Medford, Ore., — It was kind of a rude awakening.
Joe Fort runs his own company – working as a heavy machinery mechanic.
Like others who are unemployed, his health insurance options are limited.
Fort’s been using marketplace insurance for awhile.
The first policy he bought was cancelled back in July.
He found a replacement…
“It was kind of a shock”
But now he’s learning the price for that policy is skyrocketing.
“By the time it’s all said and done, I’m gonna be passed about 940 dollars a month for basic coverage, and that’s a little over a $7,000 dollar deductible.”
That price tag is about 61 percent higher than what he’s paying now, and a much higher jump than the 25-percent that’s been advertised.
“He asked where I was and I said Medford, and he said ‘oh ok it’s a higher jump there than it is up here’, and he was talking about the Portland area.”
The jump is so high, Fort is now thinking about not having insurance at all.
But one financial adviser says insurance is risky for everyone involved.
First, there’s the insurance companies.
“The insurance companies have to take a guess at how risky the pool is going to be and adjust accordingly. ”
Then there’s the risk to the subscriber.
You could pay more than you’d like, and stay healthy.
Or go without, and risk getting sick and facing high medical bills.
“Families may not realize it, but if they have a major illness they may end up paying 10, 20 thousand dollars out of pocket.”
As for Joe, he says, for now, he’s just going to wait and see.
“I told them to call me back in about a month because I needed to decide what I’m gonna do.”
If you need help, or have questions about your health insurance plan, you can visit these websites for further information.
http://www.oregonhealthcare.gov/get-help.html
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