For Mathson, who is undergoing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and had knee surgery in September, the news got worse last week. The mill, which shut down, informed him it could no longer afford to offer health or welfare programs to any employees or retirees as of Jan. 1.
Two years short of Medicare eligibility and beset by health problems, Mathson's options for health care are limited and expensive.
"There is insurance out there, but they're Read the rest of this entry »

By Mitchell H. Katz, M.D.
Today is the Great American Smokeout and while San Franciscans are doing their part to help people battle nicotine addiction, recently, I became aware that not all the health insurance plans for our county workers in San Francisco -- nor in many other counties around the state – were covering all of the smoking cessation benefits recommended by the Center for Disease Control.
The City of San Francisco has embraced a Read the rest of this entry »

09:24 PM CST on Friday, December 26, 2008
For the second time in two years, Darrow Frazier is without health insurance. In 2006, the 42-year-old Irving man was laid off as a project manager building railroad cars. In August, his employer reassigned him to be a contract employee, which doesn't include benefits. Mr. Frazier, whose wife is not offered health insurance through her employer, is now nervous. He drives Read the rest of this entry »

"The coverage becomes a lot more expensive just as your income drops," said Karyn Schwartz, a senior policy analyst for Kaiser.
And the cost is easy to overlook in your emergency planning.
For one, because employers pay a portion of the annual premium, you may not know the total bill. Also, any contribution you make to the premium is deducted automatically from your paycheck, pretax. With some planning, though, you can make sure you don't become Read the rest of this entry »

In addition to historical information this press release may contain
"forward-looking statements" that are made in good faith by EIHI pursuant to
the "safe harbor" provisions of the private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements with respect to
strategies, goals, beliefs, expectations, intentions, results of operations,
future performance and business of EIHI. Numerous competitive, economic,
regulatory, Read the rest of this entry »

If the premiums for job-based health coverage this open-enrollment season are giving you palpitations, just wait a few years.
By 2016, the average premiums paid by employers and their workers for family coverage could top $24,000. That amount would put the cost for family health insurance at 45% of median household income, if current trends continue, says a
.
We expect companies to still be footing some of the bill then, though the shifting Read the rest of this entry »

Think of it as insurance for your health insurance.
For workers who lose their employer-sponsored health-care coverage, a first-of-its-kind product from Indianapolis-based Golden Rule Insurance Co. could kick in and save the day.
The plan allows workers currently covered by another policy -- and possibly fearing a layoff -- to pay a monthly fee for the right to enroll in a Golden Rule policy should they become uninsured.
If the policy's purchase Read the rest of this entry »

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Leah Smith shells out more than $730 a month for health insurance but you won't hear her complaining.
Among the jobless, Smith is one of the lucky few with solid health insurance that she can afford. And it covers thousands of dollars in prescription drugs she could never pay for herself.
Health problems forced the 55-year-old to leave her job as a human resources director several years ago. She takes medication to help Read the rest of this entry »

In a survey of 34 South Florida companies by Fort Lauderdale's Seitlin Benefits, 41 percent said they would change benefit levels to keep increases in their medical plans to a minimum. Does that mean skimpier coverage? Some experts say it could, but employers say they're offering choices that turn workers into better health consumers.
Nationally, health premiums are rising by 5 percent, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. In South Florida, Read the rest of this entry »

Health-insurance deductibles of $1,000 or more have become commonplace for people who receive coverage through their employers.
After holding steady at $500 for seven years in a row, the median deductible for individuals jumped to $1,000 in 2008, according to a survey of employers by human-resources consultant Mercer.
The results, released Wednesday, apply to workers covered by traditional plans called preferred-provider organizations. These plans Read the rest of this entry »