Good schools in New York
 

Could anybody name some good primary age kids schools that are worth considering around New York, New Jersey for an 8 year old.

ALso do you have to pay towards the cost of education?

I hear a lot about medical costs, what are typical medical costs, if there is such a thing?

My employer will be covering my medical, does this mean pre exisitng conditions like diabetes are covered?

Sorry for all the questions, but just trying to weigh up the offer!

Re: Good schools in New York
 

It is apparent you are not talking about public school but rather private schools. There are many good private schools in New York City and in the surrounding burbs and yes you will pay considerably for their education at one of them. It is not pay towards it but pay all of it.

There is no typical medical costs. It is based on the doctor, his practice and the type of aliment you are seeing him/her about. Pre-existing conditions are usually not covered under your medical for a period of time but kicks in later. This would be diabetes as well. I can tell you from my experience as a diabetic that without medical insurance my meds on a monthly basis for Actos would be over $300. With a medical plan that includes prescriptions it costs me $23 for a 90 day supply. One month of medication for reducing tri's which are elevated due to the diabetes and meds to lower the good cholestrol which has always been in the normal range but in an attempt to offset the high tri's and the affect on the blood vessels, my meds come to $1,300 a month without insurance. This does not include the 6 week blood work, doctor's visit, etc.

Rete

Re: Good schools in New York
 

I can't help you with schools, but will say that medical coverage will depend entirely on the plan that you are offered and then I'd advise reading the fine print very carefully. Plans very widely and there is no consistency--you will hear good stories and you will hear unpleasant stories.

Some people have good plans--we pay $176 a month for an employer plan that is 100% inclusive of everything (all visits, tests, etc. It has increased from $140 as the company is switching plans). This means that the employer pays the balance of the premium, which is $800 a month.

Pre-existings are included, but that is because we are fortunate. It's not always the case. Same with maternity--check the fine print if you plan to have more children.

We've been with a few plans since we arrived and did self-pay plan ranging from 120-140 a month. These required us to pay a percentage of 20% up to a limit of $2000 and then we received 100% care. These did not cover pre-existing for one year. We took this option as the monthly fee was lower and we wanted emergency cover only (just in case). Other people will tell you of self-pay plans costing thousands each month, but I can't tell you how that differs from what we selected.

Generally all HR departments have brochures about the available options--ask for info, read it, compare plans and ask questions.

I posted this elsewhere here originally and it was targeted to someone else moving here with his family, but the basics might help.

For self-cover, visit ehealthinsurance.com if you need or want to look at plans in your area. This is an online quote system in which you enter you age and zipcode to get a list of all policies in your area. You can then filter on specific components. I used this for reseach and found the prices to be as on the provider websites. You will then want to check the fine print for detail on pre-existing condistions, etc. The rate will depend on your age and the desired cover you want.

A private plan can be as low as $100 a month or as high as $1000 for a married couple in their 30s. It all depends upon the type of cover you select. We paid $120 or so for a private plan for the two of us and now pay $140 or so with my husband’s group plan (a more inclusive plan than our private, which did not include maternity cover). We had Blue Cross and now have Aetna.

A few items to watch for:

Deductible: this is the amount you must pay for treatment before cover begins. You want this to be an amount you are comfortable with. For our self pay plan we selected $1000 each as we rarely need medical help and felt comfortable paying that amount rather than a large monthly amount (you can generally go as low as $250 or as high as $5000+). This is a primary cost driver so watch this carefully. Our employer plan has a 0 deductible now.

Copay: generally 80/20. Once you reach your deductible the insurance pays 80% and you pay 20% up to your out of pocket maximum.

Out of pocket maximum: this is the max that you would have to pay before the insurance covers 100%. Again, chose an amount you are comfortable with (can be $1000-$12,000+)

Guaranteed cover: guaranteed policies can be kept forever although your premiums may rise. Optionally renewable allow the insurance company to stop cover but only on specified dates, such as your policy anniversary date. Conditionally renewable can be terminated for specific reasons (such as if you are in a group plan and retire) but cannot be terminated due to health reasons. Do check this carefully as many people have optionally renewable cover and find themselves dropped when struck with a serious health issue. Read the fine print!!!!

There are also health savings accounts with high-deductible plans, or flex-spending accounts with some employers in which you can deposit pre-tax money for health expenses, such as copayments, medicine costs, dental visits or checks not covered by your plan. The money can also be used for over-the-counter meds and supplies. For example, we deposit 200 a month in this as it is pre-tax. It is also a flex account that expires each year (we either use or lose the money.

We use this to cover copays, meds, etc. At the end of the year, we will schedule in any dental work, new contacts, etc if we have money left. Again, it’s pretax so we save income tax on this (and don’t get upset if we have a bit that goes unused, as it’s better than paying tax on it).

Do also find the local urgent care (walk in centre) or pharmacy centre (pharmacies such as CVS are opening walk-in centre). Your insurance may or may not cover this, but they are handy for non-emergency out of office needs. For example, my husband sprained his ankle playing footie and we could have gone to the ER and faced a bill in the thousands as we didn’t have insurance at the time. Instead we went to the walk-in, paid $49.

Some plans have prescription cover as a separate co-pay or level. However, some pharmacies are now charging as low as $4 for basic meds, and one of our grocery stores is now giving medicines for free (yes free). There are 300 meds on the list, and it's basic antibiotics and such. Worth familiarising yourself with your local pharmacies and the policy as the costs vary greatly.

If you join AAA (american automobile association, similar to AA) you save 15-30% on prescriptions at certain pharmacies, and save up to 30% on eyeglasses at certain providers. Both are handy if you don't have medicine or vision cover.

I guess the best advice I have is do your research and pay attention to the details so that you know exactly what to expect.

Hope that helps.

Re: Good schools in New York
 

PS 6 NYC. PS 41 NYC. Also depends where you are intending to live??
http://www.insideschools.org/fs/scho...file.php?id=25
Reg. Frank R.

Re: Good schools in New York
 

That's for sure...and see what is considered an emergency, would they cover an ambulance if you got in an accident even it you didn't require overnight stay, as often they wouldn't in that case.

Dental and eyeballs are worth checking out too because they ain't cheap neither.

Also check to see if your medical is PPO (Better) or HMO (standard)...HMO isn't bad if you live in an area with great hospitals, but not so if you don't and would have to go a distance to get specialised care, because it then might not be covered, and also check to see if the details about out of state cover for if you go on trips etc.

Re: Good schools in New York
 

Is that where you lived in NYC - on the Upper East Side? Isn't that where all the mega-wealthy people live? :D

Re: Good schools in New York
 

No Englishmum, I lived in Chelsea. A lot of mega rich also live in Chelsea, Soho, Tribeca & GV.
Reg. Frank R.