14 replies to this topic

[Gyropilot]

Hi everyone,

My name is John... I have a problem... I'm a Fulltimer Wannabe.

I'm 50 and my wife is 40. We've been Escapees members for a few years now, but this is my very first post to the forum.
In about 24 months we plan to quit our careers and become fulltime RV'ers. We've been researching, planning, saving, and dreaming of doing this for years. I've been familiarizing myself with all the issues regarding choosing a state to domicile in. Because of our age, we're still a l-o-n-g way off from being able to participate in Medicare, so being able to obtain good private health insurance is high on our priority list when it comes to choosing a domicile.
In reviewing our health insurance options, I've discovered some really great news, but also I seem to be hitting a pretty significant roadblock with certain residency requirements in the eyes of the health insurance companies. I know this issue has been discussed here and many other forums before (I've spent hours reading about it), but I still have some unanswered questions and concerns. I'm hoping some of you out there may be able to offer suggestions.

First the good news:

As residents of WA state currently covered by an employer's group health insurance plans, when we quit our jobs, state law requires that the health insurance companies in this state sell us a private health insurance policy without having to go through an underwriting process. We'd also be charged the same price as every other customer in this state since we have flat group-like premiums in this state. In other words, in our particular case the insurers have to sell us a health insurance policy no matter what preexisting conditions we might have and without any price penalty for our health. This privilege alone is ample reason for us to consider remaining legal residents of WA state even after we become fulltime RV'ers. Since WA state also has no income tax, and since we're already well established here with our driver's licenses, vehicle registration, voter registration, will's, etc., it makes the decision even easier.
Now the bad news:

I've learned that a legal domicile for one's driver's license, vehicle registration, and voting are one thing, but the esidency requirements for a health insurance policy is something completely different. For example, Regence Blue Cross of WA has this printed prominently on their application:

WASHINGTON RESIDENCE ADDRESS
To be eligible to apply for our individual plans, you must reside in our service area for at least 30 days prior to submitting your application and continue to live in our service area for six months out of the year. A photocopy of a valid Washington state driver's license, identification card, or current utility bill with name and address may be requested as proof of residency."

My original plan when we transitioned to fulltiming was to use a UPS mail forwarding service in WA state for our domicile address after we sold our house, then we'd just wander around the country with no particular destination or length of stay in mind. Since we do like the summers in WA state, and since we have friends here, I figured we'd probably wind up spending at least a few months here each year. But after looking at that residency requirement statement above, and after reading what other fulltimers have encountered, I'm assuming any change of mailing address that even smells like a business address (like a mail forwarding business) will trigger a requirement to *prove* we physically live in WA state for six months out of the year.

Obtaining a health insurance policy after we quit our jobs, but before we sell our house, shouldn't be a problem. I'm just not sure what would happen when I need to change our mailing address with the health insurance provider after we sell our home. We have no relatives in the state who might allow us to use their residence address, and while we do have friends, I'm not sure I feel comfortable involving them in this sort of thing.

I'm beginning to wonder if a possible solution to this problem would be for us to buy a small deeded RV lot somewhere in WA state which would allow us to satisfy proof of residency for health insurance purposes. We'd still need something like utility bills to back it up.

Does anyone know if there are physical residency requirements for obtaining and maintaining health insurance coverage in Texas (specifically at the Escapees property in Livingston)?

Thanks in advance,

John L.

Edited by John L., 26 May 2011 - 04:50 PM.

[LindaH]

To be eligible to apply for our individual plans, you must reside in our service area for at least 30 days prior to submitting your application and continue to live in our service area for six months out of the year. A photocopy of a valid Washington state driver's license, identification card, or current utility bill with name and address may be requested as proof of residency."

That's pretty standard in a lot of states. When we were domiciled in South Dakota, many of the insurance companies we contacted required an actual residential address and at least 6 months of presence in the state.

My original plan when we transitioned to fulltiming was to use a UPS mail forwarding service in WA state for our domicile address after we sold our house

Have you checked to make sure you'll be able to use a mail forwarding address as your "only" address for purposes of Washington State's driver's licenses, vehicle registration, etc.? I'm pretty sure you must have a physical residential address in Washington State. But you'd better find out for sure before you burn your bridges. We, too, are Washington State residents, but we became residents after coming off the road fulltiming, so I'm not absolutely sure about the state's requirements. However, we have friends who were Washington State residents before fulltiming and they ran into problems trying to use a mail forwarding address. Unfortunately, they don't read or participate in these forums.

I'm beginning to wonder if a possible solution to this problem would be for us to buy a small deeded RV lot somewhere in WA state which would allow us to satisfy proof of residency for health insurance purposes.

Well, that would certainly be one solution.

Edited by LindaH, 27 May 2011 - 09:29 AM.

[avan]

We went FT at roughly the same age as you plan to go. DW was disabled and already on Medicare but I wasn't and had a pre-existing condition which would give underwriters the perfect reason to exclude me. My then home state had the same guarantied eligibility once you were no longer eligible for COBRA coverage with the premiums to be within 5% of the prior group coverage costs per individual. So when we established a domicile in another state, I maintained an insurance domicile in my previous state. I had a relative who rented a room, closet sized, in their basement to me and I moved a piece or two of clothing there and I could use their address for ins purposes. Since you will maintain your WA domicile, you won't have that problem. If WA won't let you use a PMB address, ask a relative or friend if you can use theirs. If you don't give that address out to others, the only mail that your relative or friend would get would be from the DMV and you can provide you relative or friend with SASE to your PMB. I see nothing in your insurance quote that you would have to own property or even sleep in the property you did own some. There is nothing inconsistent with living in the area 6 months a year and being on vacation, at the cottage, camping in a National Park somewhere, taking a cruise to Alaska etc. etc. etc. That verbiage was written by an attorney - their attorney - and the word "live" has broad and varied meanings. If they wanted your physical presence at your WA address for 6 mo (also an imprecise term), it would have been really easy for them to craft such language.

Prior to going FT, I wrote a letter to my carrier stating that my attorney daughter practiced in TX and that we visited her frequently. Since, while visiting her, we had trouble with the PO following mail forwarding directions, our daughter was setting us up with a nearby mail forwarder in TX such that we could get out mail via them whether at home, visiting our daughter in TX or our daughter in VA or anywhere else we might be. Wanted to see if that raised a red flag. It did not.

Maintained that ins. residency for 14 yrs until I became Medicare eligible. About 7 yrs in, the ins. company sent me a letter noting that since they saw TX address on some of my stuff, they were questioning my residency and wanted to transfer me to TX (we were not domicile in TX but rather in SD). I wrote back that I had been using TX as a mailing address of convenience only, much like the ins. company itself does when its address for premium remittances goes to their bank, and enclosed a copy of my 7 yr old letter previously advising them of same. They wanted a copy of my D/L so I finally used a frequent flier ticket, flew back to my ins. state, took a cab to the DMV, turned in my SD D/L saying I was moving, provided a copy of my lease agreement on my basement "apartment" and got a new D/L and registered to vote. Sent photocopies of same to the insurance company and got my SD D/L reissued the next time we drove near SD.

Know their rules - and you do - and know what your answers will be if you are ever asked. Every letter I ever sent them had the ins. state return address; every doctor or hospital form I ever filled out always noted the TX address with a BOLD "mail forwarding address" written next to it and asterisked at the bottom was "Home Address - xxx". Whenever I needed to call them (like to make sure hospital X would be covered), I knew what relative or friend we were visiting in whatever state we were in, prior to making the phone call, just in case the ins. representative decided to get chatty.

[Gyropilot]

Have you checked to make sure you'll be able to use a mail forwarding address as your "only" address for purposes of Washington State's driver's licenses, vehicle registration, etc.?

That's a good question... I haven't.

I do see on the WA state DL Change of Address form they have fields available for both a "New Residence Address" and a "Mailing Address." This might imply they do indeed require a true residence address and won't accept a business address. I'll have to call the DOL to verify.

But you'd better find out for sure before you burn your bridges.

Exactly!

That's what I'm attempting to do now. I want to figure out exactly what I can and can't get away with well before we head down a road that'd be be difficult to turn around on.

John L.

[Gyropilot]

We went FT at roughly the same age as you plan to go.

Thanks Avan,

Your real-life experiences have given me a lot to think about.

Best regards,

John L.

[Gyropilot]

UPDATE

Late last week I had an email exchange about the residency requirements of Blue Cross / Blue Shield of Texas with a representative of the Friesen-Strain Insurance Agency in Lufkin, TX, an Escapees endorsed commercial member.

She said:

"There are no length of stay requirements for Texas. As long as you have a Texas address, voter registration or TDL you are considered a Texas Resident.

The Rainbow Drive address was approved several years ago by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas as a valid mailing address."

Looks like there's a strong possibility we'll become Texans when we become fulltimers!

John L.

Edited by Gyropilot, 04 June 2011 - 09:27 AM.

[Kirk]

I think that you will find that the Escapees address is the only one that satisfies all legal requirements. Even in South Dakota they have you use the address of some RV park in order to register to vote, while Texas does not. And the Escapees address has been completely through the courts and was upheld.

Another advantage to moving everything to Livingston is the fact that you will never be asked by any professional person, business person, or government official what a "fulltimer" is or how you live. Escapees are a very significant employer in that area and they are very well known. Business people and politicians both seek member support. There is no place quite like it.

For more information on what you would need to do, get a free copy of How To Become A Real Texan.

[Jack Mayer]

I guarantee that BCBS will honor the SKP mail address. We have BCBS through F-S and have for many years with a Livingston address. Absolutely no address issues.

[patty98311]

One thing to consider(as I am a Wa resident too so I am following these thread as well), voting in this state is by mail-in ballots, how would you vote? will the service forward the ballots even though they say specifically "do not forward" on the exterior, this is something we are wondering as I plan to get back on the road this fall.

[Gyropilot]

One thing to consider(as I am a Wa resident too so I am following these thread as well), voting in this state is by mail-in ballots, how would you vote? will the service forward the ballots even though they say specifically "do not forward" on the exterior, this is something we are wondering as I plan to get back on the road this fall.

These are some excellent questions. I think the answers will depend on the exact circumstances of the voter.

The WA state voter application form requires a residential address, but it also has room for a mailing address (if different from the residential address).

If using a commerical mail forwarding service (like a UPS store) for the mailing address on the votor registration form, I don't think you'd have any problem actually getting your ballot because that service boxes up and ships all your mail to you. I doubt seeing a DO NOT FORWARD message on any piece would stop them for shipping it to you. Now the US Postal Service probably wouldn't forward the piece to you if they were in the loop somewhere.

Regarding residency for voting purposes, here's an excerpt from the Washington Secretary of State web site:


Residency and Voting Rights

To be eligible to register to vote in Washington, you must be a resident of the state. The term residence is used differently for a variety of legal situations. For example, residency for tuition at a state college is defined by statutes dealing with state institutions of higher education. Residency for unemployment benefits or financial assistance is defined by statutes dealing with those topics. Similarly, for the purposes of voting, residency is defined in the State Constitution and in election statutes.

The Washington State Constitution states:

All persons of the age of eighteen years or over who are citizens of the United States and who have lived in the state, county, and precinct thirty days immediately preceding the election at which they offer to vote, except those disqualified by [a felony conviction or mental incompetence], shall be entitled to vote at all elections.

Article VI, section 1. For the purpose of registering and voting, a person's residence is a person's permanent address where he or she physically resides and maintains his or her abode. A voter who lacks a traditional residential address, such as a person who resides in a shelter, park, motor home or marina, is assigned a precinct based on the voter's physical location. For voting purposes, you may not have more than one residence.State laws regarding voting residency include Article VI, sections 1 and 4 of the State Constitution, RCW 29A.04.151, and RCW 29A.08.112.


When does my residence change?

Once a residence is established, it exists until a new residence is established. A voter does not lose his or her voting residency if absent due to state or federal employment, military service, school attendance, confinement in a public prison, out-of-state business, or navigation at sea. You must physically leave the previous residence with the intention of establishing a new residence at another location. Intention to reside in a particular place - permanently or for an unspecified period of time - is an important factor in determining your residence for voting purposes.


Is it legal for someone else to use my address for voter registration even though the person does not live here anymore?

Yes. In many circumstances, it is the only address the person can use for voter registration. For example, a member of the military stationed overseas or out of state who formerly resided at your address may continue to use that address for voter registration purposes.

[patty98311]

Good info.

[Mark & Dale Bruss]

In South Dakota you need the one night in the campground to get your Driver's License. After that, voting and insurance is based upon your virtual address.

Health insurance is highly dependent on your situation. In our time we have seen people change residence from South Dakota to Texas for insurance and people who changed from Texas to South Dakota for the same reason.

The only time length of residence per year should be an issue is with an HMO plan. As full-timers, your plan should be a PPO (or whatever it is called now)

[Al Florida]

Here is a link to a young (mid 40's) couple who have been fulltiming for about 6 years and what they do about insurance.
http://www.rv-dreams.../insurance.html

There is a lot more info on their website about financials as well.

[LindaH]

One thing to consider(as I am a Wa resident too so I am following these thread as well), voting in this state is by mail-in ballots, how would you vote? will the service forward the ballots even though they say specifically "do not forward" on the exterior, this is something we are wondering as I plan to get back on the road this fall.

This is something that I just talked with the Spokane County Auditor's office (Election Division) about this week.

First, this will not apply to fulltimers (see my comment above about needing a real physical address), but we are no longer fulltimers. The ballots ARE forwardable according to the guy I spoke with. However, during our talk he asked if we always went to Arizona during the winter. After replying in the affirmative, he said that they could add a secondary address where the ballots would be mailed during our time in Arizona. This would apply to the November elections and any other elections that took place in January and April (those are the two months he mentioned) and would continue until such time as we rescinded the address.

[Gyropilot]

Hi everyone,

This is a brief follow-up post.

Good news! We've effectively solved our problem of how to remain legal WA state residents once we sell our stick home to become full-time RV'ers...

After doing careful research, we purchased a membership for an RV lot in the Safari Association in Ilwaco, WA which is located in the extreme SW corner of WA state on the Long Beach Peninsula. This private, gated RV community allows year-round occupancy so we'll be able to use it as a permanent residence. We plan to spend our summers there and travel the rest of the year.

Safe travels,

John L.