In a past life I used to work as a secretary/administrative assistant in a small insurance brokerage. It was at a point in my life when I didn’t completely understand why people bought insurance beyond just buying it because they should. In retrospect, that experience really helped give me a slightly deeper understanding of the role that insurance can play in protecting yourself when things go pear-shaped. When I worked my various 9-5s the first thing I would always do was sign up for health insurance.
It just felt like a no-brainer. With the passing of The Affordable Health Care Act in 2010 it felt like the next step in moving forward with the possibility of working for oneself whether running a small bricks-n-mortar business, as a freelancer or building out a digital business. What many folks didn’t realize was how much resistance would come up to keep the Affordable Health Care act from moving forward. In this episode, I’m going to share what to be aware of when signing up for health insurance during open enrollment, what to consider when looking for insurance as a digital entrepreneur and a cool new tool that I’m very excited about.
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Listen to the Episode
Related Posts
- Women and Money Series (Michelle is Money Hungry)
Catch
If you’ve recently left your 9-5, you’ve also left your old benefits. If you’re looking for an all in one resource to help you sign up for health insurance, set up a self-designed benefits package that helps you allocate funds towards retirement, future vacations, sick days and taxes. Catch may be the perfect tool for you. Catch is a personal payroll and benefits app that allows you to organize all of the important aspects of creating and maintaining a benefits package as a freelancer or digital entrepreneur.
For those of you looking for health insurance and dental coverage, Catch has a search function that helps you find the best coverage based on your location, age and who you would like to have covered with your policy. If you’re looking for insurance during Open Enrollment or you have a new qualifying event, use Catch to find an ACA or Affordable Care Act compliant health insurance policy today.
I really wish that I had a tool like this when I first started my online entrepreneurship journey. It just makes things so much easier. I love that it helps you to set aside tax payments, sick days and PTO.
Catch truly empowers its users in a way that I haven’t seen for smaller online entrepreneurs. I’m a proud partner of Catch and urge you to check Catch out. Go to the following link for more information: https://creatorsgettingpaid.com/catchbbl
Show Notes
During the Fall of 2022 I recorded a series about Women and Money focusing on when women (in particular, American women) want more for my podcast “Michelle is Money Hungry.” I was exploring the connection between policy and the very real impact on the dreams we have for ourselves. Dreams such as traveling the world, working a 9-5 that could transform our lives or starting an online business. I’ll include a link to that series in my show notes. The policies I kept thinking of were connected to expanding our ability to take calculated risks. Policies that the vast majority of American don’t have access to such as paid sick leave or maternity leave. But, the issue that kept coming up over and over again was access to affordable health insurance and the role that access to health insurance played in freelancing and digital entrepreneurship. Almost all of my guests expressed a deep frustration with the cost of the health insurance they had access to. In fact, one of my guests didn’t even have health insurance coverage and acknowledged the risk that she was taking. She’d decided to opt out of getting coverage because it just wasn’t affordable and after co-pays and a massive deductible, paying for health insurance just didn’t feel like it made sense for her. Other guests hinted at the financial strain of high monthly insurance premiums. These conversations weren’t unique. But, I did notice a few things.
State vs. The Government Health Exchanges
What a lot of people may not know is that their experience with access to and purchasing of health insurance is deeply impacted by the state that you live in. It’s my personal observation that states who created state exchanges have a much better user experience for those looking to sign up for insurance in those states. There are currently 18 states out of 50 that have their own designated health care exchanges include: California, Colorado, Maine, Idaho, Rhode Island, New York and New Mexico to name a few. It pains me to admit this but, I love using my state’s exchange and purchasing insurance off of it.
I also hate to admit that similar to my guest, there was a period of time that I was also uninsured and I was low-key nervous all the time. I was concerned that I would get injured when hiking, a weekly activity here in Colorado. I stopped snowboarding, it was just too risky. And I prayed that I didn’t get sick with a hidden illness. Weirdly enough, I still had Dental Coverage at this time. Please note: before we get into this episode-this is for entertainment purposes only. You MUST do your own due diligence. Do your research.
5 Things to Consider When Buying Health Insurance as a Freelancer or Digital Entrepreneur
There are so many things to consider before you make your health insurance purchase. But, as entrepreneurs I think there are some nuances that you should consider as you work through what you should purchase.
- Your overall health-Are you dealing with a chronic illness? Will you need to purchase medication on a monthly basis? What is your overall health for your age? For women, are you wanting to access: birth control, IVF or other services related to fertility.
- Your state-I’ve already mentioned how state exchanges seem to work better than the Federal exchange. But, I do want to bring up general access to information and the laws that govern your state. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of litigation happening right now that may impact your choices.
- Your lifestyle-Since you’re able to work online are you traveling around the United States or going abroad? What’s considered in-network coverage vs. out-of-network coverage? Do you participate in somewhat risky activities such as: skateboarding, snowboarding, hiking, horseback riding, rock climbing or bike riding? Random list, but you could fall, break an ankle or get hit by a car. Intense, I know.
- Your Cash Flow-This was one of the biggest issues that I struggled with for years. Building up predictable consistent cash flow so that I could even pay my premiums and other bills. If you’re wondering how I did this, listen to the following podcast episode “How I Built Up Predictable Cash Flow in My Online Business” after this episode.
- Your family-Are you single, do you have kids, are you married? Your answer will influence the type of coverage that you decide on. And how is the overall health of the additional folks that you’re looking to cover?
Before Signing Up for Health Insurance
Now that you’ve worked through some of the important questions that you should ask yourself before signing up for coverage. It’s time to work through some additional questions.
- How much can you afford-To pay monthly for your health insurance premium? This one question could impact the policy that you choose.
- What deductible range are you comfortable with? This is the amount that you would pay in coverage before your health insurance kicks in and begins to be applied to your bills. In my case, I have a $2,000 deductible which I think is fantastic. Once I hit $2,000 in coverage that I’m paying for-my insurance is applied to my expenses. Of course the coverage paid depends on what’s going on: regular care, surgery, etc. But, it’s a pretty decent deductible. Many folks will opt for a higher deductible so that their monthly premium is lower. I’m not one of those folks.
- Are you potentially eligible for tax credits to be applied towards your premium?
- Do you need additional support to walk you through what happens next?
- Insurance brokers-People who are focused on the needs of their clients.
- Programs created by your state to help you work through signing up for health insurance
- Frequently Asked Questions lists
- Benefits apps such as Catch
- Do you have your previous year’s tax return? It’s likely that you will need to provide that information when signing up for your policy.
It’s Possible to Have Benefits
It’s possible to design a benefits package as an online entrepreneur. But the process can feel so confusing and a little bit intimidating. It’s important to know that you can design your own benefits package and that it’s an important part of empowering yourself as a digital entrepreneur.