Salary Compensation for not taking health care benefits

beenawhile wrote:

I was told that I could receive compensation for not going with the company health care since they don't have to pay a portion of the "copayment" since I am not using their health care benefits.

Is this true?

Thanks all

Was told by whom?

That's not usually the way it works but I'm sure some companies do that. I would gladly trade my plan for a catastrophic plan if I could get all of most of the money currently going towards my premiums.

Companies pay a monthly premium for each employee that is covered in their group plan.

They then charge each employee (by payroll deduction) in that a plan a portion of that premium, but not the full amount.

So it costs the company more money for employees that are covered than for those that decline to be in the plan.

Some companies will compensate employees a bit that are not in the plan to provide fair compensation for all. It is usually still cheaper than to cover them.

Most companies do not do this.

I have never worked for a company that did this.

Don't expect it.

I've seen this on a few occasions. It's typically a small percentage of the value of the company contribution (if the benefit is taken). Maybe 10% to 25% (so if the company would pay $300/month for your insurance you can get $30 to $75 per month for opting out). Typically not worth opting out unless your spouse has coverage for the family (at no added cost).

You need to speak with HR about it. If they didn't offer it to you when you signed up, it probably is no longer an option.

there would not usually be any compensation. a certain percentage of employees is expected to not require hc benefits and that is figured into what your company is paying

My company, and I think this is becoming more common, has a menu of choices for healthcare coverage. I can opt in or out of any particular coverage and may have choices for the level of coverage a corresponding level of co-payment deducted from my salary. Since I'm on my wife's employer-provided major medical, I get a few extra bucks per week for having opted out of that coverage. Similarly, we're using dental and eye insurance from my benefits package and she gets a few bucks for having opted out of coverage from her employer. These payments are much less than the value of the benefit.

beenawhile wrote:

Hi,

Just started working at a salaried job with health care benefits. However, I've decided to stay with my parent's health care as it makes sense financially to just give them some money every month instead of going with the health care provided by my company (requires payment every paycheck).

I was told that I could receive compensation for not going with the company health care since they don't have to pay a portion of the "copayment" since I am not using their health care benefits.

Is this true?

Thanks all

Are you even able to stay on your parent's health care?

Yes, thanks to Obama, I can stay under my parent's health care until I'm 26.

So I guess I should talk to HR to see if this can happen, because for me any extra money is useful. I just don't want to be looked upon by my boss as a greedy (not sure if that's the right word) guy. I just don't want to be taken advantage of.

If you have two people doing the same work and receiving the same salary, but one receives health care benefits and one does not, then the first person is receiving a higher compensation for doing the same job.

Look at this example:

Two men, same job, same salary, work for company A.

Both have a wife and kids.

One is on company A's health plan which costs company A money.

The other is on his wife's company health plan (company B).

Company B is absorbing costs that company A would have if the man's wife didn't have benefits form company B.

The whole issue of companies subsidizing health care costs for employees has been a great cause for inequities in this country.

Initially, profitable companies could lure desirable employees to work for them by offering these benefits. This has been common place for most companies.

But many people don't have access to these same subsidies, even if they provide the same service for the same salary. This is usually because their employer isn't large enough to gain the right economies of scale.

And many companies will put the health care burden back on their employees where they can.

An employee that declines benefits means more money for the company. Rarely does it mean more money for the employee that declined the benefit.

I get $360 a year for declining health insurance from my company. My company self-insures as do most large companies so there's no premium saved, but still a good deal for my company.

To look at some real numbers. Let's see if they're small.

My company pays $1,325 per employee for a monthly premium for family coverage. The employee pays $265, so the company's net cost is $1,060 per month per employee.

That's almost $13K a year that the company saves off of the employee that finds another way provide health care coverage for his family.

An individual only plan cost the company nearly $5K per employee.

We're not talking about a hundred bucks a month.

Talk with HR. I worked for a company that had no problem at all reimbursing me for choosing to retain healthcare coverage outside the company plan.

I have a state job and if I show proof of coverage from another source, in my case through my wife, then I can receive $118/mo for medical and $12/mo for dental.