'Arbitrary' health care policies would end,... (Obama to regulate insurances out of business)

CNN ^ | 8/15/2009 | cnn

[tobyhill]

An overhaul of health care policy will protect people with insurance from the "arbitrary" policies of the insurance industry while lowering their health care expenses, President Obama on Saturday told an audience in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Insurance companies no longer will be able to place caps on benefits or charge out-of-pocket expenses on top of premiums, Obama told the cheering crowd.

"No one is holding the insurance companies accountable for these practices. But we will. We're going to ban arbitrary caps on benefits. And we'll place limits on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses," he said.

The practice of canceling or denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions will also come to an end, he said.

"No one in America should go broke because they get sick."

Grand Junction is Obama's third and final stop in a series of town hall meetings in the West to promote health care reform, his top domestic priority.

[silverleaf]

Half of the fruitcakes cheering for this puffery would go broke if the transmissions failed on their cars. Unless they could find a mechanic as compassionate as most hospitals and doctors.

The class warfare keeps on rolling.

[screaminsunshine]

Is this not illegal. Hey wonder if he will make it so they have to sell me fire insurance after my house burns down. The guy is nuts.

[Neidermeyer]

I’ve been stuck today surrounded by CNN ,, unbelievable bullcrap! , the big lie never ends with them... their “non-partisan health care truth squad” had me pulling my hair out.. I only hope most of America is having the same reaction.

[BenLurkin]

Hussein hates free enterprise.

[Conservative Actuary]

Nobody is holding insurers responsible, what a load of crap. That is going to be news to all the state regulators. Hell in some states like California insurance companies can be regulated by multiple departments. I've worked in the health insurance industry for over 7 years and believe me a large part of my job is dealing with state and federal regulations.

[nathanbedford]

"No one is holding the insurance companies accountable for these practices. But we will. We're going to ban arbitrary caps on benefits. And we'll place limits on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses," he said.

The practice of canceling or denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions will also come to an end, he said.

So how is he going to pay for these new regulations? Has the Congressional Budget Office informed him how much extra this will cost? Is he going to allow the private insurance companies to float their premiums up to pay for this expanded coverage? Is he going to allow the government run insurance in the public option to increase their charges? He has to if he wants to have a level playing field (wink, wink).

How much more is this going to add to the cost of healthcare that he says must be contained or it will bankrupt the country?

By the way, the government was unable to sell its bonds and had to sneak out the back door to buy them from a beard at night. So the government is now selling its bonds to itself which is called monetizing the debt. This healthcare debate might be ended on Wall Street.

[tobyhill]

The Rats don’t dare mention tort reform.

[tobyhill]

He’ll regulate insurances out of business then force everyone into the Government Plan.

[AJFavish]

I would not want to enter into a contract for health insurance that gave the insurer the right to withhold treatment based on the relative worth of my continued existence. As far as I know, my present private health insurer has no authority to make any such decision. The government health plan that will replace my present plan if the Dems and Obama have their way, will give the insurer, meaning the government, that authority. That is one of the key differences between being insured by a private insurer and being insured by the Dems’ and Obama’s health care plan.

[socialismisinsidious]

Socialized Medicine aka Universal Health Care PING LIST

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[MHGinTN]

Barry’s new czar is going to ‘regulate’ talk and Christian radio out of existence, also. Of course it will be under the guise of fairness to aid public broadcasting to compete for minds in the publuc forum. But the aim is to so hamper profit that the government is completely in control of the media outlets.

[tet68]

“No one in America should go broke because they get sick.”

“They should go broke because OTHERS get sick!”

[socialismisinsidious]

Absolutely. Control the media and then getting things like health care “reform” passed will be so much easier...of course it’s all for our own good, we’re just too stupid to understand that.

[vaudine]

No one has seen "arbitrary" until they see Obamacare in reality. By then, we may not be able to put the genie back in the bottle.

vaudine

[Wiseghy]

Medical underwriting and pre-ex are despised by nearly everyone in the insurance biz. Big insurers are offering solutions that eliminate them, with a variety of tools that will cost nothing and keep prices down.

However, Obama feels it is better to use the individual market as an example to bash and demonize insurers. For decades, Dems have refused to lead in insurance issues, preferring a total government take over.

[pajamahadin.com]

They keep answering with generalities and vague reassurances rather than dealing with the actual content of the legislation, citing passages to back their responses. They will definitely gradually squeeze private insurance companies out especially once their protection under the grandfather clause (section 102) runs out. There is way too much bulverism in the Health Care debate, robbing the people of any substantive and honest answers from proponents of H.R. 3200.

[ManFromHouston]

Now he’s gone and besmirched the state insurance commissioners and their departments. “No one’s watching...” Pphhhttt!

This is an attempt to grab power from the states. The insurance commissioner and boards are usually appointed by the govenor.

Heck, if CA or MA or VT decides to mandate sex reassignment surgery benefits and or fertility benefits and mandate for same sex domestic partner coverage, let ‘em have at it.

Those benefits would not be mandated in Texas by Texans. Only by Federal usurpation (violation of the 10th Amendment) could that happen.

“Arbitrary benefit limits?” Please! Specific limits for well-person exams (1 per year), mental health outpatient visits, speech therapy visits, substance abuse visits, etc. are all set by mandates from the state board of insurance, not randomly by the insurance companies wanting to do business in the state.

Lifetime policy limits ($1 million, $2 million, $5 million, unlimited) are policy variations with directly-related premium levels. This allows the consumer more choices in matching coverage and premiums levels. Just as a full coverage auto policy has a higher premium than a bare bones minimum liability only policy.

How will a Federal mandate that all policies have “full coverage” and the widest array of benefits and $0 first dollar out of pocket costs (co-pays and deductibles) for well-care do anything but substantially INCREASE the premiums?

He’s spewing pure nonsense.