[Magdalen] health insurance

[Jim Guthrie]

From: Sibyl Smirl

>If you were on Medicare (and it's the law that I have to be), you wouldn't want 
>it for "all".  It still has a premium that comes out of my SS check every 
>month, and it still has a co-pay for most things (flu shots are "free") and a 
>bunch of stuff isn't covered.

My Copays have totaled $68 so far this years, with an average of $50,000 a MONTH 
charged to Medicare and my Medicare SUpp.

Fair trade for a few extra years of life and Medicare and Medicare Supp totaling 
about $240/month in premiums. Albert's is $459 a month with a $25 co-pay.

Far better than the $1501/month we were paying for COBRA until I could 
co-ordinate Medicare and the Supp and Albert's insurance, for example (Even 
though I was on Medicare and engaged the AARP Supp -- Plan F --I had to continue 
Cobra for Albert. But that month turned out not quite so bad. I needed to be on 
Lovenox which can by $1500/month as it's not in the Medicare D formulary (though 
it can get you past the Donut Hole in a Hurry!). Aetna approved a month with a 
$10 copay with one day to o on the COBRA policy.

I'm in the Donut hoe now, so the meds that once cost me $40/month are now about 
$200/month. But the Donut hole is calculated on retail price, not discount 
price, and the Xeralto that replaced the Lovenox is close to $600/month retail, 
so I should be out of the donut hole by December at least -- then it starts 
anew.

Cheers,
Jim