Posted on 03/08/2017 11:38:31 AM PST by nickcarraway
The plan to repeal and replace Obamacare unveiled by House Republican leaders on Monday orders insurance companies to charge people 30 percent more in premiums for a full year if they did not have insurance for 63 days or more in the previous year.
The sections of the Republican bill that create this mandate on insurance companies are titled: “Continuous Health Insurance Coverage Incentive,” and “Encouraging Continuous Health Insurance Coverage.”
The first subsection of the “Encouraging Continuous Health Insurance Coverage” section is entitled: “Penalty Applied.”
This subsection says insurance companies “shall” impose the penalty.
“[A] health insurance issuer offering health insurance coverage in the individual or small group market shall, in the case of an individual who is an applicable policyholder of such coverage…increase the monthly premium rate otherwise applicable to such individual for such coverage during each month of such period, by an amount determined under paragraph (2),” says the bill.
Paragraph 2 goes on to explain that the “increase” in premiums the government will require is 30 percent over the normal premium for the plan.
“The amount determined under this paragraph for an applicable policyholder…is the amount that is equal to 30 percent of the monthly premium rate otherwise applicable to such applicable policyholder for such coverage during such month,” the Republican bill says.
The proposed legislation goes on to say that the burden of proof will be with the individual American seeking to buy health insurance. If they cannot document that they did not have a 63-day lapse in insurance during the previous year, they must pay the 30-percent penalty.
The person who must pay the penalty, the bill says, is “an individual who…cannot demonstrate (through presentation of certifications described in section 2704(e) or in such manner as may be specified in regulations, such as a return, or a statement made under section 6055(d) or 36C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986), during the look-back period that with respect to such enrollment period, there was not a period of at least 63 continuous days during which the individual did not have creditable coverage.”
The penalty also will be assessed against young people who age out of their parents’ plans and do not sign up for their own insurance in the next open enrollment period.
It will apply, the Republican bill says, “in the case of an individual who had been enrolled under dependent coverage…and such dependent coverage of such individual ceased because of the age of such individual, is not enrolling during the first open enrollment period following the date on which such coverage ceased.”
The summary of the proposal published by the House Energy and Commerce Committee also points to this 30-percent increase in insurance premiums that the government will order insurance companies to impose on people who failed to buy insurance for 63 days.
“Beginning in open enrollment for benefit year 2019, there will be a 12-month lookback period to determine if the applicant went longer than 63 days without continuous health insurance coverage,” says the summary.
“If the applicant had a lapse in coverage for greater than 63 days, issuers will assess a flat 30 percent late-enrollment surcharge on top of their base premium based on their decision to forgo coverage,” says the summary. “This late-enrollment surcharge would be the same for all market entrants, regardless of health status, and discontinued after 12 months, incentivizing enrollees to remain covered.”
At the same time, the House Ways and Means Committee’s summary of the amendments that Republican leaders are proposing to the Obamacare law points out that one of those amendment would reduce the Obamacare penalty for not signing up for insurance to “zero.”
“Under current law, most individuals are required to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty,” says the Ways and Means summary. “This section would reduce the penalty to zero for failure to maintain minimum essential coverage; effectively repealing the individual mandate.”
In sum, the Republican plan to repeal and replace Obamacare would eliminate from existing law the penalty for not signing up for insurance and add to existing law a one-year 30 percent premium hike for anyone who fails to buy insurance for 63 days or more.
The headline is backwards, the text states the premium increase applies if a person has not had insurance for at least 63 days of the previous year.
Shifting the collector of the penalty from the IRS to the insurance company and increasing the amount most people would pay wasn’t what “repeal” means to me.
The establishment is trying to preserve the structure of Obamacare. It needs to be repealed completely.
Tinkering with a turd, it’s still a turd.
It depends on which people.
I'm beginning to think it's the later.
I agree it shouldn’t be refundable. It should be a tax credit like it is if you are covered at work. Your insurance premium is deducted from tour gross pay before your tax is calculated and the portion of your premium that your employer pays is deducted as a business expense before their tax is calculated.
well it’s still not a forced mandate- you will be free to not have insurance if you decide to now- and if you get sick- then I feel a person should be responsible for not having coverage (provided they are financially able to have paid for insurance, but chose not to)- there has to be some responsibility- it would be like if a person decided they didn’t want auto insurance for years- then got in an accident- that person shouldn’t be allowed to demand that an insurance pay their claim anyways- far too many people would abuse this type of system- and it would go broke
Health insurance is another issue however-
WTF????!!! Who wrote this POS?
If true, they will lose the House and the Senate in 2018 and Trump will be a one-term President.
It should say if you are uninsured for 302 days.
President Trump needs to understand if he does not already: he is the AMERICAN President. Not a Republican one. He arrived into office in spite of the GOP, not because of it. The ones who "brung him to the dance" are fed up with BOTH parties. And the ones who elected him DO NOT WANT OBAMACARE IN ANY FORM WHATSOEVER.
Ryan is not our friend. McConnell is not our friend. McCain has never been our friend. They need us, we do not need them. And if Trump capitulates, he and a bunch in Congress can kiss their a$$ goodbye in 2020.
It looks like they still want to MAKE US buy insurance.
Will President Trump sign this?
69 was already taken
The gov is commanding how a business prices products.
Jackassery.
the government has no business telling business what they should charge someone...how would you like it if they ordered car companies to sell a car for 30% more if people don’t buy a new car every four years?
[[Don’t really know what this plan is or how it works.]]
I’m just guessing- but it sounds to me like if a person does not want to have insurance, gets sick- that person would have to purchase insurance to be taken care of and would have to pay 30% more than someone who has been paying all along-
I coudl be wrong- but that is hwat it seems like
from the article:
“...that one of those amendment[s] would reduce the Obamacare penalty for not signing up for insurance to “zero.”
now that’s comforting.
This is not what we want. Here is what we want— stop making me pay for other peoples health insurance premiums. I want my own ONLY. I don’t want to [pay for someones preexisting illness!!! that is insane. That is like selling car insurance to some fool who already has a wreck!!
Just go free market and get out of our business!! Put these preexisting condition people in a high risk pool that THEY PAY FOR!!. NOT ME!! If you don’t have insurance GO TO THE ER and wait 6 hours!! Get rid of the entitlement mind set. There is no entitlement to have me pay for your damned health insurance. This is RINO CARE!! I promise you that conservative will kill this dead as Granny’s Christmas Goose!!
True but it’s better than no penalty at all. At work, during open enrollment pre existing conditions you are covered. If you decide later you want insurance you either have to pass a physical or wait until next open enrollment
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