Subsidized health insurance has brought a measure of comfort and security to retirement for Bill Koclanis.
The 63-year-old Oak Forest electrician and his wife signed up for a plan last year that allows them to see doctors more often than they did before getting insurance through a federal marketplace under the Affordable Care Act. They couldn’t afford the plan without a federal subsidy that covers 60 percent of their monthly premium.
A pending U.S. Supreme Court case will take up the question of whether those subsidies are legal in more than three dozen states, including Illinois, that use a federal insurance portal connecting consumers with health plans.
If he no longer gets a subsidy, Koclanis said, he would no longer be able to afford his monthly premiums.
“We would be back with some kind of bare-bones insurance account, stringing in until Medicare,” he said, referring to the federal insurance program for the elderly and people with disabilities.
Koclanis and his wife, Deborah, signed up for a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan during last year’s open enrollment period. The plan costs about $1,060 per month, but a $623 monthly subsidy makes it affordable for the couple, Koclanis said.
Before the open enrollment period, the couple paid about $300 per month for a high-deductible health savings account that Koclanis said offered only catastrophic coverage.
“Under the old plan, you were responsible for everything,” he said.
Before switching plans, he hadn’t got a checkup in years. Now he gets regular checkups from a family doctor, and his wife gets annual mammograms.
“In my opinion, I’d be happy to see it continue,” he said.
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