You may not have heard of Mini-Med insurance before the recent news about McDonald’s. As it stands right now, McDonald’s is threatening to end the health insurance benefits plan it currently offers to it’s employees. This is in response to new regulations about health insurance that will be taking place in 2011.
Employees of McDonald’s may qualify for a type of health insurance called Mini-Med. What is Mini-Med? It is form of health insurance that is guaranteed. This means that no one who applies for this kind of health insurance will be turned down, for any reason, including for any pre-existing conditions a person may have. It also means that there is no medical underwriting for these policies. Therefore, people who get this type of health insurance will not be asked a lot of medical questions, and will not have to go through a physical exam.
What does Mini-Med insurance cover? It generally covers doctor visits, emergency room visits, hospital charges, surgery, and costs that arise due to accidental death. It will cover most pre-existing health conditions starting at twelve months after a person starts the insurance policy. The insurance will pay a defined amount for a certain service or procedure. This kind of health insurance is sometimes called “limited benefit health insurance”.
How does this relate to McDonald’s employees? Workers pay about $14.00 a week for the Mini-Med health insurance, that has a cap of $2,000, for a basic plan. Medium benefits cost a worker around $25.00 a week, and come with a cap of $5,000. Higher benefits will cost a worker $32.00 a year, and it has a cap of $10,000. The Mini-Med health insurance currently pays for 100% of the cost for a worker to visit either a primary care or specialist doctor, (after the worker pays a co-pay of $20.00). It also pays for 100% of the cost of prescription drugs, but the worker must pay a $5.00 co-pay for generic drugs, and a $50.00 co-pay for brand name drugs. Also, 70% of the cost of inpatient hospital services are paid for by the Mini-Med insurance plan. These numbers are for a plan that a single worker has, (not for a worker with a family). Without the Mini-Med insurance plan, workers of McDonald’s may have little choice except to visit emergency rooms when they need health care. It will be interesting to see what happens next with this situation.
Image by Mark Coggins on Flickr