uninsured, and health insurance policies excluding coverage for prescription drugs, people are finding themselves footing the entire bill at the pharmacy, or worst still – going without needed medications because of the cost. Most people don’t know that pharmaceutical companies often have programs to provide medications free or at a reduced… Read more about Free and Reduced-Price Prescription Drugs
Insurance Mergers and Network Shrinkage Hurts Consumers
I have a good friend who is seven months pregnant with her first child. Her employer-sponsored health insurance is with PacifiCare, which recently merged with United HealthCare. Ever since her first prenatal visit in April, she has been seeing a nurse-midwife and an OB/GYN with whom she feels very comfortable. She had planned to deliver… Read more about Insurance Mergers and Network Shrinkage Hurts Consumers
Funding Health Care with Tobacco Tax
The governor of Oregon has proposed an $0.85/pack tax increase on cigarettes with the expected $150 to $170 million in revenue being used to subsidize health care for children in Oregon. I think this is a great idea, and one that could be implemented in every state to help with the health care crisis in… Read more about Funding Health Care with Tobacco Tax
Inexpensive Birth Control
Several years ago, I was working for a large company, and health insurance was something that I just took for granted. The only time I ever used it was to visit my gynecologist once a year, and to get my birth control prescription filled. I think I paid $5 or $10/month for my Rx. Once I… Read more about Inexpensive Birth Control
Can’t Afford Health Insurance? Don’t Eat Out.
I just read a news article about why people choose to eat out several times a week instead of cooking at home. I couldn’t help but notice the $30 tab that the article cited as the amount it would cost to cook a meal at home for TWO people. Is this a special-occasion meal, or do… Read more about Can’t Afford Health Insurance? Don’t Eat Out.
Primer for Your Weekend
The weekend is almost here, and many of us are ready to unwind after a long, stressful work week. There are so many ways to relax, which do you prefer? Drinks Mixed with Diet Soda Are More Intoxicating Researchers in Australia found out that when you drink alcohol with diet soda, the artificial sugars in the… Read more about Primer for Your Weekend
United Healthcare in a Tough Battle
After United Healthcare lapsed their contract with HCA, things got ugly. Dr. Craig Keyes, CEO of United’s Colorado division, was accosted and his house vandalized in July. HCA was was even attempting to get United Healthcare clients to switch to carriers contracted with HCA. Well now, Frontier Airlines, which is based in Denver, is switching… Read more about United Healthcare in a Tough Battle
Harvest Moon Health Wonk Review
Joe Paduda over at Managed Care Matters hosts this weeks HWR. He cut the fat and kept the list down to an all star list of 15 entries, each with a very helpful commentary. Ezra Klein discusses an idea by Jacob Hacker called Universal Insurance. An all-purpose insurance that covers health expenses, disability, or “whatever”. … Read more about Harvest Moon Health Wonk Review
A Very Grand Rounds
Grand Rounds version 3.2 is up over at RDoctor. There are some really great articles in this edition, so I recommend hopping over there for some amusement. It includes an article from the Colorado Health Insurance Insider that Louise wrote about Financial Incentives for Good Health. I really enjoyed an article about the overuse of antibiotics… Read more about A Very Grand Rounds
Colorado Businesses Pay More for Health Insurance, Especially Greeley
The Greeley Tribune reports that small businesses in Colorado pay more for health insurance than companies in other states, with Greeley paying Colorado’s highest health insurance costs. The article does a good job of attempting to explain this, but misses the point. A study of more than 650,000 businesses across the U.S. that had 50… Read more about Colorado Businesses Pay More for Health Insurance, Especially Greeley
We’ve Gone Pink
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and a close friend that was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, Colorado Health Insurance Insider is sporting a pink monochrome throughout October to promote awareness. Many sites across the internet, especially within the blogosphere, have redesigned their layouts in pink to promote awareness of this disease. Breast cancer is the… Read more about We’ve Gone Pink
Ask Your Agent if This is a “Push Week”
I was at the gym the other day and I overheard a guy talking to his buddies about a plan he’d come up with. He said “Next week is a Push Week, so I wonder if you could buy a policy from me and we could just cancel it the next week. You’ll get all… Read more about Ask Your Agent if This is a “Push Week”