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| *Loan,banking and credit>>>health insurance |
Why is it so expensive to add a spouse to my companies group health insurance? |
basically, my company pays 100% of my coverage, which is 153, but, to add my wife, it is like 300 additional (out of my pocket) as the company doesnt pay any toward spouse/family So, you understand that the company only pays for your coverage and not your spouse. That is your responsibility. Now let's figure out why hers is so much more than yours In many states, like CT - where I work, insurance companies are allowed to apply gender when computing premiums. Single guys use their insurance less than single girls. Whey you look at your single premium ($153) and think it would be double for 2 people, you would be wrong. If you look at a single female's premium, you would see that is is significantly higher - my guess is that it is about $300. Therefore, when you have a young couple, one male and one female, you end up with a $453 monthly premium. Of that premium, your boss pays your $153 and you are responsible for the difference. Depending on the size of your employer and your state's laws, you can have composite rates that would have all singles paying the same price, regardless of age, but it doesn't sound like that's the case. I don't think your wife's medical history has anything to do with the cost of her coverage either. In Ct, the rates are community based, not on the health of the insured. This may be the case where you live also. I believe the gender-based rate structure is the culprit here. actually, sex in california doesnt matter, it is the same (in group policies) whether it is a male or a female, but i do know where you are coming from with that Spouses are parasites to a company....they want to encourage them to get their own company insurrance. The bottom line is that your company has an interest in your health... not your wife's. They're going to lose money if you're sick and out of work, so they're willing to pay part (or all, in your case) of your premium. As for why it's so much more ($300 vs $153) to add her, I'm not sure. That doesn't make much sense. Is that for spousal coverage only, or is that for spouse/dependent? You didn't mention how old you and your spouse are. Based on your rate of $153, it sounds like you are in perfect health. If your wife has what is considered a pre-existing condition, her rate will be 2-3 times higher than yours. Some insurance companies go back as far as 3 years to determine if one's health is going to be a liability to the insurance company. If your wife has been and/or is on medication for a health problem, that's a red flag to the insurance company that there will be ongoing future medical expenses. Bottom line, insurance companies are in business to make a profit. If an insured is going to cost them money, they are going to get as much from the insured as possible to cut some of their losses and the rest is spread out across the group in increased rates in the future. If that's the way the policy and the company are, then that's the way it is. What do you want us to do about it? Rhetorical. It costs money to have insurance. Period. I suspect, however, that your wife has some sort of pre-existing condition or is of an age where health insurance generally costs more. And hey, here's an idea. Why not talk it over with HR at work and find out! |
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