Argh! The company I work for has recently been purchased by a larger company with it’s own particular health insurance plan. It says that if I use tobacco products, such as cigarettes or e-cigarettes, the health insurance plan costs will increase by $50 per pay period. And another $50 if my spouse vapes, which she does. And my health insurance costs will go up, too.
Basically, the new health insurance plan will cost me $3600 a year!
The general description - but not the legalese - does state “tobacco products” so I may be OK if I switch to 0mg juice by the time this takes effect. Alas, with the new FDA regulations, EVERYTHING is tobacco.
And it’s a catch 22. They will probably lay the burden on the fda as to if 0mg nic would be considered a “Tabacco” product. Which I am assuming if they have their way it will be.
I would just say that you are non tobacco, unless they test for nicotine in your system (which some companies do) I would check non tobacco. That’s what I do. Screw em…
I hope at some point there is a class action lawsuit against the insurance companies for this. They have no medically supporting data to justify this. I agree with @Beaufort_Batches, tell them you’re tobacco free. If the question on their for specifically asks if you vape, I say lie your ass off.
My last application for health insurance only asked if i smoke or use tobacco. I could honestly answer no. Still, the premium for myself and my wife is over $10k a year. Our deductible is $6300 each. So we’re talking about more than $22k paid in a year before the insurance even kicks in! It’s a crock of shit.
I’m sure loving Canada right now!! We only pay for prescriptions, dental and vision. With my husbands insurance (paid by his work), we only pay 10%. Of that 10% we pay, we get upto $200 back from a health spending account.
Canada is great, except in the winter, it’s freaking COLD. But we have good beer to make up for that.
Yes, my wife and I own a business and last years taxes ended up having us pay 22,000 dollars just in insurance premiums saying that was our fair share. In 2013 with the same policy I’ve had the past 5 or so years my premiums were 3200 dollars for the year. Obamacare is nothing but an income tax disguised as shared (forced) responsibility. I don’t know about every one else, but if I am responsible and providing my own family decent health insurance, then anyone else can “own” their own responsibility and “work” to provide their own family with health insurance. I’m tired of providing insurance to people who play video games and sit on the couch all day. Next year, I’m going with a health insurance company that doesn’t participate in the Obamacare program. Affordable Care Act hell, the Bankruptcy of Care Act is more accurate of this program…
I just thought hmm I’d tell them I didn’t use tobacco products then I thought about how nicotine is actually broken down by our livers which may take a little while to rid it from your system yes you could just vape 0 nic for a few days prior to your tests here is some info on that subject…it kinda all comes down to what type of test they run for it…you may get away with asking about it if you tell them you have a diet high is cabbage, broccoli, almonds and mustard as those are listed a good ways down the page for a false positive on testing
As far as I can tell, the new company simply asks a question on a form. If they ask if tobacco products are used, then that should be easy since this will actually be a good reason to go to 0mg. Hell, I’ve been vaping for 7 years - it’s about time I dropped the nic.
The issue for me comes if they ask if I use an e-cigarette. If that’s the question then I’ll be royally upset, and I’ll be likely to lie since, in my mind, the question should be about tobacco/nicotine, not vaping nic-free juice.
Alas, insurance companies can be dastardly. I can imagine saying that I’ve tobacco-free, then needing some massive amount for insurance for something, and the insurance company finding out that I vape 0mg juice. Conceivably, they could cancel my insurance because I “lied” on their form. Though the chances are very slim, that could be a life-changing event.
In any case, it sucks. Either I take a chance by lying or I pay the money. I’m not looking forward to either. So I hope that the form asks if I use “tobacco” and not e-cigarettes.
I hear ya, lying is never the answer, but an omission works well for me . I can work around the smoking vs non smoking question easily. The point thou that they’re bringing e cigs into a questionable area related to cigarettes erks me it is not known if it is harmful enough to attribute illness so I don’t believe that is a fair shake at all for the consumer to have to make that decision or risk the consequences of their actions avoid truth / truth ? And we all know vaping isn’t smoking awareness is power but our lobbyist won’t and haven’t listened.
Ever hear of fighting fire with fire? Obama stated quite emphatically on numerous occasions “if you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan” What he didn’t say is how the cost of those plans would increase to such a degree that business who provide health care as a benefit to their employees (very high percentage of the source of coverage…at the time) would no longer be able to maintain that. Then, going against the US Constitution, proceeds to pass a law requiring the populace to purchase coverage. In the middle of all that lying and tinkering with the law, somehow The Healthcare Marketplace became the only venue through which to purchase said coverage. Then on top of that, the US Government, through tyranny under a socialist regime, becomes complicit in creating a monopolizing entity - Blue Cross Blue Shield - who, at least in my area, is the ONLY provider even remotely affordable. I use the word affordable very loosely because it’s only a relative term. $849/month vs $1600/month, and that company, according to my Marketplace agent, is a “sister” company to BCBS anyway.
It’s all a damn joke. I can no more afford to visit a doctor than I can to pay out of pocket and forego the policy altogether. So seeing how we were all lied to, and more egregiously - bullied, I have no qualms about telling a lie about whether or not I vape. And if they want to regain any of my respect, how about drug testing people on welfare and food stamps. Those people should never be able to get a free lunch and smoke weed too.
It’s funny, my questionnaire asks if I use tobacco products, I always put in former smoker, no chewing tobacco. Now this was almost a week ago… let’s see if they raise a stink.
If they do, then I’ll ask them to further clarify their definition of a tobacco product and then ask about nicotine patch users. Fair is fair…
I get your point it should be enforced. Even living where I am ( OR ) medicinal and recreational marijuana is legal but Not to your employer who expects you to pass your drug test to keep your job they just decriminalized it is all. All of this is circumvention stupid health insurance companies are too.
If states are going to test welfare recipients, then they should be using the drug tests that have adulteration detection technology. They are a bit more expensive but it lets the tester know if the person being screened has done anything to alter their urine. Most drug users cheating on drug screens use oxidantes, nitrites,aldehydes, acids and alkalines(drinking vinegar before the test) to adulterate their tests along with diluting urine and drinking a bunch of teas or some kind of fluids the day before to clear out drug molecules, all of which can be detected in certain drug testing kits.
A huge part of the problem is the amount of federal double-speak. In my job (which is federally funded) we are to abide by all federal laws. If there is a conflict of federal vs state law, we MUST follow the federal law. Weed, no matter how it’s labeled is against federal law therefore anyone participating in my program that is imbibing in marijuana is breaking federal law, right? They should no longer be able to participate if they can’t abide by the rules designated by the federal government that funds us. Simple. However, HUD specifically states that no one can be terminated from our program for the use of illegal substances. We can only “encourage” them to enter a detox/rehab program. Care to guess what the percentages are of those that take us up on the encouragement? I as a case manager and enforcer of the rules and regs, am powerless to do anything and the clients know it. It’s a daily frustration that just bothers me to no end.
Yea, I used to work for the government, part of what you are experiencing is why I quit my government job. Yea, good pay, excellent benefits, but I dare say it seems to be an enslaving job and the government wants to rule you any way they can. But you are wrong to say that you are powerless, you can always quit and do something else like I did. Today, I have my own business and I make 4 times the money than I did at my government job. It was a long haul but it was worth it as I am my own boss and I don’t require myself random drug tests.
I don’t have any no vaping signs at my business but I do have no smoking signs inside and outside. But only because it is the only government rule I must follow besides giving them a boatload of money every quarter. Other than the extra employee on the clock (Uncle Sam) nothing much else frustrates me about the government, but that one is bad enough since for what my small business pays the government every year I could hire 2 full time employees with full benefits with that money. Nothing is worse than a government that tells you what to do and shakes you down every quarter and does absolutely nothing for you but rob you of your honest earnings. Our government takes more and more every year and does less and less for it’s citizens and business owners. Right now, what burns me more is they rob my profits then try to ban vaping. Our government sucks more and more each year and it’s not going to get better till the bottom falls out. Sooner than later, it will because there seems to be no place in sight for any changes to be made. As long as they can keep telling you what to do and take your money, they won’t stop till there is nothing left to take and nothing to do…We will end up like Venezuela hunting pigeons and possums…
