I Finally Got My Obamacare And Couldn't Be More Pleased
After months of fighting with healthcare.gov, I was finally able to sign up and pick a plan, with great coverage.
On October 1 of this year I was one of the idiots that immediately flocked to healthcare.gov to try and sign up. Working in the web development industry, you would think I knew better, but having lived the past several years without health insurance, I was so eager to get going. What happened after that was a nightmare.
As near as I can recall I have filed applications at least 24 times on the website. Every single time I would get to the very end, only to be greeted with a message that they are waiting to verify my identity, even though my account on the site said I was verified. I even tried again over the weekend, same result, with greater disappointment.
After getting a suggestion from one of our writers at Crooks and Liars, Karoli, today I deleted out my old application and created an entirely new account. Now I admit I had thought about this before, given the logical nature of a programmers mind, but I was worried that perhaps that wasn’t allowed under the law. Well apparently it is, and after about 30 minutes of filling out the application again, reviewing plans and picking one, I will have coverage starting January 1. I got to say that the process was smoother than I could have ever imagined, and I couldn’t be happier.
The coverage I got includes not only health, but also dental and vision. Being a diabetic, those two items are just as important to me. Once I got my premium total, plus deductibles and co-pays, I decided to compare it to the last employer-based program I had 10 years ago. On monthly premiums I am paying out almost $40 less. My office co-pays are $35 less and my deducible is 1/5 of what it was 10 years ago. Oh, plus I get dental and vision – something I didn’t have with that employer plan.
Amazing, right? I’m paying a ton less than I did a decade ago, even with inflation and the employer picking up part of the tab. I’ve got payments that I can easily live with, including my costs. I’ve gone through the coverage time and time again, and it is really amazing.
I guess there really are Christmas miracles!
