In all likelihood, an early retiree in the United States is going to purchase ACA (Obamacare) compliant Health Insurance on the Federal or a State Health Insurance Marketplace.
Even though the ACA has provided common standards, Health Insurance is still a complex topic with numerous trade-offs. Coverage levels and premiums vary. Every insurance company has a different approach to cost sharing. Each State has a slightly different implementation, maybe a different website, and wildly different prices.
Subsidies may pay nearly all of your premium, or they may cover nothing. It isn’t always clear which will apply until after the fact. As a result, some will get an extra large tax bill at the end of the year, while others will pay too much each month. They may even provide a disincentive to earn a higher income.
But much like the Income Tax, those who understand the the system can optimize their income and investments. Knowledge is power. Optimizing Obamacare starts with understanding the system. Then we can make choices to minimize costs and maximize coverage.
“If you haven’t got your health, you haven’t got anything” – Count Rugen
Eat well. Exercise. Brush your teeth. Cultivate a positive outlook. Get plenty of rest. Everything in moderation (including moderation.)
Along with a regular medical exam, these preventative practices are the foundation of a strategy to live a long, healthful life.
We do a respectable job of taking care of ourselves. Vegetables are eaten in abundance. With no car, walking and biking helps us build both health and wealth. (Recently I’ve increased the intensity by strapping an 8 kg little boy to my chest.) We have no employer imposed requirements or deadlines, so distress is low and eustress is moderate.
We also practice awareness, paying attention to our bodies. I’m fairly certain that when I can easily bike 900 km up and down mountains that I’m unlikely to have cardiac problems.
“Hello, Winnie? Yes, this is Dr. Luo. Your pap smear test results have come back, and we found some abnormal cell growth that needs to be evaluated immediately”
Two weeks ago I received this late night call from my maternity doctor. As part of my post delivery checkup we did a full health evaluation, and the results showed high grade lesions on my cervix (HSIL)
Do I have cervical cancer?! Google seemed to think so. The more I searched, the more panic set in. I just had a baby, I need to be here to take care of him
Adrenaline shot into my body, and I sprang into action like a headless chicken. Get dressed. Grab the bag of clothes we had prepared in advance. Fill a water bottle. Throw a bag of snacks into the backpack.
OK, we are all set to go to the hospital. What have I forgotten? There is something…. Oh, the wife!
We slowly walked the two blocks to the hospital, stopping every few minutes for the contractions to pass
My Mandarin isn’t very good, especially at 4 am, but I made out a few phrases… “…you walked here…?” “…probably too early…”
After a quick check the nurse sent us home with some clear instructions for when to return
Two year’s ago Valentine’s Day, Winnie and I celebrated our love by going to a small pastry shop for afternoon tea. I remember our conversation like it was yesterday
Winnie: “We were really lucky to find each other. I have never met anybody that fits me so well.”
Me: “I know, I feel the same way.”
Winnie: “I bet we feel so comfortable with each other because we have been together in past lives, like soul mates”
Me: “You think so? I believe that”
Winnie: “Yeah, and maybe in our next life we will be together again. I could even be the man and you be the woman”
Me: “You think?”
Winnie: “Yeah… but, maybe you could lose some weight first. I’m not really into fat chics”
A bicycle is many things… a wonderfully elegant example of human ingenuity and craftsmanship. An efficient form of transportation. A builder of self-confidence, health, and wealth
A bicycle is a wonderful learning tool, providing valuable life lessons in personal limitations and how to overcome them. It is a tool for self-confidence
And at any age, a bicycle is freedom. As a child, a bicycle opened up my world from a few square blocks to a few square miles. As a young adult, a bicycle provided freedom from the stress of college and the workplace. And later, a bicycle helped enable freedom from the need for income
I look forward to making many more great biking memories
In all likelihood, an early retiree in the United States is going to purchase ACA (Obamacare) compliant Health Insurance on the Federal or a State Health Insurance Marketplace.
