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Thursday, March 31, 2016

How to Manage Higher Health Insurance Costs in 2016

 

If you have health insurance, there's a good chance you'll pay more for it in 2016.
Health care and health insurance costs increase year to year, like most expenses. Since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, growth in premiums has mostly slowed (as has the rise in health care costs overall), while your share of expenses – like deductibles – has increased. For several reasons, increases in both premiums and other out-of-pocket costs are expected in the coming year.
You can cope with these cost increases by understanding how they'll happen and what you can do to mitigate their effects. How they affect you depends largely on where you get your insurance.
Employer-Based Health Insurance
About half of all Americans receive health insurance through an employer, less than in years past. Although having a job with health insurance is a perk, that doesn't mean the benefit comes cheap.
Employer-based insurance premiums have grown relatively modestly over the past few years, according to Sabrina Corlette, senior research fellow and project director of Georgetown University's Center on Health Insurance Reforms. This is due, in part, to slower growth in health care costs, but also because employers are shifting other costs to their workers, a practice known as "cost-sharing."
For instance, the number of workers with a health insurance deductible grew from 55 percent in 2006 to 80 percent in 2014, and the average deductible more than doubled, from $584 for individual coverage to $1,217, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Further, more employers are offering only plans with high deductibles.
In 2016, if you receive your insurance through your job, you may see modest premium increases and are likely to see increased cost-sharing, like bigger deductibles.
Depending on the size of your employer, you will likely have a few plan options at open enrollment time, which is usually in the fall. Here are some tips for choosing the right health plan to help keep costs in check:
● Opt for a smaller provider network (HMO) or a high-deductible plan if you'll feel the pinch in premiums. Both of these options could reduce your monthly costs. Remember, these plans have trade-offs. In an HMO, you have less freedom to go to the doctors of your choice. With a high-deductible health plan, you'll cover more of your health care costs upfront until your insurance starts picking up the tab.
● Choose a higher premium plan like a PPO if the thought of that big deductible scares you. These plans may have higher monthly costs, but allow you greater freedom to visit the doctors you want without such high out-of-pocket expenses.
● Take advantage of health spending accounts no matter your plan choice. These accounts allow you to set aside pre-tax dollars for out-of-pocket medical expenses, and they're usually taken directly from your paycheck. The two most common types are health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts. HSAs are available only to people with high-deductible plans, but have benefits over FSAs because you are able to carry your unused balance from year to year. With FSAs, if you don't use the money you've allocated to the account, you're likely to lose it at the end of the year.
"Marketplace"-Based Health Insurance
During the second open enrollment period of the ACA, an estimated 11.7 million people had selected or were automatically re-enrolled in health insurance plans on the federal and state marketplaces, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Recent media coverage of planned 2016 premium hikes refers to plans purchased by individuals on these health care exchanges. But these reports don't tell the whole story.
"The data that's out there about 2016 premiums is a little deceiving," Corlette says. "And that's because, in most states, the only rates that have to be posted right now are those that are proposed to be over 10 percent increases." Insurance companies projecting more modest increases, therefore, don't have to share that publicly, creating a skewed sample.
But, Corlette says, that doesn't mean there won't be premium increases. They're driven largely by rising prescription drug costs, insurers having a clearer picture of their policyholders' health care needs and the end of temporary "risk mitigation" programs that gave cash incentives to insurers for approving everyone.
In 2016, if you buy your insurance on state or federal health insurance marketplaces, you're likely to see both increased premiums and cost-sharing. But unlike employer-based coverage, increased premiums on these plans are often offset by subsidies.
The solution, as with employer coverage, lies in shopping carefully.
● Reapply for the premium tax credit or health care subsidies. The Department of Health and Human Services estimates 87 percent of people purchasing marketplace plans receive this financial assistance to help lower premium costs. Updating your income information each year will ensure you're getting the maximum allowable benefit.
● Be flexible and willing to part with your current plan. As costs change, the government may label another marketplace plan the "benchmark," or the plan to which subsidy amounts are tied. If the price of your current plan goes up and another goes down, that lower-priced option may be deemed the benchmark. By switching plans, you'll likely avoid cost increases altogether.
"The subsidy is almost like a gift card," Corlette says. "So if you take it and stay in your same plan, even though that plan has gone up, yes, you'll be paying more. But if you take it and go shop for a lower-priced plan, you should be fine."
● Apply for Medicaid or CHIP coverage if you have children. If you make too much to qualify for Medicaid, your children could still be eligible for it or for The Children's Health Insurance Program. Both are designed to provide health insurance to children at no or low cost. Eligibility varies by state, income and family size. In some states, children in a family of four could be eligible even if the household adjusted gross monthly income is as much as $6,000 or $7,000.
Stay Calm
When you're reading about potentially dramatic health care cost increases, 2016 doesn't seem so far off. Take this time to understand what is and isn't working for you on your current plan and what your other options are. This way, when open enrollment comes around, you're prepared to make savvy decisions about your health care.

Is It Time to Give Your Insurance Policies a Checkup?

 

The insurance industry often urges customers to check their policies every once in a while to make sure everything is up to date. While that sounds like self-serving advice – because you know any conversation with your insurance agent will end with a pitch to buy more insurance – that doesn't mean it’s a bad idea.
As Bill Swymer, an adjunct finance professor at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts, observes: "The No. 1 reason people need to be reviewing all insurance policies is because circumstances change, and you do not want to be left underinsured or paying for insurance you no longer need."
So if you'd rather do anything but comb through your insurance policies, remember there are some strong arguments for buckling down for a review.
You may catch mistakes. You probably have a lot of insurance policies – health insurance, life insurance, auto insurance, homeowners insurance. There may be an error or two or three in one or more of those policies. For instance, Aflac, which provides supplemental health insurance, found in its annual employee benefits study, which surveyed 5,209 employed adults and 1,856 benefits decision-makers at companies, that 42 percent of workers waste up to $750 each year on insurance benefit mistakes.
You might find a better rate. Ken Davidson, co-founder of Dallas-based Eagle Independent Insurance, points out that you may lower your premium if you regularly compare insurance quotes.
"Insurance premiums can frequently change for several reasons," Davidson says, citing homeowners insurance as a type you'd want to look at fairly often. The crime rate, for example, could go up or down, changing your rates. You may have purchased your homeowners insurance policy after recent storms inflated rates, and perhaps yours haven't come down but competitors' rates have.
"So only by comparing different policies at every renewal period – or even more frequently –  can consumers ensure they’re getting the best deal at that time," Davidson says.
You have more assets. Your life doesn't just change. What you cover does. Leigh Needelman, CEO of Florida Assurers, an insurance agency in Miami Beach, Florida, has a rather colorful example of how assets can change.
Needelman recalls a client whose diamond ring was stolen in a home burglary. Fortunately, it was insured, and the client was sent a $6,000 check. So the client went to the jeweler to replace the diamond ring.
But she wasn't able to replace the diamond ring – or if she did, she had to kick in a lot of her own money. "When the jeweler was given the check to replace the diamond ring, he advised [her] that the ring had appreciated to $18,000," Needelman says.
Even if you aren't concerned about insuring your engagement ring – maybe you're single or need a microscope to see the diamond and figure it isn't worth the trouble – if you've been around a while, you have probably collected some stuff over the years, and perhaps a lot of it is expensive. For instance, maybe you locked in your home insurance rates when your new home was filled with secondhand furniture. If all of that has been replaced with sofas and a dining room table purchased from an actual furniture store, and that 20-inch TV was swapped for a 60-inch set, it may be time to discuss these upgrades with your homeowners insurance agent.
Sure, you'll likely see your rates go up, which is painful, but if a disaster occurs, you'll actually be covered for what you own.
According to a study released March 31 by Liberty Mutual Insurance – the Liberty Mutual New Beginnings Report, which surveyed 1,936 American adults from January 28 to February 5 – fewer than 1 in 5 Americans adjust their insurance policy after making a major purchase. Only 18 percent have formal documentation of their belongings, meaning, apparently, that everyone else just makes an estimated guess and stores all the information in their heads. One-third of Americans don't know the value of their household possessions, and almost 10 percent are unaware that they should check to make sure they have enough coverage to protect their belongings from theft or damage, the study found.
You may decide it's time to bundle. If you have four different policies with four different carriers, you might want to bundle a few. That is, have your homeowners and car insurance with one company, for example. You can often get discounts of at least 10 percent when you start bundling, says David Spencer, a senior vice president at ACE Private Risk Services, which offers insurance for high-net-worth individuals and businesses.
You may get some discounts. Yes, your insurance agent may talk you into buying more insurance, but at the same time, you may learn that you're due for some discounts.
"Homeowners can earn credits on premiums by installing safety devices like burglar alarms, water leak detection systems, battery backups for sump pumps and automatic standby generators. When combined, these credits can reduce homeowners’ premiums by 30 percent or more," Spencer says.
Think about that. If you bought a security system months ago, or years ago, and you didn't tell your homeowners insurance agent, you have probably been overpaying on your homeowners insurance for some time.
Your life has probably changed. If you bought life insurance when you were married or after your first child was born, and you’re now on baby No. 4, you’re probably long overdue for an upgrade. Or maybe after you bought a new car, your insurance policy covered you for every possible circumstance. If you're now driving a clunker that isn't worth the gas you're putting in the tank, you are probably vastly overpaying for your coverage.

9 Factors to Consider Before Buying Long-Term Care Insurance

 




As the baby boomers get older, they face an important question: Who is going to take care of them when they can no longer care for themselves?
About 13 percent of Americans try to answer this question by buying long-term care insurance, which is a fraction of those who will need help. Yet issues with long-term care insurance, including rising costs and exclusions, make it less popular than it was a decade ago. Fewer people are buying long-term care insurance, fewer companies are offering it, and medical underwriting is getting more stringent as premiums rise.
Is long-term care insurance a good option for you? The question is not as easy to answer as you might think.
"It's not one size fits all," says Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, an independent organization for long-term care providers.
The very rich probably don't need long-term care insurance, and the poor can't afford it and will be forced to rely on Medicaid. Those who don't fit into either of those categories should look at long-term care insurance as part of their retirement planning strategy.
"You absolutely should be discussing it with your financial advisor," says Reid Abedeen, a partner in Safeguard Investment Advisory Group in Corona, California. "They need to evaluate everything working together versus just the investments achieving growth."
The annual cost of a semiprivate room in a nursing home is more than $88,000 a year in Orlando, Florida, according to Genworth, an insurance company. A private nursing home room is almost $95,000 a year, and 44 hours a week of home health care services would run about $42,000 per year. Medicare doesn't cover any of those costs.
Few people can afford those costs out of pocket. "In today's environment, for many people, a long-term care policy is going to become today's solution," Slome says.
Slome estimates that a healthy 65-year-old who bought a policy today would pay $2,500 to $4,000 a year. But the cost varies considerably based on location, age, health, gender (women pay more) and the amount of coverage you get.
"The younger and healthier you are when you buy the policy, the cheaper the policy and the better it will be," says Chris Orestis, CEO of Life Care Funding, which specializes in converting life insurance policies into long-term care funding. But the younger you are when you buy, the more years you are likely to pay premiums.
A long-term care policy won't cover all situations that aren't covered by Medicare. If you break your hip, for example, and need help temporarily, a long-term care policy is unlikely to be useful, since most don't kick in until you've been permanently disabled for 90 days. Most policies sold today limit coverage to a certain number of years or a certain dollar amount.
Before a policy begins paying for care, insurance policies require that you demonstrate you have lost the ability to engage in at least two activities of daily living: eating, bathing, dressing, toileting, walking and continence. If you are unable to walk around the block, for example, but you can still walk around your house, the insurer may deem you able to walk.
Due to costs and limitations, other types of hybrid policies are springing up. These policies may have shorter waiting periods before benefits begin, set different rules for coverage and be sold to people who are older or have health problems and can't buy long-term care policies.
One increasingly popular type of policy mixes long-term care insurance with life insurance. Customers pay a lump sum or monthly payments. If they don't use the policy, their heirs get a payment when they die. Abedeen says he recently sold such a policy to a couple who paid $114,000 upfront. If either or both need long-term care, the policy will pay up to $6,100 a month per person in benefits, but if the benefits go unused, their heirs will get $307,000 when the second person dies. The couple can also pull the money out at any time. "Premiums can never rise," Abedeen says. "It's a really great plan for protecting that money that disappears in long-term care."
Another option is annuities with long-term care riders. You buy an annuity but rather than taking withdrawals, you earmark the money for long-term care. If you don't need long-term care, you can elect to receive the money after the annuity matures or let it go to your heirs. It's also possible to sell your life insurance policy to get cash for long-term care. If you are being cared for at home, a reverse mortgage is an option. Or you can consider buying into a continuing care community. Short-term care policies are also available, which have a shorter waiting period but provide care for no more than a year.
Slome says the two groups who most need long-term care insurance are couples and single women. For couples, the first to get ill usually is cared for by the healthier spouse. If the illness eats up the couple's assets, the survivor could be left with nothing. Single women receive two-thirds of all the long-term care benefits, he says, and they have to pay more for long-term care insurance.
If you're considering a long-term care policy, here are nine things to consider:
Investigate the best option for you. Talk to a specialist in long-term care to determine what options fit your circumstances, plus talk to a fee-only financial planner about where long-term care insurance fits into your retirement plan. "You need to have a seasoned advisor who is independent who can allow you to look at these options," Abedeen says.
Compare policies and read all the fine print. How long is the exclusion period before the policy begins paying benefits? What capacities must you lose? How many years of care are covered? While you should investigate these policies yourself, the situation is complex enough that you should consult an expert who doesn't sell policies to help make a decision.
Investigate the companies. Many companies have left the market in recent years. "If you're going to look at long-term care policies, you want to make sure you look at the health of the companies you're buying them from," Orestis says. "You always want to do your own homework."
Don't insist on a Cadillac if you can't afford one. One way to cut the cost of long-term care insurance is to choose a policy that covers fewer years or pays out less per day. Eliminating the inflation rider can also cut the cost. "Historically, what people have recommended is first-class care," Slome says, but not everyone can afford that. "Some coverage is always better than no coverage."
Don't stop paying premiums. If you don't think you can keep up with the premiums on your policy your entire life, you shouldn't buy one. Once you quit paying, your policy is no longer in force, and everything you've paid will be lost. Make sure the insurance company has a person to notify if premium payments stop. Many families have found out the hard way that when mom or dad developed dementia, he or she quit paying premiums, and the policy lapsed.
Don't keep your long-term care plans a secret. Make photocopies of the first two pages and give them to someone who is going to be responsible. You may also need someone to advocate for you when it comes time to use the policy or file a claim, so authorize someone to speak to the company on your behalf in advance.
Apply earlier rather than later. If you're not healthy, you can't buy a policy, so the best time to apply is before you develop health problems, usually before 65. An AALTCI survey found that insurers rejected 44 percent of applicants ages 70 to 79, 25 percent of those 60 to 69, 17 percent of those 50 to 59 and 12 percent of those under 50.
Investigate policies for couples. Couples have the option of buying shared benefit policies. Each person would sign up for a two-year plan, for example, but one spouse can use all four years if needed.
Review your long-term care plans every year. While you probably won't want to change your entire policy, you may have options to change coverage. Or, if you elect not to buy a long-term care policy, revisit that decision periodically. New products may emerge. "You don't want to take any option off the table," Abedeen says. "These options should be looked at every year."

Stanford University

 

Stanford University is a private institution that was founded in 1885. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 7,019, its setting is suburban, and the campus size is 8,180 acres. It utilizes a quarter-based academic calendar. Stanford University's ranking in the 2016 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 4. Its tuition and fees are $46,320 (2015-16).
Stanford University’s pristine campus is located in California’s Bay Area, about 30 miles from San Francisco. Stanford offers a wide range of student organizations, including the Stanford Pre-Business Association and Stanford Solar Car Project, which designs, builds and races a solar car every two years. The Stanford Cardinals are well known for the traditional "Big Game" against Cal, an annual football competition that awards the Stanford Axe—a sought-after trophy—to the victor. Stanford also has successful programs in tennis and golf. Only freshman are required to live on campus, but students are guaranteed housing for all four years and most choose to remain on campus. Greek life at Stanford represents approximately 10 percent of the student body.
Four of Stanford University’s seven schools offer undergraduate and graduate coursework, and the remaining three serve as purely graduate schools. Graduate programs include the highly ranked School of Education, School of Engineering, Law School, School of Medicine and the top-ranked Graduate School of Business. The Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment oversees collaboration between environmental research, teaching and outreach. Stanford has a number of well-known theatrical and musical groups, including the Ram’s Head Theatrical Society and the Mendicants, an all-male a cappella group. Notable Stanford alumni include former U.S. President Herbert Hoover, famed NFL quarterback John Elway, actress Sigourney Weaver and golfer Tiger Woods, who began his professional career at Stanford.

Columbia University

 

Columbia University is a private institution that was founded in 1754. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 6,170, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 36 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Columbia University's ranking in the 2016 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 4. Its tuition and fees are $51,008 (2014-15).
Columbia University, located in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights neighborhood in New York City, offers a wide range of student activities. The Columbia Lions field more than 25 NCAA Division I teams in the Ivy League. More than 90 percent of students live in on-campus housing, ranging from traditional residence halls to university-owned brownstones. Many of the brownstones are populated by the more than 25 Greek fraternity and sorority chapters on campus, whose membership includes about 10 percent of the student body. Organizations such as Urban New York, which gives out free tickets to city events, foster student interaction with life in the Big Apple.
Columbia is comprised of three undergraduate schools—Columbia College, The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and the School of General Studies—as well as a number of graduate and professional schools. Columbia’s graduate programs include the highly ranked Business School, Teachers College, SEAS, Law School, College of Physicians and Surgeons, School of International and Public Affairs, School of the Arts and Mailman School of Public Health. The university also has a well-regarded College of Dental Medicine and Graduate School of Journalism. Columbia is affiliated with Barnard College for women, the Union Theological Seminary and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Distinguished alumni include John Jay, founding father and first Supreme Court Justice; President Barack Obama; songwriting team Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II; and actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. Columbia also administers the Pulitzer Prizes.

Yale University

 

Yale University is a private institution that was founded in 1701. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 5,477, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 343 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Yale University's ranking in the 2016 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 3. Its tuition and fees are $47,600 (2015-16).
Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut, is known for its excellent drama and music programs, which reach outside the classroom with student organizations such as the Yale Whiffenpoofs, a famous a cappella group, and the Yale Dramatic Association. The Yale Bulldogs compete in the Ivy League and are well known for their rivalry with Harvard. Students are assigned to live in one of 12 residential colleges during their time at Yale. Each college has a master and dean who live in the college and eat with students in the dining halls. Cultural houses provide a space for students to build a sense of cultural identity on campus.
Yale is made up of the College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and 13 professional schools. Included in the professional schools are the top ranked Law School and highly ranked School of Management, School of Medicine ,School of Art and School of Nursing. The School of Drama, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and Divinity School are also well-regarded graduate programs. The Yale Record is the oldest college humor magazine in the nation. Dwight Hall is an independent umbrella organization that fosters student service and activism in the local New Haven community. Yale is well known for its secret societies, the most famous of which are the Skull and Bone Society, which boasts members such as George W. Bush and John Kerry, and the Scroll and Key Society. Distinguished Yale alumni include actress Meryl Streep, Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward and actor Edward Norton.

Harvard University

 

Harvard University is a private institution that was founded in 1636. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 6,694, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 5,076 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Harvard University's ranking in the 2016 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 2. Its tuition and fees are $45,278 (2015-16).
Harvard is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. Harvard's extensive library system houses the oldest collection in the United States and the largest private collection in the world. There is more to the school than endless stacks, though: Harvard's athletic teams compete in the Ivy League, and every football season ends with "The Game," an annual matchup between storied rivals Harvard and Yale. At Harvard, on-campus residential housing is an integral part of student life. Freshmen live around the Harvard Yard at the center of campus, after which they are placed in one of 12 undergraduate houses for their remaining three years. Although they are no longer recognized by the university as official student groups, the eight all-male "final clubs" serve as social organizations for some undergraduate students; Harvard also has five female clubs.
In addition to the College, Harvard is made up of 13 other schools and institutes, including the top-ranked Business School and Medical School and the highly ranked Graduate Education School, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Law School and John F. Kennedy School of Government. Eight U.S. presidents graduated from Harvard College, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy. Other notable alumni include Henry David Thoreau, Helen Keller, Yo-Yo Ma and Tommy Lee Jones. In 1977, Harvard signed an agreement with sister institute Radcliffe College, uniting them in an educational partnership serving male and female students, although they did not officially merge until 1999. Harvard also has the largest endowment of any school in the world.

Princeton University

 

Princeton University is a private institution that was founded in 1746. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 5,391, its setting is suburban, and the campus size is 600 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Princeton University's ranking in the 2016 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 1. Its tuition and fees are $43,450 (2015-16).
Princeton, the fourth-oldest college in the United States, is located in the quiet town of Princeton, New Jersey. Within the walls of its historic ivy-covered campus, Princeton offers a number of events, activities and organizations. The Princeton Tigers, members of the Ivy League, are well known for their consistently strong men's and women's lacrosse teams. Students live in one of six residential colleges that provide a residential community as well as dining services but have the option to join one of more than 10 eating clubs for their junior and senior years. The eating clubs serve as social and dining organizations for the students who join them. Princeton's unofficial motto, "In the Nation's Service and in the Service of All Nations," speaks to the university's commitment to community service.
Princeton includes highly ranked graduate programs through theWoodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs andSchool of Engineering and Applied Sciences. One unique aspect of Princeton's academic program is that all undergraduate students are required to write a senior thesis. Notable alumni include U.S. President Woodrow Wilson; John Forbes Nash, subject of the 2001 film "A Beautiful Mind"; model/actress Brooke Shields; and first lady Michelle Obama. According to Princeton legend, if a student exits campus through FitzRandolph Gate prior to graduation, he or she may be cursed never to graduate.

How to Win at Sports Betting (EASIEST WAY 100% CHANCES)

 

How’s your season going? Making the big bucks? Or do you need some sound sports betting advice so you can finally start seeing profits and stop making the bookies rich. If it’s the latter, read on…
1
Know your math. The line-makers do, and they make profits every season. You aren’t going to come out ahead laying -110 for 100 on a coin flip, and most sporting events are just that. In places where they don't represent likelihoods in terms of odds (e.g. 5 to 1, meaning you can win $5 for every dollar you put in), they will just do it in terms of money multipliers. It essentially means the same thing. If you don't know how to find the edge, use proven and reliable sports handicappers

2
Know your sport. This is MUCH less important than step number 1, but it helps. The thing to concentrate on is the "X-factor" of a sport; that is, what degree of random craziness is likely to affect the outcome of any given game.

3
Handicap the situation, not the game. This is what separates winners from losers. The public is out there betting on the best-looking teams and who should beat who based on past wins and losses – and they are losers. Look for undervalued teams based on the situation. For example, a good team playing their homecoming game against a hated rival who is a favorite over them on the road. In this spot you want the home team underdog because you know they are coming to play.

Bet within your bankroll. This is what kills most players. Always bet the same percentage of your set playing bankroll on every game (somewhere between 2% and 6%) no matter how much you think you like the bet. Patience and discipline is very important if you want to succeed in sports betting.

Top 10 Crazy Gambling Stories

 

A hot roll at the craps table that paid for an entire Las Vegas vacation.  Aces cracked by Deuces on the cash bubble at the World Series of Poker. A magical football season where every bet was the right one… Crazy gambling stories, plenty of people have them and they are always fun to hear.  Like a right of passage, gamblers live to compare their tales of triumph and woe. With the news of Floyd Mayweather’s huge sports betting victory in Game 7 of the NBA Eastern Finals, ADANAI thought it would be fun to hunt down a few other outrageous gambling situations.  Here are 10 crazy gambling stories that give heightened meaning to the expression “put your money where your mouth is”

1. Floyd Mayweather Trusts LeBron


Why not start off with the “Money” Man himself, Floyd Mayweather? Mayweather’s eagerness to bet big on sports has been well documented, especially by the HBO series “24/7.” . Last week Mayweather topped himself when he bet $5.9 million on the Heat in Game 7 of the NBA Eastern Finals.  He won, however, it is important to put the numbers in perspective. Celebrity Networth estimates his at $140 million, which means he bet 4.2% of his net worth on a single game.  Doesn’t sound like a lot? Take a look at your savings account; now, divide that hard-earned nest egg by 25 and think about risking that amount on something as unpredictable as a basketball game.  Not a great idea, even with LeBron on the court.
While it is always hard to qualify someone as a good sports bettor – this particular gamble actually stood a strong shot of holding up.  As of June 19, the Heat had not lost back-to-back games since January 10.  The Pacers had just beaten the Heat in Game 6 and Game 7 was in Miami.  The spread against the Pacers was -7 but Floyd clearly had a hunch and it paid off (to say the least) – he cleared a cool $5 million from the wager.

2. Winning the Jackpot Isn’t Always a Good Thing
Stories about lottery winners suffering serious despair after cashing in abound.  It is no shocker that drugs, hangers on and poor money management can lead to some pretty deleterious outcomes. In this case, an Arizona woman won a $1,200 Jackpot drawing at a casino. When asked to show up at the casino with her passport to collect her winnings, she was deported to Mexico.  How does that line go?  It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all? Mirna Valenzuela probably disagrees.

3. So You Thought Poker Cheats Were a Thing of the

Past?

In the old Texas roadhouse days, grifting was pretty basic.  Card mechanics used slight of hand to deal from the bottom of the deck.  Players came up with contraptions to hide an extra Ace up their sleeve.  Today, along with everything else, technology has turned card swindling into an elaborate “Ocean’s Eleven” art form.
An Australian man made $32 million in just eight hands of high stakes poker.   Phil Ivey or Tom Dwan may be used to that kind of run, but this guy was no poker pro.
He sat down to a high stakes game at the Crown casino in Melbourne, Australia with a significant leg up on his competition. Aided by an accomplice, he hacked into the casino’s security cameras, which record every hand played by each player.  His partner communicated the player’s hole cards to him in real time from a remote location via an earpiece. The amazing thing is that after authorities found him out, the man was allowed to leave the casino (and the country) with the money. Now that’s a bad beat

4. You Know You Have a Gambling Problem When…


…a casino sends a Rolls Royce to your house as a token of their appreciation.  No, not to cart you in style to the casino for the night; but for keepsies!  Chinese-Mexican businessman Zhenil Ye Gon lost a reported $120 million over the years gambling at the Venetian in Las Vegas.  He often played $150,000 per hand in Baccarat.  While his net worth is unknown, the Federales found $205 million in cash stashed in his Mexico City mansion.  Evidently he sold a crap load of chemicals–used to make meth–on the black market.  Walt White would be proud


5. 290,000 People Should Be Thankful for FedEx Founder

Fred Smith’s Blackjack Skills -Transportation giant FedEx employs 290,000 people around the globe.  The company has a market capitalization of $32 billion.  According to Forbes, Founder and CEO Fred Smith has a net worth of $2.1 billion. If not for a good run at the Blackjack table, all of this might never have been.  In 1973, the early days of FedEx, the company faced a $24,000 fuel bill with only $5,000 in the bank. It was looking like they might need to liquidate, pay their employees and move on with life.  Fred Smith, in a desperate attempt to save his sinking ship, went to Las Vegas with the $5,000 and turned it into $27,000 at the Blackjack table.  The rest is history.  That one night of “hit me” made Fred Smith one of the wealthiest men in the world. - 

888 SPORTS

 

When you watch a sporting event, do you want coaches to act like they are responsible adults, or do you prefer that they make decisions as if they are playing a video game? Chicago Bears coach John Fox once said that a punt was not a bad play. If you play a lot of Madden, you probably don’t like to kick too much. 888Sport.com is a website geared towards the Madden player, but certainly will do the trick for the more analytical among us too. It is an entertaining, well run site, that keeps account holders engaged.
Getting started at 888sport is simple. They take very small deposits if you prefer to just dip your toe into the pool, and you can deposit cash in just about any way that you want. Credit cards, debit cards, e-wallets, pre-paid cards, and bank accounts (whether they be online or offline) are all accepted. If you can’t find a means to start an account at this site, you aren’t finding any other site that can accommodate you.
Catering to smaller players allows 888sport to offer a unique startup bonus that might not be as juicy to high rollers. For your first bet up to $10, on anything that has odds of 10-1 or less, they will triple your winnings. If you bet $10 on a 6-1 winner, you’d normally get $60, but as a thanks for opening an account with them, 888sport will credit you with $180. It’s not a bad offer, but the site’s true value comes more with daily promotions than their one time start-up perk.
While 888sport does not provide the vast menu of secondary and tertiary sports to bet on that some sites do, if you like betting the big boys, they provide market value or better odds, a much larger selection of wagers than most sites, and constant promos. Whether it is soccer, basketball, baseball, football, or hockey, of course 888sport has standard bets, but they also feature an arsenal of props and futures on individual periods, games, players and seasons. If your suspicion is that a certain athlete will do well, regardless of how his team does, you can bet on it. If you really like to dissect a sport, and have an edge on something beyond just the final score, this is a great place to take advantage.
Beyond vast offerings on mainstream sports, there is frequently value and ways to win without betting on the right side available. Whether it be promotions for following them on social media, or free bets because you guessed a match would finish 2-0 and instead it was 0-2, or if the side you wagered on lost in the final seconds, and getting a free bet for placing two or three other bets on the same sport, they are constantly incentivizing you to play, without breaking the bank.
Originally 888 roared onto the gambling scene with their state of the art casino. It is so vital that casino’s are available on mobile devices, and that could be why 888sport has such an excellent forum for betting on your phone or tablet. Their in-game wagering platform is ample and easy to navigate. Whether you love horse racing, bingo, poker, casino play, or stick to sports, however you want to go about it, the site makes things easy.
Payouts are seamless, available in whatever manner you want your cash (credit cards, check, wire), and perhaps best of all spelled out in great detail on their site. In fact, whatever questions you might have, 888sport has spent a lot of energy making the help section on the site easy to navigate and understand. Seemingly any question you might come up with can be answered in a few clicks. That said, should you need assistance, they are available via phone, chat or email 24/7 and in nearly a dozen languages
If you are seeking a site that is old school and rough around the edges where you can get your money down with few frills, go somewhere else. If you want a company that is thinking about you, constantly coming up with new promotions, and makes it easy to get started and paid, 888sport is a great option. Do you like to punt or go for it on fourth and short? 888sport prefers fun too, and genuinely seems like they value their customers.

BETNOW : CLICK HERE !!!!

PINNACLE

 

How do you choose what car to buy? Are you looking for great horse power and acceleration, or the best bargain? Don’t get me wrong, there is a great feeling when you get a deal. However, the feeling of a car than can do zero to sixty in two seconds is different than using a high value coupon. Pinnacle Sports is the Ferrari of the sports betting industry. You’re going to pay full price and you’re going to be satisfied and electrified. 
Pinnacle does not offer any sort of incentives. No sign-up bonuses, no promotions. Their product stands for itself. If you are looking for get rich quick ideas, turn to a different site. However, they provide value with every wager you make, and a long-term savings even over sites that offer 50 or 100-percent one-time bonuses.
Starting an account at Pinnacle is pretty easy. Chose what currency you prefer, and select from a large array of options including credit cards, debit cards, transfers, and wires. Minimum deposits start at $10 or $15 and because this is a book that has a lot of professional players, the maximums are high. Signing up is straight forward and you can be wagering in minutes.
The reason to bet at Pinnacle is very straightforward. They have the highest limits, the greatest selection, and the best odds. For serious players, those are three areas you look for, and they are at the top of the industry in each of them. This offsets the lack of promotions particularly for professionals who are shunned at other sites and frequently dismissed after a few big wins. On the World Cup, Pinnacle accepted bets up to $1 million. They accept bets up to $30,000 on top soccer leagues, and $10,000 on the NFL. For the little guys, you can play for a minimum of $1. If you are an arbitrage player, shopping for odds at various books and taking advantage of variation in the market, while dismissed elsewhere, Pinnacle welcome’s you. When it comes to the betting menu, while in-game wagering tends to focus on basketball, baseball, and soccer, the variety of match odds, props and futures is staggering. In addition to the mainstream sports you would expect, they are the industry leader on eSports, treating them on the same playing field as soccer or hoops, with a wide spectrum of handicaps, money lines, and games. Finally, any site that reduces vig is serious, and when you do it on a huge percentage of your action, that is a major statement. Expect -105 and -106 more frequently than -110 or the ghastly -115 or -120 seen with some frequency elsewhere. Save with every pick you make on the takeout. That is really the best long-term promo you can possibly hope for.
Nice cars have not only horse power, but other amenities like leather seats, power steering, and a sporty sun roof. While Pinnacle is known for excellent lines and limits, they also offer an easy to use live wagering platform, a very nice mobile product that is simple to navigate, and quality articles about betting. It is refreshing when a site publishes articles that are meant to inform bettors and bring up interesting angles as opposed to just fluff. Pinnacle makes their money on volume, and therefore whether people are betting the sharp side or not, they try to provide information that allows account holders to learn and bet intelligently in whatever way they prefer.
While Pinnacle discontinued their racebook a few years ago, by focusing on sports they have expanded their menu on niche events particularly with the emphasis on eSports. They have a casino with standard offerings and live dealer play available on the most popular card games. While the casino does set itself apart like the sportsbook does from competitors, it is serviceable, fun, and a nice option for people looking to get away from sports for a few minutes
With same day payouts offered using a variety of different methods, Pinnacle is very reliable when it comes to getting customers cash. Depending upon the currency you bet with, most withdrawals have a small fee, but it can be as little as $10. Maximum payouts are larger than many sites, and Pinnacle is very reliable and safe when it comes to money transfers.
Unlike most all sites, there is no phone or chat support at Pinnacle. On one hand, this seems like a negative, only email style correspondence, but on the other hand, if your car never breaks, you rarely need to take it into the shop. They respond promptly to inquiries, and most questions can be answered with a laundry list of information that is available on the site.
Buying a Ferrari is expensive. However, there is a different feel when you are in a luxury automobile. People look at you in a different light when you drive a Ferrari. You come to expect a higher quality of ride when you are moving in style. While it is high rollers who benefit most from Pinnacle, anybody can appreciate lower juice and sharp lines. There is no issue with driving a Kia, and the incentives to do so are great, but in the end, if you can go in style, why not?

BET NOW : PINNACLE
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