Health Insurance in Florida

[marjorie_sue]

My husband and I hope to retire to Florida in 3 years time when he will be 65 and I will be 60. We have family there so should be able to get a Green card. Our main concern however is the cost of the health insurance. Does anybody know roughly how much we can expect to pay?

[Bevdeforges]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

As far as health insurance for the US goes, you're going to be in a kind of "unusual" situation, in that you're not eligible for US Medicare. In the US, Medicare generally kicks in at age 65, and most health insurance programs for those over 65 are designed as so-called "Medi-gap" insurance - to piggy back on the benefits available from Medicare.

You may want to contact some UK based insurance companies to ask about expatriate health insurance that will cover you in the US. Most of the big, international insurers offer this type of coverage - Bupa, AXA and Generali, just to name a few.
Cheers,
Bev

[twostep]

You say you have family there. Have you checked to make sure the degree of relationship will allow your family member in FL to sponsor you?

[TheFiveJs]

A LOT. I have looked into private health insurance. There are a million ways to work health insurance, but I'll give you some basics:

1) Company Health Care. This is when you work for a company and they have X employees. You can also choose to own the company and then write off part of the health-care premiums for employees (you). The beauty of this is that nothing can be considered pre-existing past a waiting period (usually one year). So if one of you has ever had a heart condition, has diabetes, or are basically on ANY meds....those things related will not be covered for the waiting period which like I said, is generally a year. The monthly premiums are HIGH, but any pre-existing conditions would usually be covered. Trust me when I tell you EVERYTHING is considered pre-existing. You should thoroughly check into this option as I think it's your best bet.

2) Private/Family health care. This is very expensive as well, but the limitations are ridiculous and they can deny just about anything for any legnth of time especially if they deem it pre-existing. There are many different laws governing this type of health care and you are sort of on your own, rather than being under the company umbrella.

With both options, there's a financial "point" so to speak. The point I'm trying to make is that if you want the best coverage and the most pay-out on each claim, you pay a LOT of money in monthly premiums. I'd expect for people of your age to pay nearly $1000/month. So you're guaranteed to pay $12,000/yr plus any deductibles (individual, family, or both) and co-pays. Most policies pay anywhere from 60%-90% of in-network claims (meaning you use a Dr they have a relationship with). However, say you get a smaller premiumed policy, like $500 a month, you will have higher deductibles, they will pay a smaller percentage per claim, etc. This doesn't SOUND smart, but you factor you're paying a guaranteed amount of $6,000/yr plus part of your claims are you really going to end up paying another $6,000? It's all on how often you go to the Dr and if you're on regular medication etc. Do the math many, many times over to see what your best financial option is regarding premiums, deductibles, and co-pay's.

3) Catastrophic coverage. There are always policies that cover almost nothing but catastrophic issues and at the minimum, this is important. I know many people choose to go this route because of heart attack, car wreck, etc. They may only pay a few hundred a month for their family then go to the Dr and pay out-of-pocket. This is a good way for many people to operate but considering your age I think it would not be best for you. Still, I thought it was worth mentioning.

Our health care system is nothing (and I do mean NOTHING) like someone who is coming from National/Gvt health care and the in's and out's are tricky. Ask LOTS of questions and read all the fine print.

Good Luck on whatever you decide. There are companies who broker health insurance and there are many websites out there, just google. Beware, some are not reputable and it's important to do your homework!

[synthia]

Family sponsorship is limited to parent, grandparents, and children. If your family in the US is any more removed than that, they can't sponsor you. The days of people bringing in aunts, uncles, and cousins are long gone.

If you have any pre-existing health conditions, you might not be able to get any private insurance at all. Obviously company coverage isn't an option for you, since you will be retired. Catastrophic coverage usually has really high deductibles per incident. So, if you break your ankle and need surgery and rehab, as I did in 1999, the insurance will only cover you after a certain level (my ankle, retail, cost $45,000, by the way). If you break an arm the next week, you have to satisfy a deductible again, until you reach another annual limit.

I'd figure on $700-$1500 per month if you can get coverage.

[TheFiveJs]

I guess the point I was making is that lots of people own their own business for secondary reasons. Some do it for the write-off of expenses like phones, fuel etc. They are legitimate write-off's. Other people own their own business for the purpose of obtaining medical insurance through a company. So as long as there are no legal restricitions on the expat in question owning a business, yes they still can get company medical insurance with simply a DBA registered at the county records office.

[synthia]

I suspect that group plans will still be a problem, because even in a group or company paid plan, once you reach 65, that plan becomes a supplemental plan to Medicare.