I Can no Longer Afford Health Insurance?

Question

I buy health insurance through my employer, and I love the insurance. However, I can no longer afford to pay for it. My husband lost his job about 3 months ago and we are only working off of my income. We are barely making it. We have 4 children. I want to stop the insurance because I can barely afford to pay our bills or put food on the table, I can't even afford to pay the $25 co-pay for Dr. visits. I have been going to the health dept for all of our medical issues. The insurance comp told me they can not and will not cancel my insurance even though we are on the verge of poverty, but I'm paying United Health Care $352.56/mo. I need to know what to do to get out of this insurance policy for right now. I feel like they are forcing me to pay for insurance when I no longer want it! They said it is some type of Georgia Law. There has to be a way to end this. I need that extra $88.14/weekly. Does anybody know what I can do to stop these people from forcing me to have their insurance??

Answer 1

You can't get your plan cancelled until open enrollment, unless you quit your job.  It's not just Georgia, it's EVERYWHERE.  If it's a group plan through your employer, you can only make changes if there's a qualifying event (birth, death, marriage, court order) or during open enrollment.

Hubby's going to have to lower himself to flip burgers or deliver pizzas for a few months to help out a bit.

Answer 2

um i dont think what they are telling you is correct. pull out your benefit booklet and look for the "right of cancellation" clause. you should be able to cancel your policy whenever you want. additionally, the request to cancel the insurance has to come from your employer to the insurance company, since the employer is the one who holds the contract.

Answer 3

Contack  your state represenative You cant afford to be without it > canada medicare is for all and be subsidised . Next year my wife retires it will be free  By the way we only pay  $96.00  and hospital free  We dont have co pay  drs, visits full coverd

Answer 4

Vote for Obama. He'll make insurance more affordable.

Answer 5

It is the IRS rules that govern health insurance when deducted from your check on a pre-tax basis and those rules only allow changes to be made during open enrollment or if you have a qualifying event. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/29/116...

If your income is now low enough for you to qualify for Medicaid this will allow you to make a change but in GA you probably make too much to qualify for Medicaid.

http://dch.georgia.gov/00/channel_title/...

One thing you can do is raise the number of exemptions you claim on your W-4.  Stop contributions to your retirement plan.

Cancel any benefits that come out of your check on a post tax basis, this can be done at anytime. Do you have any vacation or sick pay you can get without taking the time off work?

I hate to say it but the others are right, your husband needs to take any job even if he only brings home $90 per week it will help your family.

Answer 6

Tell your husband to get any job he can get. Even if it's working in a fast food restaurant or through a temp agency - while he looks for work in his field. Working a minimum wage job -he can earn enough to cover the cost of the health insurance.

With a family of 4 you can't afford to Not have insurance. The health clinic is great for the sniffles.  But what happens when one of the kids rides their bike out in front of a car and breaks a leg. Treatment for that could easily exceed $40,000 if it needs surgery to repair.

Or heaven forbid - a car accident and every member of the family is hurt.

If you have to - cancel cable - cut your cell phone plan to one with less minutes. You can find other ways to cut expenses.

Canceling your health insurance is a bad bad idea.

Answer 7

Write/fax a letter to UNH president or state insurance commissioner or FTC.

Learn herbal medicines and grow most medicines in back yard.

Contact health dept of county when need doctor's visit, and buy cheap medicines from other countries.  For emergency, just walk in ER, and then vote more for social activitists.

Answer 8

That is a shortsighted solution.  One serious illness could then bankrupt you.  Your husband needs to intensify the job hunt, even if he has to take temp jobs in the interim.