Health insurance for self-employed

Get ready to have your eyes roll back in your head trying to find "affordable" health insurance.

At this point, you're better off keeping your business net profit commensurate with the health insurance exchange (obamacare) scale for qualifying for the largest subsidy you can get.

You can go on the exchange and find out just exactly what that is.

The "your insurance premiums will go down" mantra by the President was a complete lie...

Unfortunately, it's the hand we've been dealt and until and someone has the political balls to change it, it's a pretty tough row to hoe, especially for someone who is self-employed just starting out.

Good luck!

 

If your from maine try community health options......

 

This. BCBS is on most exchanges too.

Best way (imo) to get your MAGI down is a solo 401(k) which allows you to deduct $18,000/year as the employee plus 25% of your income as the employer (capped at $53,000 total). And most folks will still be able to use a $5,500 IRA on top of that...

It isn't much fun putting $50k away where you can't touch it, but its hard not to when it saves $30k (~$15,000/year in health insurance and another ~$16,000 in self employment & income taxes)

 

That works as a single guy, but you can't raise a family on that, not when you figure in saving for college, etc.

While my kids were in college, I kept expanding my business, using credit to do it on occasion, just to keep my AGI down by aggressively depreciating assets. It created an additional $16,000 in financial aid offers per year, plus the savings in taxes.

Unfortunately, when you stop expanding, the tax man cometh....

 

It is easier as a single guy for sure. But the thresholds do go up with household size.

If your state has the expanded medicaid program, you want your MAGI to be just above:




So a married couple with 2 kids needs their MAGI to be just above $33,465. Add back the $12,400 standard deduction, add back ~$12,000 in per diem, and that family of 4 is getting nearly free healthcare while earning $58k/year.

Unless you live in a high cost area, that's a pretty manageable income...

 

That's an excellent point. This is where the gift of Per Diem becomes huge. 58 K for a family with two kids can be done in areas with reasonable costs of living.

 

Try state offer insurance

 

Well just bit the bullet $1200 a month,I would at least check out government insurance got different packages