Open Season for Health Insurance

[yoboiconnor]

Yeah I’ve had hundreds of thousands covered by bcbs, with 2 kids now I can’t switch

So have other insurances. They’re just covering what they say they will in the pamphlet. Don’t be loyal to the insurances, they’ll fuck you first chance they can get

 

[zedex]

A lot of people say they’re considering switching to MHBP, but haven’t read a ton of first hand experiences from people who’ve already used them for a few years. It seems the biggest holdup could be major things like hospitalizations, surgeries, etc. where BCBS is a copay and MHBP is 10% coinsurance. It’d be nice to hear from someone that’s had them and what their bills and customer experiences have looked like.

MHBP Standard has 10% coinsurance for ancillary services occurred during hospitalization (after $200 copay for the entire stay instead). That means X-rays, CT scan, lab work, and the like. Prices are fairly standard for all of that. ~$200 for a comprehensive lab, $500 for an X-ray or scan.

BCBS Standard does have $350 admission copay for entire stay. But it would be wild to exceed the $150 difference with a 10% coinsurance for ancillary services, that’s not including the $400+/mo difference of premiums.

 

[CF]

Yeah I’ve had hundreds of thousands covered by bcbs, with 2 kids now I can’t switch

What the fuck? Fuck insurance companies you don’t owe them shit.

 

[32andBelow]

We are all gonna be mailmen in 2025 🤝

 

[Phillytroll69]

MHBP Standard has 10% coinsurance for ancillary services occurred during hospitalization (after $200 copay for the entire stay instead). That means X-rays, CT scan, lab work, and the like. Prices are fairly standard for all of that. ~$200 for a comprehensive lab, $500 for an X-ray or scan.

BCBS Standard does have $350 admission copay for entire stay. But it would be wild to exceed the $150 difference with a 10% coinsurance for ancillary services, that’s not including the $400+/mo difference of premiums.

What's the total then for a stay

Bcbs is 250

Mhbp is what?

 

[Raise when?]

What the fuck? Fuck insurance companies you don’t owe them shit.

Im implying they’ve done a good job for me, so im hesitant to switch for that reason. They’ve done an excellent job covering close to a million dollars in charges. It’s not because I think I owe them, it’s because I think it’s been worth it many times over and likely will remain so.

So have other insurances. They’re just covering what they say they will in the pamphlet. Don’t be loyal to the insurances, they’ll fuck you first chance they can get

Has nothing to do with loyalty, but how good I perceive the coverage to be

 

[zedex]

What's the total then for a stay

Bcbs is 250

Mhbp is what?

I get where you’re going - it’s an unknown cost with MBHP except for catastrophic max. To answer your question: It depends but BCBS Standard is $350 copay + $425 per check for premium (family).

MHBP Standard is $200 copay + $195 per check premium + coinsurance of 10% of contract prices for ancillary services (diagnosis, supplies, etc.) very likely less than $500 for your average stay. Can’t be more than the annual out of pocket max (for an individual) of $6k which is about $20 more than the difference in premiums for the year.

Also, MHBP Consumer (HDHP) has the same catastrophic max and nearly same premium as the Standard but gives you $2,400/year into your HSA (and you can put that $230/check premium difference into your HSA) . Just be ready to spend up to $4,000 (fam) quickly before you meet the deductible.

Also MHBP standard has cheaper copays so unless you do end up with some expensive bills, you’ll be saving significantly more for basic healthcare screening and maintenance.

BCBS would be cheaper if your whole family gets cancer at the same time. Even if you don’t have the $6k individual max saved up, you’d likely be better off tossing it on a credit card (hopefully a 0%, probably CareCredit).

 

[32andBelow]

Has nothing to do with loyalty, but how good I perceive the coverage to be

The good news is we can change back in 1 year. Blue cross is not only raising the price but they’ve raised fees and have changed coverages. I have enjoyed them too but it’s time to see what else is out there imo

 

[Raise when?]

The good news is we can change back in 1 year. Blue cross is not only raising the price but they’ve raised fees and have changed coverages. I have enjoyed them too but it’s time to see what else is out there imo

I hear ya man. I don’t really care about BCBS, I just can’t gamble if something really bad happens to anyone in my family. I need good coverage


I hear you on the copays, they love fucking us at every turn

 

[32andBelow]

I hear ya man. I don’t really care about BCBS, I just can’t gamble if something really bad happens to anyone in my family. I need good coverage


I hear you on the copays, they love fucking us at every turn

What they doing to the ozempic mfers is bad too.

 

[Phillytroll69]

What's the max for mhbp? 10% of everything

I get where you’re going - it’s an unknown cost with MBHP except for catastrophic max. To answer your question: It depends but BCBS Standard is $350 copay + $425 per check for premium (family).

MHBP Standard is $200 copay + $195 per check premium + coinsurance of 10% of contract prices for ancillary services (diagnosis, supplies, etc.) very likely less than $500 for your average stay. Can’t be more than the annual out of pocket max (for an individual) of $6k which is about $20 more than the difference in premiums for the year.

Also, MHBP Consumer (HDHP) has the same catastrophic max and nearly same premium as the Standard but gives you $2,400/year into your HSA (and you can put that $230/check premium difference into your HSA) . Just be ready to spend up to $4,000 (fam) quickly before you meet the deductible.

Also MHBP standard has cheaper copays so unless you do end up with some expensive bills, you’ll be saving significantly more for basic healthcare screening and maintenance.

BCBS would be cheaper if your whole family gets cancer at the same time. Even if you don’t have the $6k individual max saved up, you’d likely be better off tossing it on a credit card (hopefully a 0%, probably CareCredit).

yeah it's looking attractive for sure. The unkown is a bunch. Anyone got a real world er (broken bone) or birth for mhbp?

Another concern is last time I had Aetna it was a constant fight it seemed....is the customer service and network ok?

Thanks for the info btw. This sheet says it's a 200 dollar difference of what employees pay a month unless I read it wrong

 

[zedex]

What's the max for mhbp? 10% of everything

yeah it's looking attractive for sure. The unkown is a bunch. Anyone got a real world er (broken bone) or birth for mhbp?

Another concern is last time I had Aetna it was a constant fight it seemed....is the customer service and network ok?

Thanks for the info btw. This sheet says it's a 200 dollar difference of what employees pay a month unless I read it wrong

Bi-weekly (every check) costs and the file you linked is accurate, you just read it wrong. Column 12 shows monthly cost if you prefer to read that but it doesn’t account for the extra two pay periods.

BCBS Standard Family: $424.65
MHBP Standard Family: $194.82
Difference of $229.83 per pay period or $459.66 most months.

MHBP has free maternity care. Might want to read more into it for NICU and the like though. I learned the expensive way that immediately after birth, the newborn is considered a new covered individual with their own deductible/out-of-pocket-max. But most of my expenses were caused by out-of-network specialists at the hospital before the no surprises act.



I haven’t had Aetna in a long while but never had to fight with them when I did. GEHA can be annoying when dealing with the provider helping them figure it out (more-so with the dental side, no issues with Sutter Health), MHBP will likely be the same, but never had to argue about a bill, which is surprising since my locality is through UHC who I had before directly and they were brutal. And GEHA’s customer service has always been super helpful, I expect about the same from MHBP.

Coverage is area dependent. My doctor network (Sutter) is covered by all of the majors locally. Blue Cross has been known for losing providers in my area but I believe the FEP side has been more stable.

Kaiser, if available in your area, is probably the best no-worry-financially plan you can get. But it’s a HMO so you better be good at advocating for family in the medical world and ready to fight every step of the way for anything beyond basic care. Also appointment backlogs and it’s expensive.

MHBP Consumer (HDHP) is looking the like absolute best financial decision for most healthy people though. Keep a line of (Care) credit open for an emergency expense, work out payment deals with the providers if necessary, max out your HSA (and invest it!) but never touch it, save up $12+k outside of the HSA while you can. Worst case scenario you and a family member get expensive injuries and burn the $12k but you’ve been saving $6k in premiums and collecting plan HSA contributions of $2.4k every year and putting in your fed-tax-free contributions for your retirement. (HSA can be used willy-nilly after 65).

Also, after the $4k families deductible - you’d be hard-pressed to reach catastrophic max with cheap co-pays and 0% costs for major stuff. Honestly, even for families with chronic illnesses, I’d still say it’s a smart choice.

 

[Apple-saucer]

What would be the cheapest for someone with no family? In California if it matters. I was looking over the payments and there were a few that had no annual fee, is it just that simple? Besides the copays and what not.

 

[zedex]

What would be the cheapest for someone with no family? In California if it matters. I was looking over the payments and there were a few that had no annual fee, is it just that simple? Besides the copays and what not.

No annual fee? Do you mean deductible?

The premium is what you’d pay out of every paycheck. The cheapest premium is the GEHA Elevate at $58 bi-weekly. You can sort the list of plans by premium on OPM.gov.

But it won’t be the cheapest plan if you go to the doctor for anything other than an annual checkup. You’d probably hit catastrophic max with a single ER visit.

If you’re healthy and can swing a $2k bill if something major comes up, I highly recommend a HDHP plan. GEHA HDHP ($76) is a slightly cheaper premium and includes a basic dental/vision plan for free, MHBP Consumer ($84) gives you slightly more into your HSA but also has a higher deductible though likely cheaper after deductible has been met. If you’re not using your insurance and investing your HSA, a HDHP would be effectively cheaper than any other plan by far.

If you can’t handle unexpected expenses, MHBP or GEHA standard (both $80ish) are similarly priced and have reasonable copays/coverages.

If you just want piece of mind, Kaiser High($195) or BCBS High($175).

TL,DR; GEHA HDHP. With the included dental and vision, your total premiums would be dirt cheap and you can take advantage of the HSA. Just have a savings or a credit card handy for emergencies. Considering the $1,000 plan contribution, your effective bi-weekly premium expense would be $38. If you invest that HSA, the effective cost would go down - possibly negative depending on how sloppy you’re willing to get with finance math/logic.

 

[the inquirer]

No annual fee? Do you mean deductible?

The premium is what you’d pay out of every paycheck. The cheapest premium is the GEHA Elevate at $58 bi-weekly. You can sort the list of plans by premium on OPM.gov.

But it won’t be the cheapest plan if you go to the doctor for anything other than an annual checkup. You’d probably hit catastrophic max with a single ER visit.

If you’re healthy and can swing a $2k bill if something major comes up, I highly recommend a HDHP plan. GEHA HDHP ($76) is a slightly cheaper premium and includes a basic dental/vision plan for free, MHBP Consumer ($84) gives you slightly more into your HSA but also has a higher deductible though likely cheaper after deductible has been met. If you’re not using your insurance and investing your HSA, a HDHP would be effectively cheaper than any other plan by far.

If you can’t handle unexpected expenses, MHBP or GEHA standard (both $80ish) are similarly priced and have reasonable copays/coverages.

If you just want piece of mind, Kaiser High($195) or BCBS High($175).

TL,DR; GEHA HDHP. With the included dental and vision, your total premiums would be dirt cheap and you can take advantage of the HSA. Just have a savings or a credit card handy for emergencies. Considering the $1,000 plan contribution, your effective bi-weekly premium expense would be $38. If you invest that HSA, the effective cost would go down - possibly negative depending on how sloppy you’re willing to get with finance math/logic.

Highly agree. And I got rid of my dental insurance since I’ve switched to geha hdhp. If something major comes up, usually your dentist will tell you what he is keeping an eye on and you can plan accordingly to get dental during open season. Otherwise, it’s still cheaper to pay for a filling out of your hsa than to pay about $1000/year for dental.

 

[GulfBravoPapa]

Why are you paying $1000/year for dental? I pay $13.38 a pay period for mine....

 

[32andBelow]

Why are you paying $1000/year for dental? I pay $13.38 a pay period for mine....

That’s what I was thinking. I will say if you have BCBS you can get away with not having it cus you get some dental benefits but if you get a cavity or a root canal it’s nice to have

 

[the inquirer]

Why are you paying $1000/year for dental? I pay $13.38 a pay period for mine....

It was about 40/ pay period on mine for family. That was for decent coverage. Most dental insurances suck and are not worth it. Mine didn’t have any yearly limits like some of the cheaper plans.

That’s what I was thinking. I will say if you have BCBS you can get away with not having it cus you get some dental benefits but if you get a cavity or a root canal it’s nice to have

With dental, a filling was about 130. Without dental, I paid 250 this year cuz the dentist gives you a cut if you are paying out of pocket. So only 120 difference while I was paying 1000/year. But I paid with my HSA so nothing really out of pocket. Current health insurance does free cleanings and X-rays. And a root canal can be delayed til you get new insurance for the new year.

 

[32andBelow]

It was about 40/ pay period on mine for family. That was for decent coverage. Most dental insurances suck and are not worth it. Mine didn’t have any yearly limits like some of the cheaper plans.

With dental, a filling was about 130. Without dental, I paid 250 this year cuz the dentist gives you a cut if you are paying out of pocket. So only 120 difference while I was paying 1000/year. But I paid with my HSA so nothing really out of pocket. Current health insurance does free cleanings and X-rays. And a root canal can be delayed til you get new insurance for the new year.

Guess it depends where you live. I had 2 small fillings and it was like 650

 

[the inquirer]

Guess it depends where you live. I had 2 small fillings and it was like 650

I’m in Cali. You just need to find an honest dentist.