I;m curious as to what people do that move to the Islands as far as health insurance goes?

Yes, but even if you're 65 and qualify, not all doctors accept. The reimbursements are less. I would check with our local AARP office for current specialist recommendations.

Medicare is accepted but not by all doctors from what I've heard.

Think you have to be 65 to be eligible for Medicare.

Yes, you do. There was a time not too long ago when many practices here weren't accepting Medicare because apparently they were having problems being reimbursed for services in a timely manner. However, it seems there's been a shift in the last couple of years and I know two medical offices who now accept it after having dropped it for a while. I gather from equally older friends that finding physicians here who accept it is much easier than it was several years ago.

TN_Travelers

We had a gold plan at the prior to ACA and the exact same plan rose by about 20% the first year. We've since shopped around several times due to major increases, always trying to keep the similar benefits. Our state has seen increases anywhere from 10-20% year after year. If your healthcare costs have gone down, then that is great! I would say that is not the case for any small business owner I have spoken with in our state. At the beginning of ACA we were paying less than $800/month for a family of 4. We now pay almost $1500/month for the most similar coverage we could find. Small business coverage.

BCBS has left most of the people using the exchange in our state high and dry. They changed their network; the exchange plans (people getting a discount through obamacare) AND independent plans (anyone buying individual insurance outside of the exchange) are both the exact same network. They decreased their payment to Dr's and Hospitals and very few signed on. So you can pay for the plan but in most regions there are almost NO doctors you can go to. In my city, none of the local hospitals are on the plan. If you use an out of network Dr. or Hospital they pay ZERO. There is no longer any out of network coverage. So basically, you can pay them a monthly fee AND pay all your medical bills of you aren't fortunate enough to live near one of the few providers that participate in the new network. They forgot the part about ensuring there were going to be providers who will take the insurance in the mandates.

We dropped BCBS because they went crazy once ACA was implemented. We have several friends who also run small businesses - engineering, construction, small manufacturing, etc- and all have had the same experience we have. We have other friends in FL and MO and have had the same experience we have with their plans. I won't generalize and try and paint "most regions" with the same brush - that sort of generalization is BS. Some states are more "insurance friendly" than others (and allow the insurance companies to take advantage of their citizens).

We switched to Humana - no problems with Drs., hospitals, specialists, etc. taking our insurance - still using the same providers we had when BCBS covered us. Yes, we chose to increase deductibles and copays slightly, but the cost reduction more than pays for these for 90% of our employees - they are happy. Maybe TN is an outlier or maybe the problem lies within the state you live. But we have used our insurance in FL and had no problem with either being covered immediately or getting reimbursed for our expenses incurred.

All I can do is tell you our experience - I am sorry if you have not had the same. Best of luck. (Maybe you should relocate your business to TN - they are very business friendly 🙂 )

AARP/United Health Medicare supplement plans are available in the VI. These plans should be accepted by most if not all doctors and facilities. There is a cost - about $180 per month for good coverage - in addition to the $121 monthly for part B, usually deducted from Social Security.

Supplement plans are different than traditional Medicare.

When I called them, they weren't available.

AARP United Health supplement plans are available in the USVI. Advantage plans are not.

https://www.uhcmedicaresolutions.com/?WT.mc_id=880332

Enter a USVI zip code and you'll see available supplement plans.

Thanks, I'll check, again.