I'm probably not the only one... (health insurance)

Subject: I'm probably not the only one... (health insurance)

This is somewhat un-Proho related, but I'm sure I'm not the only one with the issue, so I'm putting it out there anyway...

Health New York is a fantastic program, and is cutting me loose because I "made too much money" this past year. Laughable considering I would have more money if I made less and qualified for the program instead of making what I make and paying the insane NY rates (which, by the way, for Oxford is $543.31/month for HMO and $952.62/month for POS).

Point is that I need health insurance, and I wonder if there are any overwhelmingly resourceful nabes out there who have any ideas. I'm a temp by day/musician by night.

Thank you!!!

if you qualify, Working Today has great plans: www.workingtoday.org

I have a really great insurance broker through my business. I'm sure he would be willing to talk to you about your options. His name is Marc Hanlon and his # is (212) 267-5146.

Trying to get health insurance on your own sucks. I looked in to every company, alot of places don't even want to deal with you as an individual. I looked in to MSA's also and they don't cater to NY. Ended up paying ~$300/mo

do you qualify for the freelancers union?

i was fucked without insurance for a while... i broke my foot and caught the pinkeye during that time. i went to st. vincents emergency room on e. pkway and utica. v. affordable, v. efficient, and they were incredibly nice and understanding about my lack of insurance woes. they also tried to point me in the direction of low cost insurance...but i made too much to qualify. so on the whole, a good place to go if you need to, however i wouldn't go there for lady doctor stuff.

Subject: Re: I'm probably not the only one...

spinningpinwheel wrote: This is somewhat un-Proho related, but I'm sure I'm not the only one with the issue, so I'm putting it out there anyway...

Health New York is a fantastic program, and is cutting me loose because I "made too much money" this past year. Laughable considering I would have more money if I made less and qualified for the program instead of making what I make and paying the insane NY rates (which, by the way, for Oxford is $543.31/month for HMO and $952.62/month for POS).

Point is that I need health insurance, and I wonder if there are any overwhelmingly resourceful nabes out there who have any ideas. I'm a temp by day/musician by night.

Thank you!!!

[FULL DISCLOSURE: NOT AN ACCOUNTANT]:I could be totally wrong about this but how about this idea:

If you're really better off making less than the cutoff and you're within $14,000 of it, I think you could put up to $14000 per year pre-tax into a TDA, thus lowering your salary by this amount. This might put your earnings under the limit and qualify you. I don't know if this works for Health NY, but I think it's worth asking an accountant about.

Subject: Re: I'm probably not the only one...

spinningpinwheel wrote:

[FULL DISCLOSURE: NOT AN ACCOUNTANT]:I could be totally wrong about this but how about this idea:

If you're really better off making less than the cutoff and you're within $14,000 of it, I think you could put up to $14000 per year pre-tax into a TDA, thus lowering your salary by this amount. This might put your earnings under the limit and qualify you. I don't know if this works for Health NY, but I think it's worth asking an accountant about.

I am also not an accountant, but I think Carnivore is mistaken. I think the 14K amount is for people with 401(k) or 403(b)s, i.e., people with jobs that offer these perks. For other folks there is a tax deductable amount that they can put into an IRA (3K? I think) per year.
It is possible that if you have a small business, that you might be able to figure out a way to get some pre-tax deductions to lower your income to qualify for low-income health insurance.
It's also true that the clinics at the city hospitals are not bad at all (although you'll likely have a long time in the waiting room to be seen) and they don't charge as much as private MDs. Anyone without health insurance should look into this option if they have pressing health care needs. PM me if you want more specifics.

It's true: looking for health insurance on your own totally sucks.

Thanks for the tips. Working Today was a great help and I'm looking into the Freelancer's Union - it seems like it may work for me.

If not, I'll definately give your guy a call, Flute, thanks for that info!