Healthcare.

Everyone’s fav subject….

Like most in the US, I don’t really get to “keep the plan I like”-
$0 premium PPO with $15 copays anymore. It was a nice 6 years. So lucky to have had that.

That nice dream is over!

In 2015, my company is switching plans to offer a different PPO with $1200/year premiums or a High Deductible Healthcare Plan (HDHP) with a Health Savings Account (HSA) into which the company kicks in a little sumpin’-sumpin’ $.

Behind curtain #3 is my husband’s PPO with a $143/mo premium but super low Rx costs.

How on earth did I choose?

Because there is a point at which $1,500 out of pocket is spent, the HDHP flips to them paying 80%. I had to break it down by quarters per year to see if the various deductibles made a difference.

Quarter 1 would be brutal with the HDHP and out-of-pocket max. Would I ever reach the $2500 out-pocket max for my costs to go to 0 as much as I spend on healthcare?

No.

Only if there was an emergency.

Like the time my donkey broke my nose.

Yep. That happened.

And an emergency with the HDHP would cost me through the nose up front….

See what I did there?

Yea. You should be in stitches…

About $2,000.
Whack!
Your broken nose doesn’t feel so bad now, huh?

Those horrible chest pains?
Probably bad indigestion again…
I would be reluctant to get help here…

Ah, Insurance companies have math nerds like me looking into this too…

So, what would I choose if the only option I had was via my company?

The high deductible plan with the HSA. I would add $ to the HSA and use my 6 mo emergency fund for…

Emergencies like donkeys and lobster rolls.

Lucky for me, my husband’s plan, even though the premium is higher, practically gives away Rx through Express Scripts. Pennies for otherwise expensive maintenance meds. It’s a racket.

Here’s the gritty analysis:
Med_side_by_side_comparison.xlsx
Math rulesth.