The high deductibles are the key. ;-)
Basically, unless you have gold, serious stuff will have to happen for your insurance to be of much value to you. We were both 60 last year. Total health care outlay was $25 to glue a gold crown back on and $25 for a chiropractor visit. Meanwhile, we saved somewhere between $10,000 and $12,000 in health insurance costs. And when you live in an area where the well paid people are making $15 an hour, that’s a lot (BTW, that’s why I have to drive 80 miles to Louisville every day to have a “city wage” job, but it is WELL worth it).
Correct. And, worse, there is very little help with even preventive costs. If you go in for a “wellness visit”, it turns out that most any test that is done, aside from taking blood pressure or weight, is a deductible, at least if one is a male*...
*Some of the same tests that were not covered for me were covered for my wife, and we are in a “family” plan. At least my daughter’s immunizations were mostly paid for — small comfort, considering the astonishingly high premiums.