Posted on 05/03/2013 7:13:01 AM PDT by rhema
At his press conference Tuesday, President Obama assured Americans that, “To the 85-90 percent of Americans who already have health insurance: They’re already experiencing most of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act even if they don’t know it.”
Those benefits apparently include higher premiums. According to the Wall Street Journal, insurers are warning that premiums in the individual and small-group markets could double in the next few years. Already, they are well on their way. For example, California health insurers are proposing increases for some customers of 20 percent or more: 26 percent by Blue Cross, 22 percent by Aetna, and 20 percent by Blue Shield. In Maryland, Care First, the state’s largest insurer, has proposed a 25 percent increase for next year.
Younger and healthier Americans can expect to pay even more. According to a survey by the American Action Forum, healthy young people in the individual or small-group insurance markets can look forward to rate increases averaging as much as 169 percent.
While it is always difficult to pin down the exact reason for premium increases, a large portion is traceable to the new health care law. According to a recent study by the American Society of Actuaries, Obamacare will increase health insurance claims costs by 32 percent because of increased adverse selection in the insurance pool. That is, the law’s prohibition on medical underwriting will bring more older and sicker people into the insurance pool, while higher premiums will encourage the young and healthy to forgo insurance until they get sick. (The penalty under Obamacare’s individual mandate is low enough so that it will generally be cheaper for healthy people to “pay,” rather than “play.”)
In addition, Obamacare requires all health insurance plans to provide more benefits and have lower deductibles and co-payments than they do today. Not to worry, say the law’s supporters, people may be paying more but they will have better insurance — whether they like it or not. As Secretary Sebelius puts it, “These folks will be moving into a really fully insured product for the first time, and so there may be a higher cost associated with getting into that market.” In fact, a recent study of more than 11,000 plans on the individual market found that less than 2 percent of existing plans are fully in compliance with the law’s benefit requirements.
No doubt the new insurance will be more comprehensive, required to cover such things as drug and alcohol rehabilitation and contraceptives, but one does recall that the president once promised, “If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period.” Apparently not. Current plans are technically grandfathered in, allowing people to keep them for now, though any change in the plans requires that their coverage be brought into compliance. Moreover, because non-compliant plans cannot enroll new members, most of the existing plans will eventually disappear. Just another benefit that the American people aren’t aware of.
Americans may also not know that it may soon become harder to continue seeing the doctor of their choice. A recent survey of physicians conducted by Deloitte found that 59 percent of them expect some of their colleagues, fearing reduced payments and increased government interference in their practice, to retire early as a result of the health care law, and that others will scale back their hours.
No doubt Americans are also failing to appreciate the more than $1 trillion in new taxes over the next 10 years that were put in place to finance the new law. If they don’t understand it yet, they will soon: many of those taxes kick in this year. Of course, since the law will also add at least $1.5 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years, taxpayers will have many future opportunities to understand the benefits of higher taxes.
Then again, maybe Americans understand more than the president thinks. This week the Kaiser Foundation released a new poll, showing that just 35 percent of Americans approve of the law.
Once again, President Obama may have underestimated the intelligence of the American people.
Medicare Advantage PPO from Anthem Blue Cross - was $0 - is now $840. Thank you ObamaCare
Mine current coverage increased 61% to $14,000/yr. I can no longer afford it, so I’ll have to change coverage.
I’ve been reaping those “benefits” for a while now. The premiums for my insurance are probably 50-60% higher now than they were before Obamacare passed.
I’ve been puzzling through a possible solution that might be useful to those retiring near the US/Mexico border. That entails the following: 1) rent a storage unit in a Mexican town/city; then 2) (while still covered on a US health plan), apply for the Mexican health insurance plans; there are two, one that’s for general/catastrophic care and a second for pharmacy/clinic services. Together the outlay is about $750.00 a year, then 3) announce your retirement to your “villa” in Mexico, (the address of the storage unit which, conincidentally, you use as the address for your Mexican health insurance).
I have yet to find any requirement in Mexican law that you have to be a resident to apply for their health insurance. I’m meeting with a Mexican attorney this very day to confirm that. It would probably be necessary to apply for a residence visa, (retirement purposes), but that seems to relatively easy. So, I “think” the idea is that you get the “residence” visa in Mexico and re-enter the U.S. on a “tourist visitors” visa; all to prove to the US gov’t that youve retired to Mexico. You’ll also want to set up a bank account in Mexico for electronic reciept of your Social Security checks.
The downside is that out-of-US retirees can’t access Medicare/Medicaid.......you have to give that up, BUT you’ve got total health coverage for $700.00 a year and from all I’m hearing the care is actually BETTER.
I’m still modeling this but it might be an escape valve for those who locate near the border.
Ours is gonna be $30,000 next year. Cal- cobra. My husband was laid off right after he was diagnosed with cancer.
It’s been $20,000 on Cobra.
We’re hoping to get off Cal-cobra in January. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get regular insurance when the pre-existing conditions part of Obamacare goes into affect.
I just wish we could have just kept our old coverage and paid for it when my husband was laid off. It was a stinky thng his company did. Laid him off right after his 3 month post surgery office visit when my husband got the news that his PSA was good.
I think if ObamaCare is still in existence in 2014, the Democrat party will lose loads of seats in Congress.
The Republican House need to say over and over, “WE’VE VOTED DOZENS OF TIMES TO GET RID OF THIS HORRIBLE BILL, and but the Democrats want you to pay for it.”
I think 2016 will be one hell of a year for Republicans too.
To what? You’ll be out of compliance? and pay a penalty for that as well?
I’m in the same position as you are.
Don't worry, they can still ruin it by pushing the likes of Romney.
They’re hoping you’ll blame the Grrrreeeeeedy Insurance Companies and embrace the idea of Single Payer.
It’s like we are in a river valley a few miles downstream from a dam that broke. This one broke in 2010 and we are just now seeing the first trickle of extra water in the stream. Give it a “few minutes”.
I am becoming more and more convinced that the fallout from Obamacare will be the end of them “kicking the can down the road”. It looks like by aometime next year it will be clear to even the most out of touch person exactly where this economy is headed.
Mine current coverage increased 61% to $14,000/yr. I can no longer afford it, so I’ll have to change coverage.
People are only getting the tinyest inkling of where this is going. It is ripped right from the last chapters of Atlas Shrugged as those that have not yet gone Gault try to work within an unworkcable government Rube Goldberg machine. Either Obamacare will be repealed or this country will cease to exest in a couple of years.
I really do see it that way. Clearly.
No doubt Americans are also failing to *appreciate* the more than $1 trillion in new taxes over the next 10 years.
Change ain’t it grad?.
My family care coverage has increased from $19,000 to $26,000 per year since Obamacare was passed. The insurer just went in for approval for another 9% increase, saying it was necessary because of increased costs of Obamacare.
I subscribe to the view that they do not care about all the downsides. It is Democrat SOP. Make all alternatives so intolerable that their original G**awful plan is the Best Deal.
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