alfista1

Hi all,

Just a question about family medical coverage in Florida. Our friend in Key Biscayne pays 500 USD for each person per month.
1500 for the 3 of us?

Is it really this expensive?
Of course we want good coverage but we're not sure how it works there. They live a very comfortable lifestyle though.

I assume there are different packages etc at different costs.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

dj6372

You need to be a little more specific in your question. Will you be living/working here? Are you talking about a holiday here, what is your friends situation.

There are a host of people with excellent advice just itching to assist, but need more information.

Welcome to BE.

alfista1

Sorry - medical cover for living/working in the state. Assume we'll all have full visas.

Our friend lives in Key Biscayne with 2 kids. (again not US citizens but they all have full visas for working/living)

SanDiegogirl

Yes it could easily be as expensive as this.

Your company (from earlier posts you are looking at taking a job in Florida) will have a health plan for its employees and you will have to pay whatever that plan dictates. You should ask your prospective employer for details of the health plan.

On top of monthly premiums there are out of pocket expenses like deductibles, co-pays.

If you don't go with the company plan (but this is not advised) then there are plans for each state under Obamacare. These could be less or more expensive.

kodokan

Allowing around $500 a person sounds about right, on average. You usually choose to pay higher premiums and have less to pay out of pocket for medical expenses, or pay lower premiums but then have a higher deductible to pay in the event of needing medical care. If you're all healthy with no ongoing conditions, pick the latter if possible (it may not be depending on what plans your employer offers).

We've always had high deductible plans, wher you have to pay the first X thousands of costs before you can even claim anything. Our current employer provides insurance for $170 a month for a family of 4, with a $2.6k deductible. This is a raging bargain. The previous employer charged us $550 a month for a plan with a $3.5k deductible. That premium is still nowhere near the actual cost to them, which was around $1,300 a month; they subsidized the rest.

When I bought our cover on the Marketplace last year, between jobs, it was $715 with a $12k deductible.

So yeah, I'd budget $500 monthly per person, and ideally get set up with a Health Savings Account and contribute the bulk of that for tax free savings.

Edit: the premiums come out before tax, if you have an employer plan. If you don't, then they're after tax.

alfista1

Thanks yes I will ask our company. It's all new for all of us. We just opened the office a few weeks ago.

Rete

As you are coming on an L-1 visa, see if your employer will be sponsoring group healthcare for their employees. If so, get your coverage in that way as the employer should be picking up part of the cost, if not all of it. It is unusual these days, however, for the employer to pay all of it.

Monthly premiums depend on the carrier and your type of coverage and what the deductible and co-pays are. I know in Mississippi for a family of 5 healthcare premiums with very high deductible comes to over $1500 a month and the deductible is in the five digits.

If your company will not be providing healthcare, you will have to shop around.

kins

It's one of those 'how long is a piece of string' questions.

The most we've ever paid for five people is about $12k a year. At the moment we're paying about $8.5k a year but we have a high deductible (excess).

It really depends on what kind of policy you're offered and how much of it your employer pays for you.

penguinsix

It could *easily* be that much, but the issue isn't so much the actual price but how much of it will be subsidized by your employer. If you have a good job offer they may pay 40-75% of the health insurance cost such that your monthly out of pocket is more manageable, or you could get shafted and pay the whole amount. Really depends on what you have on offer.

More about US health insurance in our WIKI

Health Insurance : British Expat Wiki

alfista1

many thanks great overview

steveq

The plan I have at work costs me around $500/month for all 4 of us, medical and dental, with a $450 deductible PP, up to $1300 per family per year. A lot depends on your employer.

dj6372

Wow, Mrs DJ and myself must be in the lucky bracket, we each pay $13 a month via our work plans

DMECI

Just wondering (for a family of 4 on an e2 visa) starting a new business so will be predicting our initial income... are you better to take out a policy before leaving the UK to cover your initial first year or just try and jump straight into something like obamacare? And in regards to the deductibles.. does that mean you even have to pay each time you take the kids to the doctors (daft question but wanting to clarify) and if so any idea how much a docs appt cost?TIA

Dolewhippy

We are in Florida but not on E2s, my job pays my coverage but I pay about $600 A month for my husband and daughter. We have a great plan, thankfully, and pay $40 per office visit and have a $1500 deductible, so we get billed for the first 1500 per year. My daughter fractured her wrist at school and the total for all treatments came to over $2000, which fortunately we won't have to pay completely for. I know people here on E2s that pay well over $2000 per month just for the premium and have deductibles in the ten thousand range. I don't think you can get a policy before that will last a year, but I could be wrong -- but as you won't have an employer to subsidize the premiums it will not be cheap.

DMECI

Hi and thanks for the insight - so tricky to work through so appreciate the help !