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
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@ae No i havent but thank you kindly for those links. I will look into each one. :)
Anyone with any common sense and healthy self-worth would never wish or attempt to return to such a place as this.
People with confidence in themselves, their skills, and who have the ability to advocate for themselves successfully don't go begging for acceptance or 2nd chances from people/situations where they've been mistreated. You get yourself out, you don't look back, and you move on to something better.
Which is what I've already done!
: )
You seem to be rather miserable with your lot in life.
I hope things improve for you.
@ac just don’t come back here if you can’t land a new job. You’re not welcome back.
@dw if you are referring to the employees for failing to make first Cobra payment after signing an agreement to do so, then, yes, I would think so.
@dr will that effect their credit score when they are turned over to collections agency ?
@d0 so legally, they would be signing something that says they agreeing to paying $1200/mth, hoping they get another letter AFTER signing with a lower premium? What prevents Optum and Centene from doing a "bait and switch" on the employees? There will now be legal paperwork signed by the employee that saying they are agreeing to Cobra with $1200 premiums due. If the employee doesn't pay, then the Cobra is cancelled and the employee loses the benefit. This whole VSP/ISP nonsense is absolutely insane how it is being handled!!!
@d0 Yes! This is exactly what Optum told me when I called.
@a3 you are spot on!!! But I don't understand how you would get that much from cobra? I thought you would get your part of the premium which is $300 a month for me. You must be talking about the employee part of premium for family coverage or something.
The first notice you receive from Optum is triggered automatically when they received your termination date. That’s why it does not reflect the subsidized amount. Once you agree to the package and electronically sign, Optum will receive that update and issue you a revised letter showing the subsidized amount. Hope this helps!
Hello! If you’re considering going without health insurance for a few months rather than paying for COBRA, don’t forget to factor in the unexpected. You may be perfectly healthy, but a car accident, a fall, or another unexpected medical event could leave you with a very large hospital bill. Obviously, everyone has the right to decide what works best for them, but it’s something to consider.
Optimism and a positive mental outlook can definitely be a factor in avoiding illness to begin with, and in constructively dealing with it should it happen to befall a person.
You can deny it all you want, but it is the truth.
It's too bad that you seem to be mired in toxicity and anger.
All of that negative energy you think you're putting out onto others is actually doing more harm to yourself, by bouncing back onto you.
"Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die."
~ Saint Augustine
@ac yes, surely toxic positivity can cure disease and illness get fu---d babe
@ad Check the uninsured cash payment amount. Should be significantly cheaper with a hardship.
@a6 I didn’t see that, but I’ll go back and look.
That is a tough spot you're in, but congrats on landing the new job!
Have you tried places such as needymeds.org for them to help with the cost of your meds?
https://needymeds.org/search-programs?initialSearchTab=dr-gs
https://blog.needymeds.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Dr-g_Assistance_Table_Proper-2.pdf
https://www.needymeds.org/files/dr-g-card-print.pdf
More options:
https://www.mycrohnsandcolitisteam.com/resources/pay-as-little-as-0-for-your-medications
https://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/es/managing-the-cost-of-ibd/patient-financial-assistance
https://omnirx.org/tools/assistance-finder
This is frustrating. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease after accepting the VSP. I actually just starting fusions on 9/8 and they’re sooooooo expensive. I accepted another job but it doesn’t start for another month. Idk what I’m going to do in the meantime. I need these meds to help stay alive but can’t afford them right now. 😢
The caveat was, "If you're relatively healthy".
Therefore, the suggestion wasn't for you, or anyone else who suffers from ill health.
You know, studies have shown that a sour attitude and disposition can contribute to and exacerbate disease and illness. And that positive, upbeat comportments can contribute to and facilitate healing. Something to consider.
@a3 some of us have chronic illness and disabilities and yes, actually NEED healthcare. your response is pretty ignorant
Opt out of it, to take the $ instead.
There should be an option in your offboarding paperwork.
They can't make you take COBRA.
And if they offer it, then they also have to offer the option for you to not take it, in which case they pay you whatever $ amount they were willing to fork over on their end for their portion of your COBRA coverage if you'd decided to take it.
Mine was $1400!!! How do you take the COBRA payout?
My last day was in April. The first letter I immediately received from Optum quoted the full amount for COBRA. A couple weeks later, I got an updated letter from Optum with the Centene subsidy included - it then showed that I only owed the amount I was paying as an employee. I did not make a payment to them until the amount due reflected that subsidy.
Just don't sign up for it.
Take the COBRA payout $$ instead, and just focus on getting a new job ASAP. ,
Go without healthcare until you get hired somewhere new.
Chances are, you won't be needing it.
I said need, not want.
If you're relatively healthy:
You don't NEED a yearly checkup.
You don't NEED to see a Dr. just for getting a cold or flu.
You don't NEED to get stiches if it's just a cut that will heal on its own.
You don't NEED to get a colonoscopy.
You don't NEED to get a mamogram (lots of false positives with those, anyway)
You don't NEED to yack to a therapist, you can figure out a lot on your own
You don't NEED to do physical therapy when there are plenty of YT vids showing how
You don't NEED an eye exam every year
You don't NEED to get your teeth cleaned every 6 months
You don't NEED a lot of what you've been ingrained to believe that you need, when it comes to caring for your health. Sure it's nice to have, but you can get by without it, too. When circumstances change, especially when it comes to income, pivoting and reassessing priorities is key.
Also, there are lots of local free or low cost clinics available, just do some online searches for them in your area. You don't need health coverage to access their services, and some are on a sliding scale or allow you to pay-over-time rather than all at once or upfront.
Barring a freak accident or some out of the blue serious illness happening, chances are you can do just fine in the few months even up to a year or more that you may be looking for your next job. Once you land that, use their benefits to get back into health coverage.
Or, choose to get reamed to the tune of about $2K each month just for COBRA coverage, while you're unemployed!