#healthinsurance

Healthcare costs continue to rise. Will we see big increases in employee contributions?

Remember that employee survey a year or two ago about benefits? I wonder what happened with those results.

https://247wallst.com/personal-finance/2026/09/21/humana-is-dropping-plans-covering-600000-members-and-hopes-240000-choose-humana-again-the-replacement-is-not-the-same-plan/

If we don’t want to continue the Cobra coverage, do we just do nothing and it lapses on its own or is there some formal process we have to go through? Anyone reading who has been through this already please advise. The person on the phone when I called did not inspire confidence with her answer. Thanks

How can we contact Centene about our Cobra subsidy? Every time I try calling Centene, it forwards me to Optum. What a cluster. So glad to be out of this disgusting, disgraceful & dishonest company.

Has anyone compared their healthcare costs? I just looked and HSA went from roughly 2k/yr to 9k. Am I seeing straight? I did get an email about a pay tier change… but that’s not worth a 7k increase. Anyone?

I logged into the cobra.optumfinancial.com website and it's now showing my premium subsidy.

I just received a 2nd notice from Optum today. No subsidy reflected yet. Still showing the full amount due ($2,200+ monthly). Over 2 weeks since my last day (9/4), which has been more than enough time for them to correct this situation. So frustrating. Keep any nasty or ignorant replies to yourself.

So I just wanted to give an update on this after my surgery
While lantern says they require bariatric surgery on the insurance card, UCH ended up covering my OP 100% so I ended up not having to wait.

Whats sc--wy is if you call lantern, they'll say some backwards stuff going back on the "bariatric surgery required" thing.

I hope Dell removes lantern from offerings in the future, that deceptive statement can really backfire at some point in my opinion and delay care. I have once been harassed over my BMI. UCH PPO is fine, I reached my pocket maximum earlier this month. I just wanted to update anyone out there that was curious on it. If you need help just go through UCH, its not that bad.

Has anyone noticed that less providers are accepting UHC coverage?

Just disconnected from speaking with an Optum Financial call rep after receiving a letter from them that outlines premiums greater than what was agreed upon with Centene in the VSP separation agreement. The Optum Financial rep informed me they received a PSA notice internally from Centene that acknowledged Centene sent incorrect information to Optum in order to begin administering our COBRA benefits. Optum had no record of my 10 months COBRA Premium subsidy as promised by Centene. The agent further informed me the internal PSA notice they received states Centene was slated to mail out corrected forms to terminated employees 9/14 (2 days ago). Per the agent, it was advised for me to wait to enroll in COBRA until they had corrected agreement information from Centene. Great job, Centene. Here comes a potential lapse in coverage since last day of coverage is end of Sept. Optum said they are not retroing the effective date to 10/1.

I just got off the phone with lantern before a procedure I was gonna have done (removal of tumor) and they said I have to go through one of their providers-- that have less than 1% complication rate.

I never called because the card says "bariatric surgery required" now they wanna slow everything down and start the whole consult all over again delaying my procedure.

I dont know what to do, what is even the point of that- seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen.

I know we all freaked out when we received the letter from Optum Financial with the COBRA info, but I want to make sure everyone understands that is NOT our out of pocket premium.
Here is what you need to do (I just did it):

• either mail the form in or, following the instructions on the letter, go online to complete the registration (I think it’s best and safer doing it online).
  Use the Registration ID they provided on the letter.
  Once registered, accept the terms. Make sure to save a PDF of your acceptance. DO NOT PAY!
  What will happen next: they will notify CNC that you accepted the terms. CNC will then send COBRA the subsidy information. Once they receive that they will update your record with the amount that is due by October 1st. This amount should be around the same as you had deducted from the 9/11 paycheck (it was doubled so it covered for the month of September). It takes between 7-10 business days, from the day you accept the terms, for this process to complete (that’s why I suggest doing it online).
  You will receive a letter from Optum with your update premium then, but about you can always go back to your account online to check on the updated premium.

I called them a few minutes ago and the CSR asked me if I could share all this with my colleagues as they are getting tons of call for the same reason/concern.

Just wanted to have a clean thread to calm your hearts (I would have had a heart attack had I had to pay $1,700 a month)! ☺️

Has anyone received a letter from Optum / Cobra after taking the VSP. I got a letter today stating that my premium due starting 10/1 are a total of $1,188.74 PER MONTH. How does that make sense? I thought they were paying a portion? this is absolutely fu---d

I told my manager to put me on the list and here I am laid off. It’s time for a new start and I couldn’t be happier. They did sc--w us a bit on health coverage, it’s done in 3 days.

S-B trying to wrap himself in the work and sacrifice of others. FU Dan. VZ had over 220K employees at one time, and now under 90K, most of them kicked to the curb before Dan put his sh1t covered boot prints on the company. Hey Dan, what about those employees and their families? Guessing a number of those families went on to lose their homes and drain their 401k accounts, not to mention any health issues that could not be properly addressed because they lost their health insurance. Don't give me the BS about cutting people for the good of the company. There is and has been PLENTY of money coming into the company. That money does NOT need to keep going up to the wealthiest people in the world. Those fired employees helped build this company into the one that HAD the best network. Well, it was, at least, until you and your ilk decided the network was over engineered and decided to let the upkeep go to he-l (readers - see the fierce wireless article for Dan's characterizations). All the mid level managers and higher going along with it and participating in the RIFs are just as bad. P1ss poor human beings. Go work for a defense contractor where you can do even more damage....

Beyond 9/11, there are and have been many employees who sacrifice their time when there are natural and other disasters to get and keep the network up and available. Now, because of the cutbacks (i.e. greed of the sociopaths), even though those efforts are still needed, people are and will be stretched beyond thin when those efforts are needed.

Fierce Wireless article link:
https://www.fierce-network.com/broadband/verizon-ceo-dan-schulman-describes-himself-pretty-intense-guy

"Schulman said he wanted to emphasize four things over the past year. "The first is I wanted the company to stop being overly engineering focused and really be obsessed with our customer.” He said he would measure the success of that based on whether churn was going down and whether post-paid phone net ads were going up."

After that, you can elect to continue paying for the next 18 month on your own or find a health plan on the exchange. For a family of 4 the payment is approximately $3600/month.

I was able to view my paycheck for this Friday, 9/11/26 on my mobile Dayforce app and the deduction for dental, medical, and vision is for the month…which makes sense.

What we want:

1. For American Citizens to not be replaced with Non-Citizens
2. For American Humans to not be replaced with AI
3. For Health Insurance Corporations to do much better at stopping Fraud, Waste, and Abuse
4. For Health Insurance Corporations to stop delaying and denying legitimate patient health claims, regardless of the cost
5. For Health Insurance Corporations to out patient health before cost savings and shareholder profits
6. For Health Insurance Executives to stop being paid anything greater than $1 million per year (remembering that 85% of their salary is coming from government funded tax payer dollars)
7. For costly Data Centers to not use up so water to be used for energy source*
8. For Data Centers to pay their own way when it comes to electricity*

• The last two items are not within the direct control of health insurance corporations, although they have a large hand in lobbying and campaigning for Data Centers to be placed all over the country, including (and especially) within the same states for which they operate.

Is it true that Health reimbursement accounts or going away?

Can anyone who has been layed off recently advise how much cobra is? I have a serious health condition and expect a layoff. Just looking for estimate. Best wishes to those still looking for new jobs.

is this a real thing or is sunlight need with AI and the question of records retention? are employees using too much insurance as to make themselves a liability?

Title says it all. Are other unions having this issue or is it just our high paid inept leadership that failed us many years ago. We all know early 2000’s they sc--wed the future members .

I think for US employees it is 2 months on payroll + 10weeks of pay + 6 months of insurance. Is that correct?

Hi All
I am also waiting like many on decision about whether i will stay or be axed which will be decided in the next few weeks. My question is that in case i loose my job, will I be able to maintain my health insurance for the next 6 months post layoff or would the Health insurance also go away immediately. What happens if you are in middle of a medical procedure.. Does anyone have any idea on health insurance intricacies. I am working in the Dublin office.

Can anybody share what the package looks like? Is health coverage provided outside of the first month?

Question for anyone that was recently laid off. The Severance agreement states that we will be automatically enrolled in our current health benefit plans on September 1st but I also received a letter stating that I need to select a COBRA plan by November 1st? I tried calling but got someone that didn't seem to know what they were talking about and just advised me to login and pick a plan. I have been on a grandfathered health plan for years and don't want to mess anything up. Any advice out there?

Question for anyone that was recently laid off. The Severance agreement states that we will be automatically enrolled in our current health benefit plans on September 1st but I also received a letter stating that I need to select a COBRA plan by November 1st? I tried calling but got someone that didn't seem to know what they were talking about and just advised me to login and pick a plan. I have been on a grandfathered health plan for years and don't want to mess anything up. Any advice out there?

EVERNORTH
HEALTH SERVICES
pepsico
Total
Rewards
Express Scripts® Pharmacy Benefit Services
Weight-loss medication coverage is changing
We want to let you know about a change to your prescription dr-g benefits. Effective October 1, 2026, medications prescribed for weight loss will no longer be covered under the Pepsico Employee Health Care Program or the PepsiCo Retiree Health Care Program (together, the"PepsiCo Plans").
Why we're making this change
Prescription weight-loss medications have become one of the fastest-growing costs in the PepsiCo Plans. Removing coverage for prescription weight-loss dr-gs enables us to maintain a healthcare program that is sustainable and affordable for all PepsiCo employees, while continuing to provide a comprehensive, high-value benefits package. At the same time, many commonly used weight-loss medications now have cash-pay affordability pathways that were not available previously to individual patients.

Has anyone here who recently retired or forced into retirement from Verizon signed up for the Retiree COBRA Plan?

My severance package includes my current health coverage, but that coverage ends in September, so I’m trying to decide whether enrolling in the Retiree COBRA Plan is worth the cost.

I know I can call Verizon Benefits and get answers to my specific questions, but I’d really like to hear from real-world Verizon retirees who have actually gone through the process and can share their experience.

For those who enrolled:

What are you paying per month?
Which plan did you choose?
How has the coverage been compared with what you had while working?
Have you run into any unexpected costs, limitations, or issues?
Overall, do you feel the Retiree COBRA Plan is worth the cost?

I’d especially love to hear from Verizon retirees in Florida, but I’m interested in anyone’s experience. I’m trying to make an informed decision before my current coverage ends. Thanks!

Leadership repeats these concepts on every call, and have for years. In 20 years of having health insurance as an employee here, my costs have gone down ZERO times.

Year over year, it only gets more complicated.

Talk is cheap. Like propaganda, no matter how many times they repeat it - doesn’t make it true.

Reduce my costs, pay my claims - start with those two - get the basics down first.

AEP (Annual Enrollment Program) is only approximately 5 weeks away.

So, to all my social media persons, start now convincing folks that Traditional Medicare is a much better option, especially if they have some catastrophic event and don’t want to have their expensively health claims denied.

This AEP, let’s destroy this corrupt corporation’s membership growth.

This job isn't perfect. But millions are worse off, with no job, no health insurance, and no way to feed their kids. Be grateful for what you have.

A strong early retirement offer from Verizon can be the foundation for a secure future—almost like building your own retirement “empire.” The key is preparation: know your pension value, health benefits, and savings runway before the offer lands. A good offer combined with early planning can turn a stressful decision into a life-changing opportunity.

Although I generally agree with the sentiment towards Sarah London, this would not have happened if our elected officials had crossed party lines to solve the issues with the cost of health insurance. Thanks to our friends in DC, people lost health coverage because it is unaffordable resulting in businesses losing business, resulting in the workers long jobs.

My health insurance is the only thing keeping me here. I have a preexisting condition so I truly can't take a risk with a new company. That's it. The only reason I'm still here.

I will be leaving Exxon soon, but will likely have a couple week gap before starting my new role. I will likely be gone before end of August, but new job starts mid September. For anyone who has recently left Exxon, either through layoffs or voluntarily, how did health insurance work after your last day?

Specifically, does Exxon coverage continue through the end of the month in which you leave, or does it end on your actual termination date?

Also, for anyone who used COBRA, was there a gap where you could wait to elect it and then have coverage applied retroactively if you ended up needing it?

Trying to understand how people handled a short gap between Exxon coverage ending and coverage starting with a new employer.

Thanks!

Anyone on the Health Net / health plan side seeing RIFs hit their team yet?

I’m planning to look for a new job, and I have a question about health insurance. If I’m terminated today, will my medical insurance end immediately, or will it continue through the end of the month?

seems like we have to wait to get a COBRA packet in the mail from Centene before electing.. so I'm like is there a gap in care??? and wondering if we still qualify for marketplace if we do cobra for the 3 months.