Cost of Health Insurance?

[Charley Forness]

So, I am at a unique spot in my life thanks to converging circumstances. With the anticipation of having triplets (our first three children) I went into overdrive and paid off my primary home, followed by my credit cards. In essence I am debt free right now, except that I also have three, two-unit homes, that positively cashflow $802 a month. Additionally, I have some other small investments and a blog that bring in another couple hundred a month. In theory, I could live (extremely frugally) off that income each month, so I've reached the crossover point where my investments can support my bills and lifestyle.

But now with a family of five, things will be quite different.

When the babies come home from the hospital in a few weeks, I will be able to start tracking the new expenses, which I plan to do. What I am trying to figure out, ultimately, is my new crossover point where my residual income will pay comfortably for all my bills. It's a laborious process but where I am truly banging my head against the wall is with Health Insurance.

My employer pays for most of my insurance, the rest gets deducted from my paycheck. I live in the US, and as I said, will have a wife and three children as dependents. How does one begin to figure out what the Insurance would cost if I left my job and had to shop for my own Insurance for a family of five? I don't want to go without insurance because my children are quite premature, and will likely need to see plenty of doctors in their formative years. I am not saying I plan to leave my job anytime soon, but as I continue to pay off the mortgages on the investment properties and also continue to grow my blog and other investments, my residual income will go up each month.

Any thoughts from you folks who have a family and pay for your own Insurance?

Thank you and warm regards,
-Charley

[andryia]

Ouch! I totally hear you. We've run into that same brick wall ourselves. It is possible to get an individual policy coupled with a Health Savings Account for tax advantages--though it may be difficult if any of you have serious pre-existing conditions. Several sites will provide you quotes online. I wrote more about this over on my blog a while back.
http://www.howtostayafloat.com/2009/...insurance.html

I HATE health insurance, but it's pretty much a necessity unless you want to risk bankruptcy. Self-employed folks get covered every day, and I'll bet you can too. Good luck!

[andryia]

I missed the part about the triplets being preemies and having medical issues. Unless we get some major health insurance reform here in the U.S., it will be difficult to get an individual policy to cover them. You might be able to get a group policy through a trade association, though.

I've also heard about small business owners setting up a group policy for a VERY small group. . .like you with your wife as an employee. Check what the rules are in your state.

[Charley Forness]

Brilliant, Andryia (love the spelling of your name). Love the idea about the small business health care. I will definitely look into that, thank you.

-Charley

[SurferTiki]

I don't know much about insurance but I have to say congrats on being able to pay your bills and live off of your passive income. That is a great milestone.