Reply to Thread

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Message: <blockquote data-quote="vvvvvvv" data-source="post: 1378762" data-attributes="member: 5151">24 years old, self-employed, only insuring me. Spouse has insurance through employer. Current premium is $99/mo.When I got the policy, I had just left my full-time job where Oklahoma taxpayers were footing my insurance bill, we were just getting our emergency funds built up, and I wasn't sure where business would be. So at the time, even though a $2000 deductible was feasible, a $1000 left more cushion, and a $500 had a >$500 difference in annual premium.We are very disciplined when it comes to savings. We have a personal savings account that is automatically drafted from our bank account when my wife gets paid. This is the account that goes to pay quarterly, semi-annual, and annual bills (including taxes), and the amount we put in is a little higher than what we project we need. A lot of the time, though, we're able to pay some of those smaller bills without transferring back out from that savings account, but we don't lower what goes in there so it ends up building even more of a cushion.Additionally, we have an "emergency savings" money market account with a checkbook for when we need to access money immediately (from the Dave Ramsey plan). Fortunately, it's never been tapped.I fully understand the magnitude of this financial decision, which is why I asked for some additional input. I also have a pretty good idea of whose advice to consider here, and whose to table.The plan I was considering for self-insuring was taking the premium (plus some) and placing it in a proven growth mutual fund. The "tax-free" part of the HSA plans don't apply because it comes out after paying self-employment taxes. Health insurance premiums are only deductible through 2010, and it doesn't look like they will extend that deduction. So to me, the capital gains tax looks like a tolerable trade-off.I know from experience that even the payment terms of the deductible portion of a medical bill is negotiable, as in that $10K in your example would not necessarily need to come in at once. To me, that $10K could be found by strapping the belt really tight over the course of a year and only paying minimums on the debts that we have, especially considering that a $10K medical bill is eligible for a tax deduction.That is what's making the self-insured option look so not-crazy in my opinion, and even more attractive if there is a bit of a safety net for those catastrophic events that don't leave me terminally ill.I know the first couple of years will carry the highest risk impact if I go that route, but the way I look at it is that it will most likely pay off in the end.I know I've said many times on this forum that I am a Dave Ramsey fan, and I know that Dave Ramsey would likely not advise this. But I also know that his teachings are geared toward the lowest common denominator of that 99.9% you mentioned, and I firmly believe that we have more discipline than that.I'm self-employed, so it isn't exactly tax-free for me. eHealthInsurance is where I found my current plan, and where I've been doing my shopping.</blockquote>

Verification