However, you may be able to exclude some of the costs of employer-provided life insurance premiums from income if they are part of a group term life insurance plan.

FORBES: Taxes From A To Z (2013): L Is For Life Insurance

And Obamacare takes advantage of that new role to define insurance expansively, so that insurance plans that qualify for the mandate are costly and comprehensive, driving up non-group premiums by 19 to 30 percent.

FORBES: Why Mitt Romney's Plan for Pre-Existing Conditions is Better Than Obamacare's

Amy Bach, executive director of United Policyholders, a California-based advocacy group that works with consumers on claims after disasters, said higher deductibles weaken the value of insurance, especially when premiums don't go down.

NPR: Coastal Homeowners Stagger Under Insurance Costs