Unhealthy Society
Allan
The Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or (SCHIP) link doesn’t work, good. (insurekidsnow.gov)
This is a Hillary Clinton Scam.
First, it is dangerous. Every child on SCHIP is terminated on their 19th birthday. Yes, even diagnosed children are terminated. Young cancer patients with no hair are terminated which leads to depression. Depression and cancer is a deadly mix.
Second, it’s too expensive. SCHIP is a way to funnel billions of tax dollars into special companies with Federal Contracts in the name of poor children. SCHIP costs tax payers hundreds of dollars per month per child.
Of course NO ONE, but me, will say something negative about SCHIP. I’m waiting for any politician to say the truth.
A Better Way
It’s called a Defined Contribution (DC). Basically we think of the SCHIP child as a consumer with options.
Option 1) The tax payers will pay $3,000 a year to a Corporate Monopoly with a Federal Contract and if a child is diagnosed before a majority age of 19th, they will be terminated.
Option 2) The tax payers will pay $3,000 a year directly to the child’s Health Savings Account (HSA), tax free. The child (Guardian) purchases HSA insurance for $600 a year with a $2,500 annual deductible on the free and open individual medical market. By law, this insurance can’t be cancelled on the child’s 19th birthday. The balance of $2,400 in the child’s HSA grows tax free with FDIC insured interest at the bank. If the child is sick the HSA balance pays the deductible. If the child doesn’t become sick, highly likely, any unspent HSA balances and interest rolls over year to year until the child’s 19th birthday.
A normal child would get a 19th birthday balance of $25,000 in their HSA. I would rather give the money to the poor child instead of overpaying some Corporate Monopoly with a Federal Contract in the name of poor children.
I think the application of SCHIP should have a warning about the TERMINATION DATE and implications for a sick or hurt child. It’s called Full and Proper Disclosure. Anything short of such a warning is a serious Ethics Violation. But the state can do anything.
If you are a politician have the balls to stand up to SCHIPS special interests.
Posted by Z Woof
05/02/2005 at 11:01 AM
A child with cancer at 16 and “recovered” by the age of 19 is [not] totally disabled.
Same with a diabetic child.
A child insured as a primary insured on individual insurance can not be singled out for termination until Medicare eligibility.
Most children are on their parent’s plan and some say the child can keep their insurance only if the child is totally disabled or mentally retarded. This is a bad clause if the child gets sick or hurt. Most Group Health Employee Insurance Plans dependent termination clauses suck.
HSA balances may be used for preventative care. The law says preventative care can be a covered expense under HSA Qualifying insurance and not subject to the deductible. HSA funds may be used for medical, vision and dental expenses including over the counter drugs.
Financing your oil filter replacement through your auto insurance sounds expensive. If we had auto insurance through our employers that covered oil filters; auto insurance would cost $1,000 a month like Employer Health Insurance for family coverage. And Jiffy Lubes would be as big as hospitals.
Posted by Z Woof
05/02/2005 at 12:05 PM
I could get at least one kid on insurance. Do you know a 14-year-old girls I could marry?
Posted by SteveF
05/02/2005 at 03:26 PM
Steve says, “I could get at least one kid on insurance.” What the hell does that mean? Does that mean the child is not uninsurable or that he can get someone else to pay the cost?
SteveF then you say, “Do you know a 14-year-old girls I could marry?”
Damn Allan - ban SteveF right now. He is never going to make any sense.
Posted by Z Woof
05/02/2005 at 06:45 PM
Thank you, Z Woof, for the time you put into this post. As with anything complicated like this, I tend to view it through an uninformed, personal eye. My son, 22, has no insurance (had catastrophic but dropped it), and he does every potentially dangerous sport on the planet - mountain bike racing, Moab Jeep Jamborees (he rolled his jeep at the last one) and all I can think about is him getting seriously hurt… and all my possessions going out the window to pay for a protracted, if not lifelong recovery. It actually keeps me awake at night worrying about it.
Anyway, thanks for your efforts.
Posted by Phoenix
05/02/2005 at 07:17 PM
Cat,
Thanks. I don’t know if the associations have coverage. Parker was sponsored by Trek for a while, but they didn’t offer much. They gave him a bike and their colors and let his fame advertise for them. Rotten use of kids if you ask me.
Right now the problem is, he’s in an irresponsible stage and won’t pay for the “Skateboarders” Insurance. (Catastrophic insurance designed for kids that age) My ex won’t pay for it..... I pay to bail him out of jail for driving on a suspended license, etc....
What’s with Colorado it has to offer all this debauchery and fun anyway??? You up there in the Cherry capitol of the world, and Parker down with wild kids determined to milk life of ALL the dangerous fun they can find.
Posted by Phoenix
05/02/2005 at 09:48 PM
Phoenix
My son is 22 years old and his cost for HSA Qualifying health insurance, with a $2,500 deductible, is $55 a month. After the deductible the coverage pays 100% to 8 million lifetime max, including drugs. This cost will vary depending on your son’s home zip code. My son was diagnosed as a minor and is uninsurable now so he is lucky we had a “Dependent Conversion Priviledge”. We pay the premium because he would miss his first payment and the coverage would lapse.
Just call a local insurance agent and say you want HSA insurance on a 22 year old male. Health insurance is a lot cheaper than auto insurance at that age.
President Bush wants to pay $1,000 a year for your son’s HSA health insurance with a refundable tax credit. This will pay 100% of your son’s costs. The media says no one will get coverage with this credit in the current budget, they are wrong.
The truth is millions of young Americans will get coverage if the “CREDIT” is passed. Big insurance companies, Group Health Employee Plans, fight the credit because Americans will get “Individual Insurance” which is more secure than employee based coverage.
If the credit is passed you will hear about it here that’s for sure.
Posted by Z Woof
05/03/2005 at 06:59 AM
OCM
My site is save101.com
at legal at the bottom is a link to an IRS publication on HSAs.
Watch out I have a picture of President Bush there.
Link save101.com
Posted by Z Woof
05/03/2005 at 10:03 AM
Z Woof,
Thank you. My son had that insurance, $5K deductible, for $55 per month. The insurance company he sought in Durango also talked him into life insurance! We took care of that really quickly. But I think he lapsed paying the premiums. The irresponsible-stage thing again. Thank you for the tip that I or my ex can take out a plan on him. I suppose I knew that, but we figured he do it.
Posted by Phoenix
05/03/2005 at 11:50 AM