In what ways can a musician make informed choices about coverage and cost effectiveness?Insurance is, unfortunately, a luxury for the majority of artist, musicians, and DIY music biz workers as it is for many low-income people in America. In addition to health and dental benefits, there are other program types including Critical and Disability, Evacuation Services and Expatriate Plans. Maiolo says that given that most musicians are young and relatively healthy, regular wellness visits are not why you should be buying a plan. This will allow you to access the deals. This applies to “royalty artists” as well as session vocalists, and the plan also covers families, not just individuals.
Now we are 80,000 musicians strong. By law we all have to have it come 2014, so start researching now. Aside from being in a vehicle 12 hours a day, there's the moving of heavy equipment, repetitive stress injuries, smoky bars, Weighing the risk of injury against the cost is only natural, but it's a bad idea. Copyright © 2020 American Federation of Musicians. Check out A postscript: The terrible news of Jason Molina's passing came as I was finishing this week's column. There are a handful of …
The American Federation of Musicians (AFM), a union for working musicians, also offers any array of plans to union members.
These savings range from credit cards, travel insurance, clothing, car rentals, concerts and more! What do the more responsible touring musicians use for medical care? Premiums are paid by employer contributions and can be as little as $400 every 6 months. Health and Travel Insurance Packages. For a lot of musicians, coming up with an extra money every month for insurance might force you to get a day job or forget about touring all together. After your account is created, log in. The H&W Trust provides medical, dental, vision, chiropractic, acupuncture, prescription drugs and life insurance to musicians who qualify for benefits based upon contributions received on their behalf in accordance with AFM Local 47 and American Federation of Musicians contracts and collective bargaining agreements. Being a sole-proprietor, freelance or contract worker–as many working musicians are–means buying private insurance, which given the cost and the ebb-and-flow nature of freelance income can be downright prohibitive–which may explain why musicians are uninsured at twice the rate of the rest of America.You are right to be concerned about coverage for the road. In 2011, his family started a fund to cover the mounting debt of Molina's uninsured stints in rehab. Union Savings (Member Discounts) In partnership with Union Savings, a not-for profit program, we join 70 fellow unions across Canada so our members and their families can access exclusive discounts on various products/services.. Before you leave the country for work or vacation, make sure you’re protected.Customizable health and dental plans are available to AFM members through Great West Life in collaboration with HUB International. For any questions on the discounts listed on the site or login issues, please contact Union Savings at
Our history began in 1896 when musicians gathered in Indianapolis and organized the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) for “any musician who receives pay for his musical services.” Representing 3,000 members, AFM was granted a charter by the American Federation of Labor (AFL). If you are a musician or work in the music industry and are The fact that the uninsured musicians I know get by on a luck, vitamins, free clinics, purloining their I reached out to Alex Maiolo, who is a musician and a health insurance consultant for the Future of Music Coalition, and he had some specific advice: “Insure for the worst case scenario.” Maiolo suggests that young, healthy musicians without families get plans with higher deductibles, because what you want is a stop loss for catastrophic and emergency situations.
Traveling musicians, like other self-employed people in the U.S., face the enormous difficulty of finding affordable, accessible health insurance. You need insurance. “It's going to be easier for musicians to come up with the $5,000 deductible payment via benefit concerts, ” says Maiolo, “rather than half a million dollars for uninsured treatment after the fact.”While it would be lovely to have some carte blanche PPO plan and pay $10 for a doctor visit, he suggests that a high deductible can take $50-80 a month off your payment, meaning that you might pay $30 for a doctor visit instead. What kind of plan is best for covering illnesses and hospitalizations the road, and at home? Get discounts from vendors like Canada’s Wonderland, LG, Samsung, Indigo, Adidas, BMO, RBC, Park’N Fly, 1800Flowers and Swarovski.3.
Personal Accident Disability Insurance and Basic Critical Illness Insurance Also, most any plan is going to cover emergencies, regardless of whether they happen at home or on the road.Some resources to start your quest: It is worth spending some time on If you are signed to a major label or a subsidiary, you may qualify for health insurance though AFTRA. Here are the two …