I am at a loss of where to turn or who to ask for help. I’m moving to Chicago, il. At the end of this month and when I do I will be dropped from my anthem coverage. I was diagnosed with type one diabetes 3 years ago and still feel very new to. All of this. Since anthem will no longer cover ms and I have been deemed uninsurable, my options look grim. I can’t afford a high risk policy, my employer will likely not offer insurance(I’m a hairstylist and salons rarely offer health care). It seems like there isn’t any guide ce out there for people like me, my boyfriend and I make decent wages, but Costs for my medical care would tap us out. Does anyone have any resources they can suggest or numbers I can call to figure something out? This is all very scary for me and I really am clueless. I’m beginning to feel like my only options are to stay in Kentucky forever and be safely insured or leave to live my life the way I want with he person I want and be broke and without the medication and are I need to stay healthy.
First, so sorry to hear this is happening to you. It can be so scary.
As a self employed person with Type I, I have only been able to get insurance through our small bus. It is $870 per month for two and the state run pool is the same price, though you can qualify for one low income program in our state if you do not have coverage that you voluntarily drop.
The only way to see what your state offers is to check the insurance board or Health and Human services.
I also know people who get services through the local medical school at the University (which is the county run program).
Waits can be long, but doctors are not so bad there.
See if your new location offers a low income plan for you. You’re not doing a voluntary drop nor dropping for failure to pay.
You may find something.
Blessings and best wishes.
I don’t understand enough to offer any ideas. Personally, I would not leave insurance coverage until I had other insurance to take its place. But that is me. Regardless of what I might gain otherwise. I wonder if the case is that your boyfriend is moving and you want to go with him.
I would be looking at the Illinois state options, as Laura said, before moving. You say you have been deemed uninsurable. by whom? We now have a federal law that no one can be denied insurance due to previous health conditions. But yes, they can charge big bucks for the insurance.
My only advice is to take the time to plan more carefully on how you could live in Chicago, given the cost of living there and the cost of insurance and your likely income. Why not stay where you are for a few more months while you research all the pros and cons? Boyfriend could go ahead and you could join him later, right? Have the two of you discussed the ramifications of your situation? Where does he stand? Would he be able to help with insurance costs?
Diabetes is not the kind of disease that can be managed without adequate meds, food, supplies, and health visits. Think more!
Depending on your income you may qualify for patient assistance programs for insulin and any brand name drugs you may be taking. Their qualifications for a 2 person home are quite low. NovoNordisk states a 2 person household can make $29,140 per year and still qualify. Every other assistance program has higher income levels than Novo so if this is close you may qualify for Sanofi ($36,425 for 2 person home, Lilly’s is even higher (Humalog)). I have come by very few name brand drugs that do not have such help. Unfortunately any Doc appt’s labs etc would be out of pocket and there is not a whole lot of help with test strips. When I was uninsured I found a Doc who would let me be seen minimally and still sign to get me help through these programs. I used the Reli-On version of test strips and if I ever wanted to check up on my A1c I would use one of the A1c Now kits. Not an ideal way to manage but better than nothing.
I develop type 1 3 years ago too. I have no insurance (which is scary) but so for it has worked out. My endo is the best he gives me a discount for my visit. Gives me all my insulin for free. Also once in a while he will have supplies for my pump he will give. Sometimes gives me test strips. So I know i am so bless to have him has my doctor. When you find a doctor tell him your not insured and money is tight. He may really help you. Endo seem to get a load of sample supplies.
In MA, if you have had insurance continuously for the past 6 months (or so), you are not considered to have a preexisting condition and they have to cover you. I don’t know if the same is true in Illinois, as they have different insurance laws. But it is possible that if you buy the insurance immediately, you may be covered. The only other option is the state high risk insurance. Unfortunately, you will probably have to wait six months before you can get insurance from the state of Illinois’ preexisting condition insurance pool. You will qualify, as you have diabetes, but you have to have been uninsured for the past 6 months to qualify for it. http://www.insurance.illinois.gov/ipxp/ is the website for that program. While it sucks and anything can change, if you talk to your doctor about samples, do the drug companies assistance programs and budget well, you might be able to swing it for those 6 months and hope that nothing goes wrong.
Thank you everyone for your comments and suggestions. Trust me when I say this was a thought out plan and my boyfriend and I have talked a great deal about what this move means to ms. He is willing to help in whatever way possible including financially. Hopefully, when he is brought on full time at his company I will be able to go on his insurance. I know there are ways to find the care I need at an affordable price. It’s going to take a lot of digging, patience and determination, but we are both willing to dig Kurd heels in. I have some contacts already, but was looking to this community with any additional advice. It seems absurd that just by moving out of state my whole medical well being is in jeopardy. Sigh… I do know that every problem
has a solution and I will figure it out. I refuse to let diabetes stop me from living the life I want with the person u want in the city I want. That just isn’t an option for me.
I dont think it should be.
I hope all works out well for you.
I know this might feel like a step back but if you are under 26 and either of your parents are enrolled in an employer plan, you could be added as a dependent. That might give you some time to get settled in Chicago and have your boyfriend find a job with good benefits or (fingers crossed) have Obamacare kick in.
Maurie
the only things you NEED to mangage this disease effectively are test strips and insulin, if you concentrate your efforts on getting this for the most amount and the cheapest possible, i.e. free samples, bulk buying. and develope relationships with drug reps/ receptionists, and doctors. etc good luck and think outside the box…
We also have to buy our insurance through the individual market and pay well over $1000 per month and we still have a $6000 deductible, it is outrageous. I checked the high risk pool and that would be higher. You might want to check with the individual companies that provide your insulin. Most have programs designed to help low income workers.
Good medical insurance isn’t cheap. I have small business clients in MA who pay $20,000 per year for a family plan under a small group policy. My wife and I have insurance through my wife’s employer (a local hospital system) and the total cost of that policy is close to $20,000 per year with our share is around $10,000 per year. These are not health rated policies.
If we want something close to universal access without a single payer system or other form of government health care, we have to accept the fact that it will be expensive.
Maurie
I’ve gone both to the Cook Co Health Dept & University of Ill sites (for the health clinics there) and I found nothing that would encourage going to Chicago without health insurance. There are no freebies, either city or state supported.
Why not stay in KY where you have insurance until you have absolute assurance of being on a husband’s/significant other’s policy! You have a good line of work, your work will be easily obtained once you get to Chicago, but your health insurance is PRIMARY and you have it where you are. Being without it is a feeling that can’t be described.
Maybe someone from Cook Co. Health Dept. can get on here and name a clinic with help.
i would answer-- because you only live once and if you have an oppurtunity to chase your dreams please do so you will be surprised how well you develope skills to survive like finding ways to get insulin, drug reps carry samples are can’t wait to hand them out you just have to figure out when and where to get there, i quite a few free sample cards with no expiration dates that i can alwayas have as a back up, because you have to plan;
but i would hate to be the person who regrets not taking a chance because you feel as if something holds you back, luckily in this country we treat the poor quite well so if you do fall flat on your face if you take risk and fall, you have free cell phones housing, food, and medicine…
which leaves the only reason to not risk as being afraid to succeed…
medicaid/care isn’t going anywhere as much as most would like to believe… so dont be afraid to fail…
Check into COBRA insurance which means you continue under your current insurance plan for a higher premiew for a max of 14 months, I think. My daughter had to do that twice when she moved to different state or changed jobs.
COBRA is a good name for it because it is a killer. I switched jobs once and was considering keeping my insurance until I was eligible for my new company’s insurance. When I got the insurance quote to keep my insurance under COBRA, I was overcome by extreme sticker shock. I determined it was cheaper to opt out and pay out of pocket than to stick with my existing insurance.
Actually it’s 18 months. COBRA cost is 102% of the premium the company pays; you would be getting the company’s group rate, which would be a better rate than an individual policy, and you would have the benefit of the same policy. Plan participants and beneficiaries generally must be sent an election notice not later than 14 days after the plan administrator receives notice that a qualifying event has occurred. The individual then has 60 days to decide whether to elect COBRA continuation coverage. The person has 45 days after electing coverage to pay the initial premium. So when you get the election notice, you might want to hold onto it in case you decide you need insurance coverage before the 60 days is up.
Your facts are correct. I have used COBRA several times over recent years and have found it very helpful, given my history of preexisting conditions, from melanoma to diabetes, etc.
It was several hundred dollars per month cheaper than an individual plan with one of the “blues” and about the same as I’m now paying for individual coverage through Group Health (a non-profit HMO).
In California they have something called “CalCOBRA” which gives an additional 18 months after the federal COBRA runs out. This may exist in other states…?
I suggest one of you getting a new career and work for a company that provides insurance.
I know I could not do it without coverage, even poor coverage like I have now.
I know that may sound nuts but what’s better – living better and working for a while or working at what you like and enjoy it for a time with poor health, feeling bad all the time for possibly a more limited time?
Gosh, in this climate it’s not easy to get a new career going and even then you are not guaranteed benefits, benefits right away or benefits that are affordable. I think we should refrain from giving advice to people when we just dont know their circumstances