Obamacare

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by infinite monkey

<snip>
(Which makes me wonder what my options will be if I am soonly unemployed!) Dammit.

Hey, we've gone full circle.... your option is: Obama care

[infinite monkey]

I know, then I would have to think about stuff, and stuff. Ugh. I'm not good at doing real life grown up stuff, like planning.

[Lamplighter]

Regardless of the mindless mindset of the GOP to shut down our government,
Obamacare will finally become a reality in people's lives next week.

It is time to truly understand what it is and how to make
it's many facets work for the BEST EFFECT on our own personal lives.

If someone is lazy and puts it off until after March 31, 2014,
they will have only themselves to blame if things don't go the way they hope/expect.

Here is an very good article that can be a gateway into understanding
the "whats-in -it-for-me" and "what-should-I-do"...

NY Times
ARA SIEGEL BERNARD
9/27/13
A Guide to the New Exchanges for Health Insurance

Given all of the rhetoric about the Obama administration’s health care law,
it’s not surprising that many consumers are confused about how
the new insurance exchanges will actually work.
Some states that oppose the law have gone as far as intentionally
limiting the information that trickles out to its residents.

But after much anticipation, the curtain will finally rise on the exchanges next week,
providing millions of consumers with an online marketplace to compare
health insurance plans and then buy the coverage on the spot.

The exchanges are likely to be most attractive to people who qualify for subsidized coverage.
Individuals with low and moderate incomes may be eligible for a tax credit,
which can be used right away, like a gift card, to reduce their monthly premiums.
People with pre-existing conditions will no longer be denied coverage
or charged more (this applies to most plans outside the exchanges, too).
And all of the plans on the exchanges will be required to cover
a list of essential services, from maternity care to mental health care.

Q. Where can I apply or get more information on the exchanges?
A. To avoid fraud artists, enter through the front door: Healthcare.gov.
From there, you can find links to the exchange offered in your state.
There may be technical glitches as the program gets started,
so alternatively, you can call 1-800-318-2596.

Q. What sort of coverage will be offered?
A. All plans will have to provide the same set of essential benefits,
including prescriptions, preventive care, doctor visits, emergency services and hospitalization
(this also applies to most individual and small-employer group plans sold outside of the exchanges).
But plans can offer additional benefits, or different numbers of services
like physical therapy, so you’ll need to do a side-by-side comparison to see what fits your needs
— or at least the needs you can anticipate.

Q. Are the plans sold on the exchange more comprehensive than plans outside?
A. There are four plan levels, each named for a precious metal.
They all generally offer the same essential benefits, but their cost structures vary.
The lower the premium, the higher the out-of-pocket costs.

The bronze level plan, for instance, has the lowest premiums,
but will require consumers to shoulder more costs out of pocket.
They generally cover 60 percent of a typical population’s out-of-pocket costs,
and include deductibles, co-payments and coinsurance.
The silver plans cover 70 percent; gold, 80 percent;
while platinum covers 90 percent (and therefore carries the highest premiums).

Q. Will I be eligible for a premium tax credit (subsidized coverage)?
A. People with income between 100 percent of the poverty line
(or about $23,550 for a family of four) and 400 percent of poverty ($94,200 for a family of four)
are eligible for a tax credit to defray premium costs.
(All income eligibility is based on your modified adjusted gross income;
the online version of this column links to a guide explaining how that is calculated).

Q. Can I get help with my out-of-pocket expenses, like deductibles?
A. People with incomes between 100 percent of the federal poverty line
($23,550 for a family of four) and 250 percent ($58,875 for a family of four)
are also eligible for cost-sharing reductions, which means you’ll pay less
for items including deductibles and co-payments, and you’ll have lower out-of-pocket maximums.

<SNIP>

etc.
etc.
etc.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Some interesting questions about Obamacare.

1. Once Obamacare goes into effect, it will be impossible to substantially cut it back. Both sides seem convinced of this -- Republicans in terror, Democrats in glee.
~snip~
Entitlements are hard to roll back, but it is clearly not impossible, because it’s been done.

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Some interesting questions about Obamacare.

A problem is that the underlying assumption within that link (Bloomberg) is not valid,
or at least it was not the primary raison-d'etre for the Affordable Care Act.
Most the issues in that link are based on a thesis of "saving $". For example:

Here’s another interesting observation I heard the other day,
this time from a participant in the recent Brookings' papers:
it’s not clear that ACOs are going to save money.

But the primary basis of the ACA / Obamacare primarily was to insure
the (15 ?) millions of people who did not have their own health insurance,
and then to support these newly "insured" by inducing larger numbers
of relatively healthy (working younger people) to buy into their own
health insurance instead of going without.

It's a matter of POV.

[xoxoxoBruce]

AFFORDABLE Care Act.
No, the idea was to get skyrocketing medical costs under control by getting everyone covered and having more efficiency. That should have been single payer instead of the hodge-podge we got. But as I said before, it can be fixed as we go.

[glatt]

Sounds like BS to me. They are required by law to spend 85% of premium money on providing patient care. So raising the rates would just result in them having to give more refunds.

[Adak]

Originally Posted by glatt

Sounds like BS to me. They are required by law to spend 85% of premium money on providing patient care. So raising the rates would just result in them having to give more refunds.

It would be better if you called Bill King's office, directly at this (toll free) number:

Call Bill King - 800.442.5464.

Or swing by his office in Carlsbad if you're close by in So. CA.

His website: http://kingbenefits.com/

I'm not sure how the medical insurance companies will structure their premiums, under Obama Care.

[xoxoxoBruce]

glatt doesn't have to call anyone, since that part of the law went into effect last year. He's not just listening to some asshole on the radio, he has already experienced the refund.

[Adak]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

glatt doesn't have to call anyone, since that part of the law went into effect last year. He's not just listening to some asshole on the radio, he has already experienced the refund.

This ASSHOLE is a professional medical insurance broker. He deals with many of the major insurers, in this state.

Why don't you call the toll free number and see what the FACTS are about NOW, in THIS area?

It's free, and then you might be a more tolerant fellow, when people state something you don't want to believe in.

If glatt is in the lower middle class income range, or below, he should receive a nice reduction in his premium costs, under Obamacare. Those rates will vary widely from state to state. Tennessee for instance, has rates that are about half the rate for Wyoming, according to that "asshole" Dr. Gupta on the TV.

So sure, some people will pay less. Others will pay more. If you are in So. CA, and earn above average, you will pay a lot more.

[Happy Monkey]

Originally Posted by Adak

Bill King, a health care insurance broker (sells plans for scads of companies), was doing a commercial today (first time I've heard this), saying that EVERY health care plan premium is going up by 30% to 100%.

You can avoid that, by re-upping your plan for another year, before 2014, with one insurer only, allowing the old rates until 2015.

Originally Posted by Adak

This ASSHOLE is a professional medical insurance broker. He deals with many of the major insurers, in this state.

Yeah, a lot of insurance companies and agents are trying to get people to renew their plans under the old rates. Probably not out of the goodness of their hearts. Bill King is paid on commission.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by Adak

This ASSHOLE is a professional medical insurance broker. He deals with many of the major insurers, in this state.

Duh, he's a fucking salesman.

Buy a policy and get a second policy free,
just pay an second shipping and handing.

As seen on TV.

Call within 10 minutes and we may use some lube.

[BigV]

Fox News themselves found THAT REPUBLICAN voters were MORE THAN fifty percent MORE FAVORABLE to factual evidence, like the Affordable Care Act, than they were to made-up things, like Obamacare.

[Happy Monkey]

I have employer-provided healthcare.

[Clodfobble]

Personally, we haven't used it because we are one of the lucky ones with employer-paid insurance. I know other people who have used them, but I don't know what kind of a "deal" they got (though I would have to assume it was better than what they were paying before, otherwise they wouldn't have gone for it.)

My mother-in-law is going to use the state exchange, because preliminary searching shows that she will get a much better deal than what she is currently having to pay, but right now she is procrastinating. Supposedly it is because the site has been slow as millions of people try to use it all at once, but in reality it is because she really, really doesn't want to believe that Obamacare could work out to be a good thing for her.