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Why I’m a Bit Delayed on Sony A7R III Coverage

I know that readers are waiting for various things on the Sony A7R III. This is why I busted my ass on the Fujifilm GF 45mm f/2.8 recently (several past midnight days)—so I could concentrate on the Sony A7R III.

But... it’s just a bad time of year—it’s health care choosing time and Dec 15 is the deadline.

So yesterday I worked from 6 AM to 11:30 PM with about 20 minutes of break in total, just to develop the data across the health plans and not screw myself financially. So I could pay just as much as last year for an inferior plan than this year. I think I am just about done today as I take a break to write this. In a few more hours, I think I will have the matter settled and done with. Doing taxes is a breeze by comparison. Be grateful if you have a group plan or similar where all you have to do is pick a plan at modest cost.

Dec 15 is the deadline and I think I’ve made the decision, and hopefully by tomorrow my stress level will drop down and I can get back to the work I enjoy.

Update: took another full day to sort through the byzantine land mines of the different plans, but I finally have figured it out.

...

Working self employed for myself, choosing a health care plan is a Byzantine mess (by design) full of "if and but or else if" stuff. And with a 23% increase this year, 22% last year, 18% the year before, etcetera ad nauseum, paying for it has been my most painful legislative assault on myself and my family in my life, lasting now for the 7 years or whatever, now twice my mortgage. Those massive increases are my share of the promised savings, and I am not trying to make a political point, only state a hard fact. Let’s just say that insuring my family the same way this year as 2017 (which has been extremely difficult) was going to cost more than the mean annual family income in the USA, and almost as much as the median income. A very sick joke on me and my family.

Key advice to help anyone reading this who needs to buy their own health care: the “cheap” exchange bronze plans are pure fraud in the financial sense of getting any coverage at all without paying for it out of pocket in addition to the premiums (exceptions are basics like annual physical and flu shot, next to useless for my family). And you have to pay co-pays and deductibles and so on with after-tax dollars that barring very huge medical expenses cannot be deducted from taxes. If you have to buy your own insurance as I do and you have not considered the pre-tax dollars / after-tax dollars thing, you had better go figure out what a horrific hit that can be, because you can inflict a huge cost on yourself by making the wrong choice of plan. All you have to do is understand that core idea, then use your perfect crystal ball to know exactly what will happen to you and your family’s health—easy peasy.

All of the preceding will be of little concern to anyone getting a huge subsidy as many people do (and still end up paying more than they can comfortably afford). I love a free lunch as much as anyone, but I loathe the idea of someone being forced to buy it for me, versus something freely offered, uncoerced.

No comments wanted on the foregoing, please. It is not a political statement, but a personal one. I just wanted to express it to get a little relief, think what you wish on your own.


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