What about Healthcare?

In making the decision to retire early, one of our primary concerns was the area of healthcare.  Both Mr. Breeze and I have Pre-existing conditions.  I am curious to see how health care reform starts to change over the course of  5 years.

In fact I have added a new section titled Health.  This is an area where I will post about healthcare, what we find, and changing to living a healthier lifestyle (recipes, activities, who knows I might even track our weight goals on line.).

So we decided to buy through the exchange but unfortunately with leaving our jobs and income it was confusing to fill out the paperwork.  We tried to make phone calls, and had our forms reentered but found out that we were applying for aid (i.e. welfare).  That is not what we wanted.

I ended up panicking, and decided to purchase directly from the insurance company as I was afraid to go without coverage for myself, and my family.  We chose Humana as they were one of the best for the medications we were on and I liked the options.  By going direct to the insurance company we are not on the exchange (although our plan is considered a Bronze plan through the Affordable Care Act); therefore, we are not eligible for the subsidies.

So what is insurance costing us:

Well for our family of 3, we have a monthly premium of about $885 a month.  We are not eligible for the subsidy, however, if our healthcare expenses exceed 10% of our income and this includes the Premiums that we are paying, we can deduct medical expenses from our tax liability.  This may or may not be better for us in the long run, we will see what our income ends up looking like after 2016.  We may try to get on the exchange plan for 2017, but for now we are happy to have insurance.

Oh and because neither of us are "working" we were also eligible for medicaid cards, so we are using that as a secondary insurance - this will only help us to reduce our deductible. Speaking of the deductible, we have a family deductible of $12,500.  While I hope we will never reach that amount, if for some reason we have a large medical event, such as a hospital stay, then I know our cap will be our premiums plus the $12,500.  Long term this is a expensive option, but it is affordable today, as we are learning.

So to have insurance for 2016, we are paying:
$885 x 11 (we were covered in January)
And an out of pocket deductible of up to: $12,500
Total potential healthcare expenses for 2016: $22,235

So if our 2016 income is below $222k we should meet the 10% medical deduction for 2016.

The only thing I wish I had done differently, was read Root of Goods post on the Pitfall and Subsidies of the Affordable care act!  Unfortunately I had to make my decision before he posted this, and didn't have the luxury of time (I was leaving my job, moving across the country, and stepping up a new home!).  Oh well, lessons learned and maybe we will do better next year!

We Did It - The Jump to Early Retirement

It has been over a year since I have posted in this wonderful blog, and I am sorry to all my loyal followers.   I will say that recovering from Cancer hit me harder than I could have ever imagined.  Health is something we take for granted until we lose it, so my family and I have made some life changes that I hope will be beneficial.

Brief summary of what has happened over the last year:

- We decided that we could find a way to manage our income and investments, and I made the jump into retirement.  That being said I did take on a part time job that allows me to mentor and help others, but this is more about my passion that an income.
- Mr. Breeze went back to school for his Master's - so honestly we are both home right now as he completes his online masters.
- Last month we moved from the mid-west to sunny Colorado.  This puts us closer to my family, and well Colorado is a MUCH more active state than where we lived, so now we are enjoying the sunshine and getting active - which is another step in the right direction for my health.
- Baby Breeze is now 3 and every 30 seconds goes from being cute and adorable, to funny and entertaining, to exhausting, to an emotional terror.  It is so nice that both of us can be home with him at this time.

So that is the brief update of the last CRAZY year!  We are terrified and excited about our new adventure, and I love that I have other Blogs that I can read from those who has paved the path before me.  I look forward to share with you what challenges and opportunities we experience as we enjoy this new found freedom of Early Retirement (FYI - my goal was to do it by 40, but I just had my 38th birthday and I am so glad I didn't wait)!

Here's to new adventures.

The Breeze Family

2015 New Year Resolutions

I hate New Year's Resolutions, so before 2015 officially get here, I decided I would set some yearly goals for next 12 months. 


Goals for 2015:
- Spend more time with my son [each day set down the electronics and get down on the floor and play for a minimum of at least one hour - this might be tight during the weekdays, but I am going to make the effort]
- Increase Net Worth by another $100,000+ [through reduced debt and increased savings - more details to follow]
- Reach $1,000,000 Net Worth status
- Establish Healthy Habits [focus on healthy eating more healthy dinners at home and eating out less than 5 times a month, lose 25 lbs. by January 2016 and getting out and moving for at least 5 hours each week; and riding my bike]

We didn't do so well on that last goal in 2014; Mr. Breeze and I ended up gaining weight and moving less.  We need to find ways to motivate us.  I will have to think about how I can do that.  I do know that it will be important to lose weight and be healthier as we have to start covering our own insurance once we retire early.

Here we go, I am ready to bring on the New Year!!!  Here's to 2015!