Health Insurance
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Not being mean at all but there are some hefty people at my office. I too wonder how they don't have to pay more. I never get sick and when I do it is a cold on pneumonia. Which I ha very had twice in 12 years and it was due to running myself into the ground with no sleep. I would be willing to sign a waiver stating I would not use the insurance for lung cancer. But that is not an option.
No, I'm not trying to be mean either. It just seems that they only pick on smokers and then keep on picking on them even after they've quite. I don't know that I've ever heard of insurance companies doing random alcohol or drug tests. Wouldn't that be a little more worrisome to them than whether or not someone was using a nicotine patch? Maybe next they will be spying on people to see if they are having protected sex.
hate to burst bubble but as per obama care ecigs are considered to be just like the real ones
for insurance purposes.
50% premium.
if your state plan is'nt charging you the goverment will.
or your bill will have it added on as a charge to the goverment.
they will say we did'nt charge you the goverment did.
regards
mike
regards
mike
p.s.,yes they will be testing for nicotine.
for insurance purposes.
50% premium.
if your state plan is'nt charging you the goverment will.
or your bill will have it added on as a charge to the goverment.
they will say we did'nt charge you the goverment did.
regards
mike
regards
mike
p.s.,yes they will be testing for nicotine.
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It is not the insurance testing it is my company. So might as well fess up cause if you say you don't smoke and you get picked for the random and fail there will be disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. Wow! Right?
Oh that is double nasty. Don't think I'd want to work for a company that treats their employees like that. Then again I worked for the feds and they didn't even offer health insurance at the time and if you were killed on the job, your family got a whopping $10,000.
its been dicussed adinfinum here and on other forums.
a lot of people are allready paying a premium to there insurers now.
regards
mike
That's not exactly what I'd consider a legitimate source citing actual law.
Again, it appears that vapers have a huge complex of some sort.
My insurance went up MARKEDLY, last company I worked for. I was perfectly healthy, as a matter of fact, I was about to receive an award for never taking a day off in a year.
Yet....I suddenly had to pay a ginormoous premium. Mine went up because I worked with a large number of young people, who were starting families, and everyone was having babies, and mre babies, that year.
My boss, the VP of the company, had a massive heart attack, and had to have all kinds of fixes.
That was how the insurer and Human Resources explained it to me.
I didn't throw a fit. Yes, we all work with obese people, smokers, vapers, baby makers, heart attack survivors, etc. That's what it is all abbout when you join the "community" that is your workplace. Insurers "ding" for all kinds of reasons. If it was a workplace with all older people, I'm sure the ones with high blood pressure or knee replacements would be dumped on.
Actuaries get their risk information from keeping records. Anybody who once smoked, who now vapes, IS STILL A HIGH RISK GROUP.
Just because you started vaping doesn't mean you undid the damage of years of smoking, nor does it mean you are participating in a Harm Free behavior.........vaping is harm reduction ...not harm free.
At least, for now, until more research is done, esp. on flavorings. When it can be shown that after a year, or 3 years, or 5 years, that a vaper's lungs look good and have cleared (and that would require a baseline lung xray from before you quit) then they don't know yet.
I got a baseline xray and a full profile of blood work WHEN I began vaping. Here we are, a forum of thousands, and so much great informaton could be collected. From members. From memebers getting checked out and having this information to supply.....but I never see many people doing that?
Anyway, I will actually have certifable medical data, on myself, as a vaper, for at least 18 months now...... or however long I vape which may be many yhears, I dn't know yet.
So how many of you have usable medical documenation on vaping versus smoking? Seems like that would help our cause more than complaining and worrying that's all.
.
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I used to work as a financial analyst for a large insurance company and now I'm a nurse. I see where you're coming from - really I do - but I disagree.
If someone has quit smoking, they are classified as a non-smoker and get lower rates. Yet they haven't "undone years of damage", etc.
As to whether vaping is 'harm-free'...well, the jury is still out. For the sake of argument, I'll say that vaping is slightly dangerous. But there are many other things - obesity, diabetes, HTN, etc. etc. - that are also dangerous and they do not pay higher rates. A fifty-year-old male with diabetes pays the same amount as a fifty-year-old male without diabetes (at least in my insurance plan). And that's simply not fair.
I got a baseline xray and a full profile of blood work WHEN I began vaping. Here we are, a forum of thousands, and so much great informaton could be collected. From members. From memebers getting checked out and having this information to supply.....but I never see many people doing that?
Anyway, I will actually have certifable medical data, on myself, as a vaper, for at least 18 months now...... or however long I vape which may be many yhears, I dn't know yet.
So how many of you have usable medical documenation on vaping versus smoking? Seems like that would help our cause more than complaining and worrying that's all.
I don't have any medical documentation because I haven't been sick in 45 years (I'm 53 now). No antibiotics, no operations, nothing. Yet I knew people my age with lots of medical problems and I paid more because I smoked.
They are doing it because they can. Smoking is the only activity that I know of that has been designated by the government as "fair game" to abuse the offender any way you see fit. I'm retired now but if I were still working I could check the "No" on the smoking box on the insurance policy. You would have to sue but it would be the insurance company's responsibility to prove that your "ingrown toenail" was a result of nicotine use. With this Obama Care mess we are in would smoking cigarettes not be considered a "pre-existing condition"?
I don't care if your dealing with individuals, corporations, or government everything is "follow the money".
I don't care if your dealing with individuals, corporations, or government everything is "follow the money".
My HR today showed me a loop hole. It stated that if you join the smoking cessation then you can choose non smoker. There it was in black and white and she told me to pick non smoker. Funny thing is her husband vape too and she thinks it is crazy that they don't cut us a break. And I only found out today that he does.
Isn't it the best feeling to pick the "non-smoker" box? It feels so good to not be ashamed of myself anymore. I always felt like such a loser....
Mine actually went down $17 a week and smokers only pay $10 more per month. I have the same Kaiser Platinum coverage as last year. I actually didnt change mine to non-smoker because wasnt sure what their definition actually was. $10 a month who give a ..... anyways!
Just be sure to read the non smokers questionnaire carefully.
Some say tobacco use some say nicotine use = smoker / tobacco user.
I've been shopping for health/life ins for my companies, so far 5 insurers have presented coverage & bid info.
All of them have a clause/fine print stating nicotine / cotinine testing may be used to verify status.
Some say tobacco use some say nicotine use = smoker / tobacco user.
I've been shopping for health/life ins for my companies, so far 5 insurers have presented coverage & bid info.
All of them have a clause/fine print stating nicotine / cotinine testing may be used to verify status.
We have Blue Cross Blue Shield and IDK if the insurance company mandates it, but the facility I work for does define tobacco user as anyone who uses traditional tobacco and e-cigarettes. If you use a "traditional" cessation method (IE a worthless lozenge or patch lolz) then you can check non-smoker but you are enrolled in the cessation program and still pay a higher rate of insurance. If you select non-smoker, you pay less on premiums, but if it is found out that you do use nicotine (and didn't fess up to the cessation/smoking/ecig) use on your insurance, the penalty is losing your job.
Also, filling out the smoker form is completely voluntary. As in, if you don't fill it out, you will automatically be assumed to be a smoker and not get the discount. It averages into ~$50 per month. But, even if you don't smoke, you lose the insurance discount if your BMI is over 24, your cholesterol is elevated, or if you have high blood pressure. So we have 4 categories that you have to fulfill to get the discount.
So what all this means is that if you are a nonsmoker, perfect BMI, perfect cholesterol, and perfect blood pressure, you can save ~$50 per month. If any of those criteria are not met, you do NOT get the ~$50 discount. As it stands right now, there are no urine tests for cotinine with any of our hospital health screenings. BUT....random urinalysis are permissible per our facility contract, so they could test us at any time if they really wante to crack the hammer down. With all the financial problems that hospitals are having, I can guarantee that urine screens would be an easy way to "thin the herd" if job cuts were ever needed.
I simply choose to not fill out the smoking addendum. Let them assume what they want. I figure no paper trail = nothing can come back and bite me in the .... later on. Sadly, I fit the criteria for every other aspect of the discount. Go figure that vaping would be my disqualifier.
Oh edit to add: the facility I work for stopped hiring tobacco users 3 years ago. Anyone who applies for a job and makes it to the job offer stage has to take a pre-employment drug screen and nicotine or cotinine is tested as well. Positive cotinine = job offer rescinded and you are blacklisted from employment here ever again. On the original employment application, it asks you if you are a nicotine user and it specifically states that if you are, you are not eligible to apply for a job. And it also says that if you lie on the application and it is found out that you are a nicotine user, you will be terminated. Thankfully, all nicotine users were grandfathered in if we were already employed before this new mandate took effect. But all new hires are no tobacco/no nicotine users.
Also, filling out the smoker form is completely voluntary. As in, if you don't fill it out, you will automatically be assumed to be a smoker and not get the discount. It averages into ~$50 per month. But, even if you don't smoke, you lose the insurance discount if your BMI is over 24, your cholesterol is elevated, or if you have high blood pressure. So we have 4 categories that you have to fulfill to get the discount.
So what all this means is that if you are a nonsmoker, perfect BMI, perfect cholesterol, and perfect blood pressure, you can save ~$50 per month. If any of those criteria are not met, you do NOT get the ~$50 discount. As it stands right now, there are no urine tests for cotinine with any of our hospital health screenings. BUT....random urinalysis are permissible per our facility contract, so they could test us at any time if they really wante to crack the hammer down. With all the financial problems that hospitals are having, I can guarantee that urine screens would be an easy way to "thin the herd" if job cuts were ever needed.
I simply choose to not fill out the smoking addendum. Let them assume what they want. I figure no paper trail = nothing can come back and bite me in the .... later on. Sadly, I fit the criteria for every other aspect of the discount. Go figure that vaping would be my disqualifier.
Oh edit to add: the facility I work for stopped hiring tobacco users 3 years ago. Anyone who applies for a job and makes it to the job offer stage has to take a pre-employment drug screen and nicotine or cotinine is tested as well. Positive cotinine = job offer rescinded and you are blacklisted from employment here ever again. On the original employment application, it asks you if you are a nicotine user and it specifically states that if you are, you are not eligible to apply for a job. And it also says that if you lie on the application and it is found out that you are a nicotine user, you will be terminated. Thankfully, all nicotine users were grandfathered in if we were already employed before this new mandate took effect. But all new hires are no tobacco/no nicotine users.
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i have the same and we just had open enrollment and its not on there for us yet!
Oh edit to add: the facility I work for stopped hiring tobacco users 3 years ago. Anyone who applies for a job and makes it to the job offer stage has to take a pre-employment drug screen and nicotine or cotinine is tested as well. Positive cotinine = job offer rescinded and you are blacklisted from employment here ever again. On the original employment application, it asks you if you are a nicotine user and it specifically states that if you are, you are not eligible to apply for a job. And it also says that if you lie on the application and it is found out that you are a nicotine user, you will be terminated. Thankfully, all nicotine users were grandfathered in if we were already employed before this new mandate took effect. But all new hires are no tobacco/no nicotine users.[/QUOTE]
thats insane!!!
thats insane!!!
Holy $h!t, that's not even legal here.... and from the looks of the previous comments a small reminder of how lucky we are to have free health care.
Naively I popped in here thinking it was more about life insurance, forgot that you have to buy health insurance also. Good luck guys. Sucks, but the nic is considered tobacco (it's extracted from), but we are non-smokers (yay). wish more considered nicotine like a caffeine style drug rather than all the stigma that associates it with smoking.
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