Survive on $600 living out of vehicle??

[WheelEstate USA]

Pat...Keep in mind that pension is different from retirement benefits.

 

[Patd4u2]

Pat...Keep in mind that pension is different from retirement benefits.

You are absolutely correct, The VA has a pension for vets that are 65 or older with a low income who served and were honorably discharged.
It might be worth his while to check if he qualifies on the VA web site. It cant hurt and it doesn't cost anything to check, all they can say is no..

 

[BradKW]

Brian (AdventureVanMan) just did a nice budget breakdown, including his roaming income sources, and is right about $600/mo...

 

[Goshawk]

And in that video he does not mention medical insurance ever. At least for as long as I watched it. Medical insurance will cost $300 a month. Maybe $500 for two. It's a ridiculous expense to cover for catastrophic medical. It's the one expense that will crush any mobile living plans.

 

[IGBT]

And in that video he does not mention medical insurance ever. At least for as long as I watched it. Medical insurance will cost $300 a month. Maybe $500 for two. It's a ridiculous expense to cover for catastrophic medical.   It's the one expense that will crush any mobile living plans.

Perhaps you have been out of the USA for awhile?

There is this thing now called the Affordable Care Act (sometimes referred to as Obamacare, since we elected this guy named Obama who made this his swan song).

My wife and I pay a total of $60 a month for a ACA policy with a $250 a year deductible.

 

[LeeRevell]

Perhaps you have been out of the USA for awhile?

There is this thing now called the Affordable Care Act (sometimes referred to as Obamacare, since we elected this guy named Obama who made this his swan song).

My wife and I pay a total of $60 a month for a ACA policy with a $250 a year deductible.

You are one of the lucky ones.  Others....    far less so.

 

[IGBT]

You are one of the lucky ones.  Others....    far less so.

I know you will pay more as you get older (we are mid 40s) but can you describe the unlucky?

If you make too much money to qualify for a subsidy, you are likely not living on $600 a month out of a vehicle.

Heck, if you make less than $22,000 a year, you can get on your state's Medicaid now that most have expanded it (move to a state that has expanded it if you can't afford an ACA policy).

It may change with Trump in office, but right now, ACA is a gift to the van dweller.

 

[Goshawk]

The first year you lose or quit a good job you have to pay full price for the insurance under obamacare. It's based on your previous years income. There are some adjustments as you go along, as your actual income changes to reflect reality.

So it sure would be nice if the monthly cost starts decreasing fast for catistrophic insurance.

 

[IGBT]

The first year you lose or quit a good job you have to pay full price for the insurance under obamacare. It's based on your previous years income. There are some adjustments as you go along, as your actual income changes to reflect reality.

So it sure would be nice if the monthly cost starts decreasing fast for catistrophic insurance.

Yeah, sorry, that is not true either.

It is not based on your previous year's income, it is based on your current monthly income.

When you file taxes, you may have to pay back some subsidy if you made a lot of money that year, but in general you can lose a job in June after having made $20,000 Jan to May and $100,000 the previous year and still get on a ACA super low cost plan for July to December (and probably not have to pay back any subsidy you get since your yearly income would be $20,000).

 

[Goshawk]

My girlfriend had a $15000 yearly intermittent new job. Old job was $30000. Their evaluation was based on her income which in there system, intermittent or not, meant she pays $320 monthly. No subsidy. She made too much

She went down to zero one month and they told her she still needs to pay based on what she previously earned.

 

[mayble]

When you leave a job (unless you worked for a tiny company, which isn't likely to provide insurance anyway) you are eligible to keep your insurance under COBRA for 18 months at the group rate your employer pays, which is likely much less than you'll pay as an individual for the same coverage. 
If you don't qualify for subsidies due to previous income, you can take the COBRA coverage and when it runs out you should qualify for subsidies through the exchange.

 

[IGBT]

So much misinformation here that I don't really know if I should bother trying to correct you guys.

Cobra is NOT usually cheaper than a individual plan on the exchange, but I guess in some cases it could be.

Your insurance subsidy is NOT based on the previous year's income.   They may ask for your previous year's tax return or proof that your current income has dropped, but if you can show your current income is low enough to qualify you for a subsidy, you can get a subsidy.

I have personally been through both of these situations.  Cobra for both of us was $989 a month, a unsubsidized silver ACA plan was $674 (for the same deductible as the Cobra plan), and we were able to get a subsidy for the current year even though we made over $200,000 the previous year.

Whatever.   Believe what you want to believe.  More money for the rest of us.

 

[Konaexpress]

In my case, Cobra was not cheap! I went without for a while.

John

 

[bcbullet]

Oh how I love Canada. Sorry, but it's true. Thank you for reminding me.

 

[leef]

If the documentation you provide for your current year's income is rejected, you can get your denied subsidy back when you file your return. This is not ideal because you have to front the money, but it's better than not getting it at all.

 

[planet-beaver]

My girlfriend had a $15000 yearly intermittent new job. Old job was $30000. Their evaluation was based on her income which in there system, intermittent or not, meant she pays $320 monthly.  No subsidy. She made too much

She went down to zero one month and they told her she still needs to pay based on what she previously earned.

They don't even ask for last year income. It's all based on last month and current month. The only way that could be a problem is if you make big chunk in 1 month and then nothing in next 3 but even then at the end of the year, it will be adjusted and you will receive credit.

We are talking about living under 1K per month which will give you free Medicaid coverage in 30 states. Just change the address to a state that has good Medicaid. Indiana has awesome Medicaid (HIP 2.0), actually better than Medicare with more doctors (top rated in USA). But they charge you $5 per procedure and $25 for ER and depending on your income from $4 to $35 monthly fee. Worth paying because you can see good specialist in 3 days without waiting 3 months. 

Most states Medicaid is completely free with no co-pays but also impossible to get proper treatment.

I wish Bob would do a blog post about healthcare, especially Medicaid for van dwellers. Maybe a video. So many people are still without healthcare coverage without knowing what is available. They say there are still 10 million people eligible for free Medicaid yet they show up in ER with no insurance.

 

[BradKW]

My cheapest option for catastrophic ($6k deductible) is about $500/mo. which I can't reasonably afford, so I will have to pay a $1000 penalty. Since I generally like everyone here, I will pretend that I am subsidizing your cheap insurance personally and feel slightly better for it. You're welcome

 

[Patd4u2]

They don't even ask for last year income. It's all based on last month and current month. The only way that could be a problem is if you make big chunk in 1 month and then nothing in next 3 but even then at the end of the year, it will be adjusted and you will receive credit.

We are talking about living under 1K per month which will give you free Medicaid coverage in 30 states. Just change the address to a state that has good Medicaid. Indiana has awesome Medicaid (HIP 2.0), actually better than Medicare with more doctors (top rated in USA). But they charge you $5 per procedure and $25 for ER and depending on your income from $4 to $35 monthly fee. Worth paying because you can see good specialist in 3 days without waiting 3 months. 

Most states Medicaid is completely free with no co-pays but also impossible to get proper treatment.

I wish Bob would do a blog post about healthcare, especially Medicaid for van dwellers. Maybe a video. So many people are still without healthcare coverage without knowing what is available. They say there are still 10 million people eligible for free Medicaid yet they show up in ER with no insurance.

"I wish Bob would do a blog post about healthcare, especially Medicaid for van dwellers. Maybe a video. So many people are still without healthcare coverage without knowing what is available. They say there are still 10 million people eligible for free Medicaid yet they show up in ER with no insurance".

Your asking Bob to do a video on something he is not an expert on, everybody's situation is different.
Go to your healthcare or Medicaid site and see if there is a phone number to call for information about your particular situation.

 

[mockturtle]

My cheapest option for catastrophic ($6k deductible) is about $500/mo. which I can't reasonably afford, so I will have to pay a $1000 penalty. Since I generally like everyone here, I will pretend that I am subsidizing your cheap insurance personally and feel slightly better for it. You're welcome

That's about what my daughter pays, too.  

 

[planet-beaver]

It's all about income level. If you make less you pay less. If you make over $47,000 and are single you will pay full price. For 2 people its $63,000 and for 3 it's $80,000