connecting*the*dots

(originally uploaded by baratunde)

Come next week — knock on wood — I’ll have a relatively inexpensive health insurance plan. Not a big deal, you say? Okay, here’s a little back story:

• I’ve had a documented, red flag raising, pre-existing condition for a while now — nothing life-threatening, but a red flagger nonetheless
• For the last 18-months, I was paying $465 per month for Cobra coverage, which terminated on 11/1
• I applied for Blue Cross/Blue Shied coverage three weeks ago as a sole proprietor and the best rate I could get was $1,050 per month

With only a 63 day window to land a policy and avoid losing credible coverage, I gotta admit, I was beginning to sweat. Visions of having to find a corporate gig — strictly for a benefit package — began dancing through my head.

And then I was introduced to Dan Bulluck.

The Man With The Plan

Angela purchased a health insurance plan at Chakras through Dan’s group (Barnett-Smith), so she took the opportunity to speak with him last Friday about my situation.

Fast-forward to Monday evening.

Dan and I discussed my situation on the phone for a while and eventually settled on pursuing a short-term policy — a bridge to ensure credible coverage — until we could find a long-term plan at a better rate, which seemed like the impossible dream.

We were about to hang up when I mentioned that I heard about a law in North Carolina that gave sole proprietor S-Corp owners access to affordable group rates; I wondered out loud if that would be the case for an LLC owner (like me) as well?

Dan’s answer? Yep. And the kicker?

As the owner of a LLC, my pre-existing condition, by law, can’t adversely affect my premium by more than a 32% hike — as opposed to the 700% increase I would’ve paid through any carrier as a red-flagged sole proprietor.

With a good plan starting around $150, I’m now looking at no more than $220 per month — a savings of $830 per month!

(originally uploaded by ∙ELi∙)

Yeah, that made me happy. Talk about earning a commission!

Yesterday, Dan and I sat down to fill out paperwork and ended up having a great conversation about the ins and outs of the health insurance industry — so much so that I felt compelled to share a couple of pointers he gave me:

1. Be sure to develop a strong relationship with your primary doctor. Health insurance providers only tap into your primary physician’s records when checking the status of your health history. They don’t cull through specialist’s records, which means that your primary physician holds the keys to your premium. So when you go in for a check-up or an emergency appointment, be sure that you understand what your doctor is recording in your file and if necessary, ask him to be “off the record” if you need to talk about potential health issues that might send out a red flag.
2. Get your medical records direct from the source. Health insurance companies rely on the Medical Insurance Bureau (MIB) to do the work of gathering your health records from your primary doctor. Apparently, for $7 free, you can have a copy of your record sent to you for review, just like your credit report. Why would you want it? Well, similar to how your credit report is invaluable for understanding your standing in our credit-based society, it’s also a tool to find inconsistencies that need correction. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s much better to deal with these institutions than try to wish them away, so I’m getting my MIB report next week.

Health insurance is a friggin’ mess in this country.

The idea that a sole proprietor, a minimum wage employee or even an unemployed person can’t find affordable health insurance is a crime that needs to be addressed, either through legislation or competition that is willing to drastically undercut the current system.

Up until Monday, I thought my own situation was hopeless… and then I met a guy who wasn’t strictly into his job for a commission and explored every option with me until we found a solution. I don’t know how rare that is, but I do know that Dan Bulluck took on this second career to help people, first and foremost. So if you live in North Carolina and are having health insurance issues, give him a ring at 336-686-2220. For those of you in Greensboro, you can simply drop on by his office at 218 Greene Street.

It may sound hyperbolic, but the guy saved my life.

While everyone is “preparing” for that Aryan bird flu Panda thingy and that new soon-to-be-discovered fault line in their neighborhood, I’ve got to tell you, I’m taking a bit more of a practical route.

If I had a bullhorn, this is what I’d shout into it (followed by that annoying ass siren):

Get out of the stock market now, sell your homes, pay off your credit cards and hide your cash under your bed!

This is the “sell high” period of the “buy low, sell high” financial approach. Here’s why:

1. I have a top credit rating, and I can’t get a card with an APR lower than 12%. Plus they’re all adjustable rate cards now (their rate plus the prime). Some people are paying 29% interest. The only thing fixed anymore is the friggin’ corporate game. By the way, bankruptcy doesn’t cover credit card debt anymore. Are you listening?
2. Interest rates on mortgages are going up. I’ve heard of 8% and higher for people with pretty solid credit ratings. That’s ridiculous.
3. President Bush’s tax advisory commission wants to limit the mortgage tax deduction. It wouldn’t affect most of the country (that has rational housing costs), but in New York, San Francisco, etc. where the prices have gone through the roof? The young couples and struggling families who are scraping together the cash for a $90,000 deposit on a 2 Bedroom, $450,000 condo in a decent to nice section of Jersey City, would miss the proposed ~$390,000 limit. Do you have any idea what a 4 bedroom house in a decent neighborhood costs in NJ? The whole state just sounded a collective moan. Can you say, “Blue state *pop*” boys and girls? I knew you could.
4. Adjustable rate loans on pre-existing, first family type mortgages? Man, people are going to be living in the street. The prime isn’t slowing down with its inflation.
5. Health insurance (if you have it) will probably lose its unlimited tax deduction status. Small businesses are already behind the eight ball in trying to provide health care for their employees. That equals greater consolidation. These tax limitations will only keep health insurance away from more people, which in the end, equates with a death count.
6. People are going to be saving their money for the essentials (like food and shelter) and the retail economy will hit the shitter. We’re already in the midst of a service-based economy, making *nothing* tangible anymore as a country. Are you ready for the service-based economy to shut down as well?

~250 corporations bring in more than 1 trillion dollars in pure profit, and ~85 don’t pay taxes due to Cayman Island type of tax loopholes (via the Randi Rhodes Show).

Where are those tax reforms? They’re not coming, folks. Drop your political affiliation for just one minute, and look at the facts and crunch the numbers.

While I’m in awe of the power Mother Nature wields for wrecking havoc, I’m scared beyond belief of Mother Bush — a woman with the ability to marry into evil and produce this degree of a corrupt thug. His administration is not only war mongering, but driving drunk with our nation’s economic levers in hand.

I don’t want to sound apocalyptic, but I’m preparing my finances before the "every man for himself" image of Katrina looks like a walk in the park.

Welcome to the first stages of something much bigger than a bursting bubble.

Tomorrow, on a lighter note, we’ll review the bombing of the Smurfs.