Health Insurance for Baby Boomers Facts
Each generation of people in America has its own set of challenges. Healthcare is one for the particular generation known as the "baby boomers." The term baby boomers refers to those born after the Second World War when families had a surge of children. Technically, it refers to people born between the years 1946 and 1960.
There are a slew of healthcare issues for people born during this time, and it's estimated that more than 60% of them who work have one chronic health problem or more. These include one or more of the following: cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease or high cholesterol. Other main health focuses tend to be cardiac, orthopedic and urological. It's also estimated that one-fifth of those people who work have no health insurance coverage.That number is an estimated 7 million Americans with no health insurance coverage.
In essence, due to problems with the country's health insurance issues, these people face unstable health insurance coverage, astronomical medical costs and problems with debt due to health care and other issues. Besides this, as the millions of baby boomers begin to retire and have greater health issues, it's believed that there will not be enough people in the following generations to fill health care roles.
Laid Off or Retired
Another health insurance issue facing baby boomers is in regards to the group of them who have retired or have been laid off. These people don't have adequate coverage, yet they are paying for individual coverage. The average payment is $300 or more per month, and those with chronic health problems are often turned down for coverage.The individual plans in no way compare to the benefit-rich plans baby boomers had when they were insured through employers.
Some insurance companies have found a way to deal with the problem, and that is by offering plans directed especially at that age group. Some critics of the plan predict that these individual plans will be high in cost and still turn down those with chronic ailments.
Insurance Then and Now
In the past, employers offered health insurance coverage to former employees. This would last until the person was old enough for Medicare, which kicks in at age 65. Due to the rising costs of health coverage and new rules in accounting, employers cut back on retiree health insurance covered. Thus, retired baby boomers were forced to either pay for individual coverage or go without.
New Trend
What was believed to be a major issue--having the manpower to fill the shoes of healthcare workers in order to care for the baby boomers, may not be the catastrophe it was once believe. These days, more and more people are working into their 70s, which means those positions are still filed. Baby boomers are not retiring as quickly or as young as was once predicted,
One of the reasons for this trend is that the baby boomer generations do not see themselves as inactive or slowing down as they age. On the other hand, they seem to prefer to keep mind and body in good shape, and thus continue to work longer than previous generations.
Another positive on the topic of baby boomer health insurance coverage is insurance companies becoming more competitive in their prices. Insurance companies such as Aetna, who introduced a plan for AARP members. The plans offer ranges of pricing and coverage. The cost is dependent upon factors such as the age, medical history and gender of the individual. Such plans will hopefully be more accepting of individuals with chronic conditions, or the predicted crisis will not change.
