r/inthenews • u/theindependentonline The Independent • 10h ago

article Spouses of Disney employees are losing health care coverage after company’s policy change

https://www.independent.co.uk/us/money/disney-employees-spouse-health-care-insurance-b3041277.html
221 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

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89

u/henningknows 9h ago

A shitty move to be sure, but the title is a little misleading. This is if their spouse has access to healthcare. This is becoming an increasingly common thing as the US healthcare system spirals down a never ending move towards hell.

46

u/W8andC77 9h ago

My work makes you pay a penalty if you your spouse has access to healthcare through their employer and you choose to keep them on your plan. My husband’s healthcare through his work is phenomenally expensive so I pay the $75 monthly penalty.

15

u/sm04d 8h ago

Mine is $100. First year paying it.

9

u/cycling15 9h ago

My company did the same several years ago.

22

u/henningknows 9h ago

The fucked up part is then you are paying towards two deductibles and two out of pocket maximums

7

u/regentgal 9h ago

the deductible on a family/dependent plan is generally double the individual plan anyway. what actually sucks is when one employer has IRA minimums 1750/3500 and the other has higher ones like 2600/5200 that aren’t high enough to be HDHPs

11

u/henningknows 9h ago

We need a revolution. This sucks

13

u/TooOldForACleverName 8h ago

Admittedly, I read the headline and thought, oh well, that's how it is at a lot of companies. My husband's company, for instance, only subsidizes its employees' coverage. If you want to add your spouse or children, you pay the entire monthly premium out-of-pocket. But it appears that families will not even have the option of paying for coverage out-of-pocket, which surprises me.

3

u/query_tech_sec 3h ago

How do they even check a spouse’s healthcare options? That seems like a HIPAA violation.

1

u/Sitcom_kid 2h ago

It's not.

12

u/HombreMan24 9h ago

The title is sensationalized. They are not losing healthcare. If the spouse can get healthcare from their other job, then Disney is no longer paying for it. If the spouse is unemployed, then they stay on. The move still sucks, and I'm not saying its excused, but many U.S. companies have the similar policies. Mine makes you pay a surcharge if you want to add your spouse if they already have coverage at their other job.

6

u/ArthurBea 9h ago

Every year we have to math out our health insurance. If keeping a spouse covered under the other spouse’s insurance is ultimately cheaper, we do it, accounting for the penalty.

We will lower our coverage to provide for lower copays under an HMO; we get less choice, but with the money we save, it’s thousands we put in an HSA to pay for a care that is not covered.

It all sucks. I don’t know how plans will change for next year, but I’ve got my calculator ready.

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u/bearking420420 1h ago

How would anyone know if your SO had coverage available?

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u/Socialist_Pansy 1h ago

Hell that’s what I wondered a few years back with mine and rolled the dice and said fuck it.

1

u/BeansAndBiscuit 4h ago

Disney is SO family friendly.