Sticker shock! It's that time of year again to review health insurance and flex spending accounts. Our health insurance coverage is going up 73% over last year. I do have the option of going with less coverage, higher deductible, more out-of-pocket costs, etc., which helps. I don't tend to have much health problems (thank the Lord), so it's doubtful that I would have to use it, but in the back of my mind, I wonder about that off-chance that something catastrophic would happen. Fortunately, we just had to go through this at church, choosing a new coverage plan. I learned the best way to look at it is ask, "What is the worst case scenario?" If I can stomach that, then go with that plan. So I'm thinking of going with the lower premium, higher deductible plan. I have to decide by the end of the month, so I have some time to think about it.

But this throws my flex-spending calculations all out of whack too. I was developing a system, dammit. And over-the-counters are now covered. Which is sweet in the sense of 'they're covered' but now I have to estimate how many colds I'm going to get next year. Who thought this one up? 'Use it or lose it' sucks, big time.