Author Topic: best minimum job for health insurance  (Read 3099 times)

wjquigs

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best minimum job for health insurance
« on: December 18, 2019, 07:09:38 PM »
I volunteer as a teaching assistant in a public high school, and was talking to a substitute teacher recently. She works 90 days a year as a sub, because the teachers' contract with the district stipulates that 90 days is the minimum to maintain benefits such as health insurance.
That sounded like a pretty good deal to me. School started in September and by Thanksgiving she was almost at her target. The rest of the year, she travels. Average pay for a sub here is $25/hour, which means she's basically working for free: 90 days gets around $14k. But it's a fairly low-stress job.
Losing employer-sponsored health insurance is one of the major expenses between retiring early and Medicare. Even my sponsored health insurance costs me almost $500/month, and my deductible is $5k/year. And by today's standards, that's a generous plan.
What jobs have people researched that provide health insurance for the minimum number of days/hours worked?


AK

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #1 on: December 19, 2019, 05:57:04 AM »
My MIL works as a part-time school bus attendant for medical insurnce. After 15 years, she gets family medical coverage for life. She works 180 days a year with a morning and afternoon shift of a few hours.

NextTime

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #2 on: December 19, 2019, 08:13:46 AM »
A couple elderly friends took jobs as bus drivers for a few years until they were Medicare eligible. Not sure I'd want to do that.

Others we knew did substitute teaching or on call teacher assistant (para), but I'm not sure whether they received medical benefits for that or not.

Nateson

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #3 on: December 21, 2019, 06:03:14 PM »
I think you're looking for more 'professional' work, but if you want extremely low barriers to entry:

CostCo - $15 an hour... 24 hours a week for good coverage
Starbucks - $12 an hour... 20 hours a week for decent coverage

I'm really interested in responses to this question too, so I wanted to give it another shot at the top of the forums.

cangelosibrown

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #4 on: December 23, 2019, 09:25:05 AM »
Not what you're asking, but perfunctory reply because I think a lot of people still don't realize the extent to which it's true: ACA subsidies can make health care extremely cheap and generous if you can manage to get your income in the right range (which early retirees often can). A couple years ago I got my income to about 35k and ended up paying about $100 a month for a plan that had a $400 deductible. It's complicated, and not possible for everyone, but always worth checking out.

DaMa

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #5 on: December 26, 2019, 01:57:45 PM »
What state, @wjquigs?  I'm in Michigan, and around here substitute teachers make about $100 a day, no benefits.  The pay varies by district, but nothing close to $25/hour that I've ever heard of.

familyandfarming

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Re: best minimum job for health insurance
« Reply #6 on: January 07, 2020, 05:35:46 PM »
Same here in Iowa, where it’s $100 max and many teachers will ask you to sub for two hours only. Unless you live next to the school it’s not worth your time getting there and back for $30 before taxes!