#healthinsurance

Are healthcare contributions paid in full by Vz, or is the affected employee still responsible for the portion he or she has been paying all along? Are dental and vision included in the coverage along with health?

I know many of you are kicking yourselves for not taking the VSP package but I want to share some positives of not taking it and getting RIF’d (assuming you get the max 35 weeks)

• had you taken it last year and had a last day of September, your insurance would now be running out at the end of this month. Instead, you have it through the end of this year and for another 7 months
• your severance pay will likely hit in 2026 making the tax impact much much smaller
• you don’t have a non compete and are can be rehired at Verizon. VSPers can never be employed by VZ or a subsidiary again
• instead of 60 weeks of pay, you essentially got 100 (granite you had to work for 65 of them. But that’s still more money in your packet than if you took the VSP)

Just wanted to provide a more positive outlook on this crummy situation. Best of luck to everyone.

Would also suggest making sure your Benefits Connection sign ons are working if you haven't signed on in awhile AND that you can sign on from a personal PC at home.
If close to retirement age or over 65, there are insurance options on there as well plus a link to Via Benefits for secondary insurance coverage

If you get sick or a family member gets sick you will be moved to the top of the layoff list.

HIPPA protects your medical history but not your medical/insurance costs. The company has access to that data and will use it to prioritize people for layoffs.

If you get old, your insurance costs will go up, and you will be selected for a layoff.

Don't get sick or get old.

What is Charter's retirement age and years of service is needed to retire? Also, does Charter offers subsidized health insurance in retirement? With the merger, I'm sure this policy will change to either Cox's terms or stay as Charter after the merger. Hopefully people can hold on to receive those retirement benefits.

Been thinking about this recently. What do you think? Has private MA Health Insurance plans being run by an Oligolopy?

Also, I imagine if the Federal Reserve does not cut interest as originally planned, more layoffs may be planned for 1st quarter 2026.

Cutting 15,000 employees should save the company mucho dinero (after the initial cost outlay). That said, hopefully those let go will receive a good severance payout…including health coverage, STI and remaining stock plan.

Thanks to the Johnny and Jeffrey sh-t show, our insurance tripled in cost. Same exact options at a worse provider. This is what Leadership and The Board thinks of us who gave them decades of our lives.

I’ve retired, still not Medicare eligible and my insurance carrier is changing during COBRA. I don’t know why. I’ve called HR/Benefits 3 times, each time I speak with someone, they tell me that I will have answer within a few days. I had the one person create a ticket number, of course, no one informs me of anything. Today, when I called for the 3rd time, rep tells me the answer they put in the ticket was “insurance carrier changed”. No sh$$ sherlock, yes I know that, that’s what I’m asking is why did it change.
Would anyone know why it would change. Yes, my address changed to a different state, so I’m assuming that’s the reason why.

I rely on my medical coverage now more than ever, and the thought of losing it terrifies me. I’m just tired of living with this constant fear of layoffs. I wish we could go back to focusing on our work without worrying every day if we’ll still have a paycheck tomorrow.

I work in federal services and am wondering if anyone knows if the reopening of the government will restore a lot of the members we keep losing due to the shut down. It’s been awful hearing from members how this is impacting them and their family. Those have jobs aren’t getting paid and others are now losing their health coverage.

Centene issued a WARN notice on October 20, 2025, with a layoff date of December 19, 2025, for Centene Management Company, LLC. While the specific locations and roles are not yet detailed, the notice is part of a larger trend of workforce reduction in the health insurance sector due to factors like shifting government healthcare policies and changing market conditions.
Notice Issued: October 20, 2025.
Layoff Date: December 19, 2025.
Company: Centene Management Company, LLC.
Affected Employees: The notice is for a mass layoff and closings, and more specific details are expected to be released later.
Context: This is part of a broader trend in the health insurance industry.
Factors contributing to the layoff include changes in government policies, particularly with the end of pandemic-era Medicaid regulations, and market shifts, according to this YouTube video.
Other recent news includes Centene withdrawing its 2025 guidance in July 2025 due to market conditions, as seen in this press release from Centene's investor relations site.

I’m “assuming” for those who get cut, they’ll work until 12/31 and will get 2wks pay for every yr worked, healthcare coverage for same period and STI / stock vesting paid out?

"why are we sending billions in subsidies to insurance companies when we could just give the money directly to Americans to choose their own healthcare"

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/08/senate-republicans-trump-obamacare

Keep reposting this: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/08/senate-republicans-trump-obamacare

If/when the government eliminates ACA, how will it impact layoffs at Optum?

Got a meeting invite at 3pm on a Friday at the end of November. Should I be worried??

Mine went up 20 bucks a pay period for a comparable plan. So much for the savings with UHC.

More lies. Just like the OHI and then the RTO 3x/week.

if you got let go last week, do you get subsidized cobra for your entire severance period or just through end of year (for example, if severance pay would end in early summer).

I'm looking at how COBRA rates are quoted and it almost looks like COBRA rates aren't geographic specific -- nationwide. (?) So they almost look CHEAPER to me (Northern California) than FTE rates. Am I mis-reading or can somebody confirm what I'm seeing?

COBRA rates: https://teamworks.wellsfargo.com/pdf/ABE_2026/RS_COBRA.pdf

Currently there are 250,000 people employed off shore by health insurance companies, In recent history 5000 jobs have been lost to Ai in out industry.

These changes represent increased profit not improved care. Both Democrat and Republican politicians need to step up and stop this. Health insurance companies all take federal dollars and as such it could be mandated that they only employ Americans.

Call, email, write your representative. Get a response, post it here. We nee to know which of these elected officials actually give a damn about us and about American Health care.

See question.

The U.S. healthcare system is heading into another profit bo-m — for insurers, not patients. Premiums are set to surge an average of 18% in 2026, the steepest increase in over a decade. For millions of Americans already struggling to afford coverage, it’s a blow. For insurance companies, it’s a bonanza.

Behind the numbers lies a troubling truth: the business model of health insurance has become less about protecting patients and more about protecting profits. Advanced algorithms now scan every claim, searching for reasons to deny coverage. Doctors spend hours fighting for payment while patients are buried in appeals and paperwork. Every denied claim is another dollar saved — and another point for Wall Street.

Medicare Advantage, once sold as a way to give seniors more choice, has become a profit machine. Private insurers pocket billions in federal payments while restricting care through narrow networks and prior-authorization hurdles. Meanwhile, these same companies report record revenues, buy back their own stock, and reward executives with multimillion-dollar bonuses.

Healthcare costs rise, but care quality doesn’t. Hospitals close, families skip treatments, and the sick get sicker — all while insurers post double-digit earnings growth.

It’s time to ask what kind of system we’ve built — one where access to care depends not on need, but on profitability. Regulators, lawmakers, and voters must decide whether healthcare remains a public good or continues to serve as one of the most lucrative industries in America.

Because if current trends continue, 2026 will be remembered not as the year healthcare got better, but as the year insurance profits went stratospheric.

I looked on the intranet but can’t find the info. If you get RIF, do you get VZ non-COBRA insurance for the same length as your severance weeks? Or does VZ insurance go away on our last day of work?
Thanks.

Post your comments about the HealthEquity HSA administrative fees scam and minimum account balance 😡😠🗯️
Announced at the end of the month of October and on a Friday!

I’m pretty anxious about the upcoming layoffs. Especially if they are before the new year. My wife and I are expecting a baby soon and are heavily reliant on our insurance currently. Insert panic here.

I accepted relocation rather than the minuscule severance (only 4 years of service). In the (hypothetical) situation where I may have accepted relocation under false pretenses in order to guarantee my bonus and a few extra months of paychecks, would my health benefits end on my last day of work (after resignation, 2 weeks notice) or until the end of the month?

I have been reading the layoff section of several of the larger Health Insurance Companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans.

And they all appear to be making, what at least I feel is a mistake…at least from a humanitarian aspect. They are all exchanging American citizen jobs by swapping them out for two things: Artificial Intelligence & Outsourcing to foreign countries.

I believe that C-suite Executives for all these companies are gearing up for what they already perceive, as follows:

—Medicare Advantage is no longer profitable, which Insurance Execs see, the Government sees, and even the members are starting to see (as MA plans that used to be rich with benefits are now getting skinnier)

As a result, I believe and predict the following:
—Within the next 5 (five) years, MA will completely tank and the largest of the large private Medicare Insurance companies will all submit to the Government RFP (Request For Proposals) bidding to get a contract to administer Original (Traditional) Medicare on behalf of the Government. Note: That is not the same thing as administering MA plans that happen to be funded by the Government.

Because doing this will need to be much more streamlined and not have all the human overhead, which also comes with different challenges, I think this is what Insurance Company Executives are preparing and getting “house cleaned” in advance, as it were.

Side note, and I say this in jest. If 5 (five) years from now, my prediction show to be true, as a sort of concession prize can someone please send me a check for a million dollars? I am kidding! Lol

Has anyone heard what premium increases will be applied to the Elevance Health (formerly Anthem) COBRA insurance for past employees (i.e., RIF'd)?

Elevance Health COBRA insurance is administered either by a third-party administrator (TPA) hired by the employer or by the employer's internal HR department. Anthem offers both COBRA (continuation of group health benefits) and benefits administration solutions, though it often partners with third-party administrators like Benefit Admin Solutions or Benefit Help Solutions to manage the administrative details of COBRA.

and yet our health care costs are going up above the inflation rate

Hey, for those unfortunate (or fortunate) People like me that were surplussed in the past... the cutoff date to renew your COBRA benefits is Nov 7! Of course you will not receive any reminders as I did not from the COmpany to remind you of this important cutoff date: Dont assume you have until the end of November - it is by November 7th.

Most have probably found much cheaper insurance, but I found the Vision plan and Careplus (extended) to be pretty good and kept it. But of course no reminder to renew. Just a public service announcement as we all have other things going on in life, didnt want my old freinds and co-workers to miss out and get scr_wed once again. All the best! I hope you are all in a better place then where we were!

Starting a thread.
Medicare retirees will no longer have dental coverage as of next year.
Would they try doing this to current employees too?

When does health insurance end for those let go on 11/6

Noticed that Citi’s medical plan costs are rising significantly compared to other firms like Wells. For next year, the increase is around $380 per paycheck, which is substantial — even annual salary or bonus adjustments don’t seem to offset that jump

it was rumored to be happening, so did it?

I haven’t been told to RTO yet, but I’m worried that may happen in the near future. I’m not in MN or DC, but my office is one of the next biggest after that. I got hired right before covid and have been working remotely the entire time except for my first few months. I’m technically assigned to the office and not officially a telecommuter, but I’ve only been into my office a handful of times the past 5 years.

Lately I’ve been thinking about moving out of state, which is a personal decision not related to RTO. I like my job and would like to keep it and work there remotely. Most of my team lives in different states, so this really wouldn’t change anything.

What I’m curious about is, if I’m suddenly told to RTO, would it then be too late to request to move out of state, something I’m thinking of doing anyways? Or if I’m told to RTO, could I avoid it by moving? Realistically I’m probably a year or so away from moving, but wondering if I should get going quicker if I need to do this before a RTO mandate.

Heard the rumor above. Anyone else have details or confirmation?

Looking at 2026 Benefits enrollment, healthcare cost for Self+family went up by appx 15% whereas BPI will be 2-3%.
Already a paycut 😭

That's my biggest issue right now. I can't afford to lose my job because I desperately need my health insurance. Do we get anything as part of the severance package?

The new name for Humana is Hellmana. We are working in actual HE-L. Leaders that know nothing.