Homemakers Earn $100,000 Plus Health Insurance

Investopedia's Porcshe Moran did some research to find out, "How Much Is A Homemaker Worth?" By examining the basic tasks that most every homemaker does on a daily and weekly basis and taking the lowest value for each task, this article determined that a homemaker would earn around $100,000 if they worked outside of the home.

Between doing the grocery shopping and acting as a private chef for three meals a day, you could earn around $52,000 a year. House cleaning services vary depending on the size of the house, but a low average estimates just over $6,000 per year for basic housecleaning, more for things like cleaning out appliances and dusting mini-blinds. The full-time, live-in child care offered by homemakers is worth quite a lot both monetarily and in perks. A nanny would earn around $31,000 a year and would usually receive health insurance, vacation, sick days, bonuses, and even dental and vision insurance.

A personal driver for your own vehicle would cost you over $4,000 per year. Your Memphis auto insurance, or whatever city in which you live, might also cover the driver's car insurance as an added perk. Laundry services would cost nearly $1,000 per year assuming about five loads per week. Many homemakers also do landscaping services like mowing the lawn, for which they could earn more than $1,500 each year. With a salary near $100,000 per year, some homemakers may look to take some of their services outside the home!

Individual Health Insurance Rarely Covers IVF In US, More Embryos Transferred

Although many people think that the more embryos implanted during IVF, the greater chance you will have a successful pregnancy, the UK's University of Glasgow has found the opposite to be true. Europe has strict guidelines regarding the number of embryos that can be implanted during IVF, unlike the US. This is probably because IVF is paid for in many European countries. Individual health insurance, or group for that matter, in America rarely covers fertility treatments like IVF. Since the cost can start at $10,000 per treatment, Americans tend to implant more embryos in the hopes that it will give them a greater chance of having a baby.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine issues recommendations for embryo transfers, but they are rarely followed and not regulated. For women under 35, they recommend 1 embryo be transferred, 2-3 embryos for women 35-37, and 3-4 embryos for women 38-40. In contrast, the Western European guidelines are often laws and have lower recommendations. For women under 37, they recommend 1 embryo transferred, for ages 37-40 there is a maximum of 2 embryos, and over 40 there is usually a maximum of 3 embryos.

One reason given for the stricter guidelines is that there could be a greater risk of miscarriage and surely a riskier pregnancy with more embryos implanted. But this most recent study also found that there is not a higher likelihood of a successful pregnancy when three or more embryos are transferred. The women under 40 who were studied had a successful pregnancy 33% of the time with 2 embryos transferred, but only 25% of the time with 3 embryos transferred. In women over 40, the success rate was the same whether 2 or 3 embryos were transferred. We'll see if this study does anything to change American regulations.

This information came from the Associated Press article, "Study finds no better odds using 3 embryos in IVF," by Maria Cheng.

Medicare, Health Insurance Cuts Hurt Doctors with Small Practices

There is a sad reality facing many doctors in America who run their own businesses. Due to smaller reimbursements from health insurance companies, increasing business expenses and drug costs, and frequently changing regulations; doctors are running out of money to run their small practices. This information comes from "Small Business: Doctors going broke," by Parija Kavilanz of CNN Money. This is not only affecting family practice doctors, but also oncologists, cardiologists and just about every other specialty.

Believe it or not, half of all U.S. doctors operate in a private practice, so the loss of this industry would really hurt Americans' health care choices. Medicare cuts have hurt doctors with small businesses. Cardiovascular services saw 35-40% cuts in Medicare recently and there is a 24.7% cut in Medicare doctors' pay pending. Sadly, these cuts could force some doctors to close their small practices. Doctors have been going with less or no pay and taking out loans just to cover the payroll costs at their practices.

Medicare cuts are based on the state of the economy and health insurance companies base their reimbursements on what is happening with Medicare. Since doctors have been trained in medicine, they have to do added research to properly run a small business. Let's hope for some regulation and some better luck for doctors running small practices. While hiring another person is low on the priority list, it is wise to have someone with a business background to run a medical practice and not all doctors have that.

Auto Insurance Rates are High in Montana

Montana residents pay the 4th highest auto insurance rates in the United States, according to KTVQ out of Billings. Des Toups' article, "Montana ranked 4th-highest for car insurance cost," says that the information was collected from Quadrant Information Services. The average yearly cost to insure a 2011 vehicle in Montana is $2,190. You should be able to get used car insurance for cheaper than that, but it will be difficult to find new car insurance for much less.

The three states with higher car insurance than Montana are Michigan at $2,541; Louisiana at $2,453; and Oklahoma at $2,197. One reason for steep car insurance costs in Montana is the vast size of the state. People have to drive more miles and that means that they incur a greater risk. With a fatality rate of 2.12 per 100 million miles driven, Montana has double the deaths of the national average.

Partially due to the high auto insurance rates, 11% of Montana's drivers are driving without car insurance coverage. The $2,190 rate is for what many consider average coverage in the United States. It includes $100,000 liability coverage per person and $300,000 per accident, as well as $50,000 property damage coverage. The survey assumed a $500 deductible and included uninsured motorist coverage. Shop around to get the best possible auto insurance rates in Montana and any other state.

Ohio Health Insurance Exchanges Ban Abortion Coverage

Ohio's health insurance exchanges are banned from providing any type of abortion coverage, according to the Reuters article, "Ohio bans abortion funding in insurance exchanges," by Mary Wisniewski. Under President Obama's healthcare reform, states must create health insurance exchanges for easy health care shopping by 2014. Governor John Kasich of Ohio, a Republican, signed the ban of any abortion coverage in their health insurance exchange. This ban will be in place regardless of whether the citizen plans to pay for their abortion with their own money; health insurance will not cover any of the procedure.

There is definitely outrage from pro-choice and other groups like the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU said that it would sue the state if this became a law, so that may be coming soon. NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio's executive director argues that this law violates Ohio's Constitution. On the other side of the argument, Ohio Right to Life's executive director says that abortion is not actually healthcare. So while these groups agree that everyone should have access to healthcare, the groups don't agree as to whether or not abortion is actually healthcare. Abortion has been a hot debate for decades, so regardless of the law the topic will continue to be debated and fought over in the legal system.

Auto Breakdowns More Likely Than Americans Think

Even though most Americans have experienced some type of car trouble while out on the road, 84% of drivers don't foresee themselves running into car trouble this holiday season. This information comes from Allstate's "American drivers unprepared for holiday travel mayhem." Close to half of drivers plan to travel at least 2 hours in the car this season, which means that many more people will likely be stranded and running into car problems. One of the best ways to avoid car trouble is to keep up with the routine maintenance on your car. Sometimes bad luck or circumstances out of your control result in car problems, but taking care of your car can ensure your gas tank is full, your tires have air, and your engine oil is full.

Since 22% of drivers indicated that a slow economy had caused them to skip some routine maintenance, car insurance companies are trying to convince their drivers to keep up with their cars to avoid unnecessary breakdowns. Indianapolis auto insurance companies have to worry about snow and ice in addition to other car troubles like flat tires, dead batteries, and blown fuses. A majority of Americans are confident that they would be able to fix a car problem, should it happen to them. Only half of them, however, say that they could survive three days in their car with the supplies they have inside. Less than half of drivers have a warm blanket, water and food, flares, or a first aid kit. Having some kind of roadside assistance from Allstate, AAA or another company could really save you in the event of a breakdown or accident.

Nebraska's Individual Health Insurance Exchange Controversy

Nebraska's Hospital Association is hoping that the state does not wait until next summer before planning their health insurance exchange. This information comes from Insurance Journal's "Nebraska's Health Providers Urge State-based Insurance Exchange," by Grant Schulte. Currently, the Nebraska government plans to wait until a U.S. Supreme Court ruling regarding President Obama's health insurance changes, which is expected around June. The deadline for states to have their individual health insurance exchanges planned is June 29, so Nebraska could be in a bad place if the current plans pass through the Supreme Court and they have not made their own budgeting and oversight plans.

The state run health insurance exchanges are for Americans to purchase individual health insurance with all of their options in an easy to shop location. It is estimated that a family of four, making around $55,000 per year, would be able to get an insurance plan for about $370 per month. These online supermarkets must be in place by 2014 and funded by individual states by 2015, but the deadline for federal approval of the plans is January of 2013.

Nebraska's governor doesn't want to put the work into making an exchange plan before the federal government ruling is made. He says that exchange minimum requirements haven't even been set yet and many government officials in Nebraska are worried about the costs the state will incur. If a quality health insurance exchange is not put into place by Nebraska's government, the federal government will run one for them. Twelve percent of Nebraska's population is currently uninsured, but many more are likely under-insured. Nebraska is weighing four different options for health insurance exchanges, but is likely to go with a state run plan.