Insurance

[anonymous]

Hi there
I posted a question earlier about hospitals in NYC. Now anothre question--- I know alot of you have different employment issues, and I have read that some of you count yourselves as 'disabled'. My question is this- how easy is it for you to have a full time regular job? I do IV antibiotics about once every 4 months, give or take. Sometimes its planned, sometimes its not...you know how it goes.

I guess I just dont understand how it works...if my CF can be classified as a disability, then no one can discriminate against me. But how can I possibly have a job where I need to leave for at least a week every 4 months? I have grazed over these discussions on the site in the past, existing in my own little bubble of college and parents health insurance. Now I am trying to figure out how to hack it on my own. Can I expect to get a full time job? Are most health insurances that you would get through a company as good as what I have now? These are all questions I am also researching on my own but would love some input, or personal info on what you guys all do.

I am also in the art field, which is a tough one for getting a good job that even offers insurance.

Caitlin

 

[JazzysMom]

Since the family leave act kicked in it is easier to get time off without losing your job so that would help if you meet the "requirements". The bad thing is that if you are not entitled to sick leave etc, even tho you cant be fired you wouldnt necessarily have income for that time off. IN addition you must think about the health benefits & what the requirements are as far as COBRA etc to assure you have coverage even if not actively working. I was married to my husband who had a great job/benefits. For us we were ok medically, prescriptions etc. Our problem came when the debts we had established with a two person income had to be paid with a one person income. The 18 month period between my quitting work & winning my disability case was rough. BUT it could have been a lot more difficult without my husbands pay. I dont know how other people do it honestly!!

 

[NoExcuses]

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[NoExcuses]

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[Chaggie]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>amy</b></i> The reality of life is
that government can enact all the laws they want against
discrimination, but it still exists. Your work may not be able to
fire you, but they can make your life hell to the point where you
quit. Or they can find another reason to fire you. Hacking it on
your own is extremely difficult. Your insight is right on. The only
reason I've been able to hold down my job is cuz I haven't been
that ill over the past 2.5 years. If I was off a lot, I think my
sales numbers would suffer and I would lose my job. Not cuz of my
CF. But because it's hard to sell when you're out of commission
every few months. I would recommend a government job. I'm serious.
I've considered it many times. Like a DMV person or a post office
person. Those places are impossible to get fired from. You could
kill someone and still not get fired. Plus the benefits are
incredible. May not be the best paying gig in the world, but it's
low stress, great benefits for medical, and you can take time off
for tune-ups without fear of losing your job. If/when my health
declines, I will be the 1st in line for a gov't job.</end quote></div><br>
<br>
Living in Socal and being in healthcare, you should look at Kaiser,
just like the government but better paying.  And you can't get
better medical coverage.

 

[NoExcuses]

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[lightNlife]

The ADA was a good thing, however it doesn't mean we can just say
"I have CF and you can't fire me". I know that's not the
attitude you've expressed, I'm just saying that even with laws in
place, I still feel the need to be very discrete about what
information I share about my health and with whom at work.<br>
<br>
I work for a very large global company with excellent coverage, but
even so, I've had to fight some battles. For example, my disability
leave pay won't kick in until a 7 day waiting period goes by.
Meaning, I'm without almost 60 hours of no pay before I get a a
benefits check. The exception is if I'm hospitalized.<br>
<br>
When deciding where I wanted to work, I looked into finding a
company that had its own disability insurance in addition to the
state mandated stuff. I also elect to pay into the voluntary
disability leave "pot" with each paycheck. For me that's
been a huge plus. My employer also offers life insurance w/o a
medical exam! I couldn't have gotten life insurance any other
way.<br>
<br>
I agree with Amy. A government job is a good way to go. I'm in the
consulting business and we do most of our work for the government,
which is why things are so great in terms of benefits.<br>
<br>
Now, to address your specific questions:<br>
<br>
<b>Am I able to have a full-time regular job?</b> yes, but I know I
can't keep this up forever<br>
<br>
<b>Are most employer-provided insurance plans as good as what you
have now?</b> I don't know what you have now, but I'm presuming you
have an HMO. In my opinion, as difficult as they are to deal with,
HMOs really do give CFers the biggest bang for the buck. The key
things to look for in terms of coverage are 1) hospitalization 2)
durable medical<br>
My plan has 100% coverage on those things. If my husband and I had
signed up with his employer's plan instead of mine, we would have
been stuck paying at least 20% of a 70k hospital bill last month.
Scary.<br>
<br>
Since you're an artist, I thought you may like to read this <a
href="http://cfroundtable.com/Focusframset.htm">article</a>, which
is from the CF Roundtable. The author (Andrea Eisenman) talks about
finding an art job that accommodated her CF needs. If you follow
that link, then click on the "careers" header. 3 articles
should be available.<br>
<br>
I encourage you to check out the CFRoundtable. There are some
tremendously helpful articles on there that answer a lot of the
questions you're asking. I only wish I had known about this
resource when I was your age! Fortunately, I was able to forge my
own path anyway and it turned out to be just right for me.<br>
<br>
Best wishes as you strike out on your own. You are wise and mature
to be looking into finding out how to make a go of it in spite of
CF. If I can help you out in any other way (perhaps even see if our
company is looking for artists for our marketing dept) let me know.
Go ahead and PM me.<br>
<br>

 

[Alyssa]

The best insurance coverage is usually available from the big companies -- the larger the company the more people they employ and the more money they are spending with the insurance company to buy the policies and therefore because of the volume they are able to purchase better plans for their employees. The small little companies usually have plans that do not cover things as well and will usually end up costing you more out of pocket.

I agree with Amy ... government jobs and large corporations are your best bet for coverage. If you find a job that suits you perfectly you just have to ask about their health care package -- the biggest things I would look for are yearly deductibles, co-insurance (meaning how much they expect you to pay) co-pays (what you pay for an office visit and prescriptions) and lifetime maximums. The standard seems to be 20/80 (you pay 20%, they pay 80%)

We have excellent coverage through FedEx right now -- all medications have a fixed co-pay amount, we pay either $10, $30 or $45 depending on what the medication is -- generics are always $10 -- Tobi is $45 and let me tell you... at $1300. a pop I was more than pleased to pay my $45 and get out of there We do not have any deductible or co-insurance with this coverage, but many many plans are 20/80(with CF that can really add up) and add to that deductibles and your really out some serious cash.

So, yes, like Amy said ... <b>check out your COBRA options </b> - stay with that for as long as you can (unless you get hired somewhere that has excellent coverage) The standard time is 18 months and there are some exceptions for getting an additional 18 months after that - but if you have not found work with good benefits <b>DO NOT </b>give up your insurance coverage. <b>COBRA, COBRA, COBRA - if you have a laps in coverage for more than 63 days you will be held out for pre-existing conditions for as much as 12 months </b> - meaning you can have health insurance through your employer (or even be buying an individual policy by yourself) and <b>they will not pay out a dime for anything related to CF.</b>

 

[lightNlife]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>amy</b></i> Kaiser???? Holy sh!t I
would stay as far away from them as humanly possible...... I think
they are incredibly shady and unethical</end quote></div><br>
<br>
I agree to some extent. You know that saying about how you can tell
who the bad drivers are by how many dings they have on their car? I
think you can also tell which insurance providers and hospitals are
the least upstanding by how many commercials they have to drum up
business. More commercials = lower quality of services provided

 

[JennifersHope]

Hi,

I thought I would throw my two cents in.. I work full time as a Registered Nurse now, but in years past I worked as a Medical Tech... My hosptial has always been wonderful about me missing time off and never has given me a problem.

Now that I am "contracted" as full time, a lot of things have changed for me, such as if I miss more then 5 days of work I am required to take a leave of absence of some type.. Take for example now. I have been in the hospital for the past two weeks and don't see much hope of getting out any time soon. I just started one month ago on a new floor in a new position, because of this change.. I don't qualify for medical leave of absence... which is where my job is secured by law... I have to take a personal leave of absence where the law does not require them to save my job spot.. I need to research more into the laws to see but all that to say... It is really difficult to work full time unless you work in a place like Amy said.. or a place where the environment can continue when you are not able to go there.

I don't feel real secure about anything right now.. I feel like I need to stay living with my parents because my health is so uncertain all the time.. My best piece of advice I can give you is.. make sure you have a back up plan for when emergency arises..

Jennifer

 

[anonymous]

hey everyone- THANK you. lightnlife-- the articles were really interesting- especially the art one. I have actually been thinking about maybe exploring web design? Its something tangible that would give me a skill that I could maybe freelance, or at least land a job in a company that would be more substantial than an art gallery, which would probably offer me little to no coverage.

The idea about government jobs is interesting-- thanks for that and I'll keep that in mind.

I guess I am just holding back- I am hesitant to give up this dream and picture I have of myself working in some gallery and hopping around the West Village living off of 100 bucks a week like other people my age. I have a friend who has had an amazing job at Estee Lauder for the past year in NYC- with no health insurance! Estee doesnt even offer it because people are willing to work there anyway.

Right now I have Tufts, in MA, and it definitely is great. I admit I've been completely ignorant these past few years, ignoring everything about health insurance and letting my parents deal with it. Now I feel as though I am in the dark with all these terms-- not a feeling I like.
Thanks for all your words of wisdom in helping me figure this all out.


Caitlin
23 w/ b cepacia

 

[NoExcuses]

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[Chaggie]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>amy</b></i> Kaiser???? Holy sh!t I
would stay as far away from them as humanly possible...... I think
they are incredibly shady and unethical</end quote></div><br>
<br>
They're an insurance company, of course they are unethical, but not
shady.  The problem with kaiser is the beurocracy it has
become.  I know you've said you know doctors that work for
them, but it really isn't all that bad a company.

 

[Chaggie]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>lightNlife</b></i> <div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally
posted by: <b>amy</b></i> Kaiser???? Holy sh!t I would stay as far
away from them as humanly possible...... I think they are
incredibly shady and unethical</end quote></div> I agree to some extent. You know
that saying about how you can tell who the bad drivers are by how
many dings they have on their car? I think you can also tell which
insurance providers and hospitals are the least upstanding by how
many commercials they have to drum up business. More commercials =
lower quality of services provided</end quote></div><br>
<br>
the last thing kaiser need to do is drum up business, they are the
biggest healthcare provider in CA and membership is outpacing
growth.  The reason they spend so much on advertising is that
it is an efficient way of spending money.  In order to
maintain it's non-profit status they can only take in so much in
profit, and spend the rest, advertising provides an easy way to do
that.  Construction is the other.

 

[sunkistdrinker]

Whether or not we can have a full time job is different for everyone I guess. I have been working a full time job teaching preschoolers for going on seven years now and a part time youth minister for almost four years now.