Do you guys have a health/dental plan or pay as you go?

EvilPenguin

EvilPenguin

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May 4, 2012
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OK serious question here: do you self-employed basement rats have a health/dental plan or do you just pay as you go?

I've got 3 teeth that look like they are starting to decay (small black spot appeared and one feels like it's about to break in half) so I'm wondering if I should get an insurance now before I go to the dentist. This shit's expensive.
 


I think toothpaste is a much more cost-effective way to approach this ;).

But no, I pay for my own health plan that includes dental/vision. It is very expensive like you said. But the way I look at it is -- take advantage of it when you're paying for it, because if you don't have it and you need it, you're fucked.
 
One of the new things I'm working on doing as an affiliate rewards program for my network (instead of iPads and the like) is providing publishers with insurance and such -- as I've noticed many of us in the industry do not take care of ourselves/our loved ones on these very important points.

Would love any feedback in what everyone is looking for besides basic coverage...
 
Just pay for it. I usually can negotiate lower "cash" rates from dentists to help cover a little of the cost.
 
protip, if you have fucked up teeth now...

most dental plans make you wait 12 months on pre-existing for major shit like what your saying is wrong, so your gonna pay the full amount anyways bro.
 
I have my own dental/vision/medical insurance policies.

For dental you may want to look into Delta Dental. That's who I use, it's less than $400 a year and provides typical dental coverage. It's the same company I had my dental insurance through when I was working a 9-5, never had a problem with them.

If you only need the typical 2 cleanings a year you end up paying a little more than if just you paid out of pocket, but if you need anything above and beyond basic care, it more than pays for itself.

Same with vision insurance. I use VPS, I think it's something like $150 a year. If you don't have vision problems it's cheaper to just pay for the eye exam, but if you wear glasses or contacts, it pays for itself.

Medical Insurance sucks balls. It's not so much that it's expensive, which it is, that pisses me off. It's that I almost never use it, but don't have half a million bucks sitting around in the event I get ran over by a kid on a bicycle and lose a testicle or something. So I'll let those bastards strong arm me until I can get cancer in my old age and get my revenge.

Now, I'm off to smoke a cig so I can make sure I come out ahead of BCBS when all is said and done.
 
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JRose said:
Medical Insurance sucks balls. It's not so much that it's expensive, which it is, that pisses me off. It's that I almost never use it, but don't have half a million bucks sitting around in the event I get ran over by a kid on a bicycle and lose a testicle or something. So I'll let those bastards strong arm me until I can get cancer in my old age and get my revenge.

Now, I'm off to smoke a cig so I can make sure I come out ahead of BCBS when all is said and done.
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hahahaha this made me lol so hard. +rep man

fucking healthcare system
 
all insurance companies I've looked at so far are crooks. 80% on fillings, root canals and regular cleanups to a maximum of $700 per year, for a monthly cost of $70. That doesn't seem right now does it?
 
EvilPenguin said:
all insurance companies I've looked at so far are crooks. 80% on fillings, root canals and regular cleanups to a maximum of $700 per year, for a monthly cost of $70. That doesn't seem right now does it?
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It does if you're an insurance company trying to turn a profit.
 
I'm on $150/mo (mandatory) and $30/month optional additional insurance for full general healthcare+dental but since I can afford it I rather go to a competent private dentist and get things properly fixed.

Edit: I'm not from the US
 
For Dental / Vision I pay out of pocket.

For Health, I carry a 10k deductible plan, with no prescription coverage or checkup coverage, etc. Covers having babies and 90% of almost everything after your deductible.

Why? Because the likelyhood of having something that goes over a few $k per year is minimal -when paying cash-.

For example: My wife went to the ER two years ago, and because I paid cash at time of service it cost $250. If I'd told them I had insurance the cost would have been $1800.

I went to the ER with a goldfish cracker in my lung (shut up) and it cost $500 including xrays (did they really think they'd see a fucking CRACKER?) but would have been almost $3k with insurance.

So now I negotiate a cash up front cost for everything, and if I'm ever in a comma or my wife falls off a cliff and breaks everything we have a safety net.
 
EvilPenguin said:
^yeah but what percentage of your dental work does your $150 cover? and what's your yearly maximum?
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It covers everything with no yearly max but here the public healthcare dentists are so-so and usually a hit or miss, so I rather pay dental from my own pocket at a private dentist I've been using for a few years now.
 
For dental work, look at a "Discount Dental Plan". I use Aetna (vitalsavings.com).

Get a quote from the dentist, then call them and ask what the rate is on the discount plan. If you like their rate better, buy the plan. The plan paid itself three times over on just the first visit for me.
 
For general health, I just avoid getting sick or injured. If I ever do have any symptoms, I just do Google searches with extreme confirmation bias to prove to myself it is something minor and of little concern.

For dental, I just pay cash. My dentist is awesome and always gives me a generous discount.
 
kingofsp said:
If I ever do have any symptoms, I just do Google searches with extreme confirmation bias to prove to myself it is something minor and of little concern.
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No matter what I search for those sites always end up telling me I have cancer
 
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