Pulaski

From what I hear, things are tightening up, and being able to "get away with it" may come to an end.

You might also want to check the BE rules on promoting illegal activities.

robtuck

Technically speaking that isn't illegal - refusing to pay would be, I imagine, or at least a civil claim if you let it get that far. I'd imagine anyone even remotely considering it though would probably just be better off moving back anyway - it's not like you'd hop back for an ingrowing toe nail.

Nope, you take the rough with the smooth, it's all an intricate balance. For the extra I potentially pay on healthcare here, I balance that with holidays in the past year that would have cost me many thousands of dollars more if I attempted them from the UK - Nashville, Memphis, Biloxi, Myrtle Beach, Orlando. One year in, it all seems to come out in the wash - for every new cost I find new benefits, and that's the fun of it all - finding new things.

Pulaski

We're splitting hairs here, but I was talking about pretending to be a UK resident (or not disclosing that you aren't), so the NHS doesn't even know that you should be billed, and that is fraud - obtaining something that you are not entitled to by deception, which is most definitely illegal. ..... Granted, I am not aware of any prosecutions yet.

vikingsail

It's simple really, the clue is in the name Health Insurance

Hence it is a profit making industry where you are a minor cog in the wheel.

You are not, and never will be the primary concern for a health insurance company, despite many of there attempts to convince you otherwise. The marketing departments in these gulags work at straining point . Keep that proposition in mind and it will inform you for every decision you make concerning healthcare in the US.

Giantaxe

I do... but that is an artefact of my now working for an employer who provides "cadillac"-standard insurance.

Pulaski

The paradox is that 94% of major corporations (primarily those listed on a stock exchange), "self insure" meaning that they pocket the premiums paid by their employees, and then pay their employees' medical expenses out of pocket. They then hire one of the major insurance "companies" to manage the process, so while most Americans think they are insured by Aetna, Blue Cross, United Healthcare, etc. They really aren't and the whole thing is a sham set up by their employer with assistance from one of the insurance consultants, because that is what they really are!

Giantaxe

Not sure it's a "sham" in the sense that the notional total premium (employer + employee) is set by the insurance company based on actuarial analysis of the covered employees. That's the number reported on your W2 and so it does have some meaning. Additionally, companies will often insure against "losses" i.e. claims above a certain total yearly level, so as to ensure that their liability is bounded.

Pulaski

Agreed but the cost of insurance is purely a number thrashed out between the employer and to and the insurance company, being anticipated costs less employer subsidy.

Giantaxe

Right, but because this is the number that gets reported to the IRS (for the purposes of the "cadillac tax", if it's ever actually collected down the road), there are government actuarial rules as to the basis of the number.

Edit: I don't think the "total cost of insurance" is "anticipated costs less employer subsidy". I think it's what the insurance company would actuarially charge in premiums for a group with the same demographics that the employer has. At least, that's my understanding given what my employer has said.

Pulaski

Isn't that what "anticipated costs" are? I always understood that an actuary's job was to anticipate likely future costs.

Giantaxe

I _think_ the number reported on the W2 has to be "anticipated costs + notional profit margin" that an insurance company would get if it were selling a policy to a group with the company's enrollment demographic. Again, that is what I understood from what my employer said, so I am not 100% sure.

MidAtlantic

That is exactly how mine works, although many of my co-workers don't realize. It means the "insurance consultant" is taking a slice of the money also.

DebzinUS

Me too, but the hubs had to die for me to get it. The whole military survivor thing. $238 per year, everything covered at 100%. $12.00 office copay. Your country thanks you for your husband's service. Too bad it wasn't available for him.

Mercury39

Is using vpn in order to pretend you are in the uk in order to access the bbc also deception and fraud? As it’s a popular topic on here where different approaches are shared and discussed.

Pulaski

I have drawn my own conclusion as to why you need to ask.