2 months to go and it will be 18 blissful months sine the voluntary wave left at the end of November 2022, no package, just to avoid lump sum cuts of 22%.
Question: any success stories to share on acquiring new medical insurance thru the exchanges? Dental? Vision?
Supposedly you can formally buy anything until 60 days before COBRA runs out.
Any tips, tricks
Thanks
I went on my wife's insurance through her work. Unfortunately, since the premiums were deducted pretax I was not able to use my HSA or HRA funds. I was able to use my investments to cover the $800 per month premium.
I took the buyout at age 62.
In a few months I will be 65 and will apply for Medicare. At that point I will be able to use my HSA and HRA funds to cover the premiums for extra coverage.
I agree with the previous poster. Be very careful with VIA, they can provide incorrect and inconsistence Information at times. I have experienced this personally.
New Jersey
Don't forget to consider ROTH conversion when calculating your income. You may think you are saving by taking ACA over Ford subsidy, but it may cost you a lot more down the road when you have to RMD.
If you qualify for tax credits (ACA) and choose to use them then you CANNOT use your HRA to pay for them. You also have to fill in the form to show that the Ford HRA is 'not affordable' according to your gross income.
It's either or. I'm assuming this is for all coverage, so if you accept the tax credits, you can't use the HRA funding to pay for medical premiums or out of pocket uncovered medical expenses.
Also, if you use the tax credits for medical, you can't wave them for dental then use the HRA funding to pay for a dental plan premium or out of pocket.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2022/12/08/ford-workers-retire-pension-warning-interest-rates/10858144002/
My HRA account was growing every month since I joined another company after my voluntary retirement and they had good medical coverage. I just recently returned to submitting reimbursements from my Ford HRA account since my new employer let me go March 1st and I chose to extend my coverage thru COBRA . I found out from talking to VIA benefits that now the HRA money usage has expanded and can now be used for medical deductible reimbursements and not just for medical premiums. Great news !
I have been looking and have not been able to find a medical plan that beats
$1400 per month for myself and my wife thru Blue Cross Blue Shield. The plan has a individual $1000 deductible and individual max out of pocket of $7500. Has anyone found any other medical plan thru VIA benefits that is better than this ?
Many of us to the lump sum and got another job and healthcare coverage through them.
FTW!
@scx:
Quick question, you mentioned your state exchange, could you share with us what your state is?
Thanks
VIA and the ACA.Gov (state exchange) offer the same benefits and access to the same health care plans. VIA only exists to handle Ford's HRA benefit money, and you do not need to use them to sign up for ACA health care plans. Be very careful with VIA - they often provide incorrect information. I recommend doing your own research and buying directly from ACA.gov. Also, you must choose whether to use tax credits if your MAGI qualifies to pay the premium, or use the Ford HRA money to pay the premium. Personally, I get more in tax credits than the Ford HRA subsidy.
This is the 2nd year that I've beenn going thru my state exchange. It was a better price and coverage vs VIA Benefits. I did buy a dental plan (MetLife) thru VIA. That plan was better than what was offered on the exchange.
Yes it’s expensive. HRA money helps. The entire process is filled with miss information.
Good thing is my investments are doing fine and I have more money now than I did when I left.