Originally Posted by
RockyBoy
$528/mo for DPMP vs. $176/mo for the Silver HSA? That is $4200 per year in premiums. I figure that unless you are 100% sure you will have a medical issue that will run you to the $2600 deductible in the Silver HSA, you would be better off taking the risk and going with the HSA. Throw the $4200 a year into your HSA and after a couple years you will have enough to always pay the max out of pocket if something bad does happen.
I just don't see the DPMP being a good option for very many of us. It might be "easier", but I don't see how it can be cheaper unless you know you will spend lots on healthcare.
Someone told me it was a "no brainer" for me with a family to be in the DPMP. Last year we used up $650 from our HRA money which cost us 0$ because that is money Delta puts in. Had we been in the DPMP we would have had had about $400 out of pocket expenses (Deductible + 20% copay after deductible). We also would have paid thousands more in premiums. Every year during open enrollment I go back and look at what my costs would have been the previous 3 years for each plan being offered. I then go with the plan that would have been the cheapest overall. So far in 8 years the DPMP would have cost me tons more than any of the other plans.
It's true, the cheapest HSA plan is the best deal if nothing ever happens to you or anyone on the plan. But that's not why I buy insurance.
And hopefully you are the exception to the rule, but if you do ever need serious medical care, you'll find from experience that quality varies widely. With DPMP, I can go to Sloan-Kettering, The Mayo Clinic, or anyplace and see anyone I like without going 'out of network', and paying through the nose to have my life saved. And DL can't change the plan, because it's contractual. The others are not, and can be changed anytime for whatever reason.
One other thing. If you have a wife on the plan, you'll be amazed at the cost of women's health care. Guys are like Chevy's, for the most part. Just put gas and oil in it, wash it now and then. Women, well, think 1978 Ferrari. Sure, it looked great when it was new, and boy was it fast. But keeping it running and looking like a well-cared-for classic is a freaking financial black hole. It just keeps getting more expensive, and parts, well... don't get me started!!