Wheels coming off... ObamaCare policies will cost more, cover far fewer than promised

New York Post ^ | February 10, 2013 | BETSY MCCAUGHEY

[BulletBobCo]

The Affordable Care Act is looking less and less affordable.

Start with the IRS’s new estimate for what the cheapest family plan will cost by 2016: $20,000 a year to cover two adults and three kids. And that will only cover 60 percent of medical bills, so add hefty out-of-pocket costs, too.

The next surprise is for parents who thought their kids would be covered by an employer. Sloppy wording in the law left that unclear until last week, when the IRS ruled that kids won’t be covered.

Starting in 2014, the law will require employers with 50 or more full-time employees to offer coverage or pay a penalty. “Affordable” coverage, that is — meaning the employee can’t be told to contribute more than 9.5 percent of his salary. For example, a worker earning $40,000 a year cannot be required to pay more than $3.800.

But the law doesn’t specifically mandate family coverage — and now the administration says that won’t be required.

[RikaStrom]

(Hypotheticly) I own a large bowling alley called Steve’s bowling. I have 65 employees and the place won’t run right with 49. What keeps me from shutting down the concession stand and firing 16 people. Then my brothers company “Daves Catering” hires the 16 people I fired and I rents out space in the bowling alley to sell concessions. Outside of changing stationary, nothing changes and I am out from under Ocare.

A plausible possibility, providing that "Dave's Catering" and "Steve's Bowling" do not co-mingle books and/or managers. If a Manager from Steve's can give instruction to an employee of Dave's (other than the "that goes to lane 5" kind of thing), they call that co-employment and then the IRS and OCare are on you again.

The biggest problem that I see with this, is that we're running out of time to get the business' seperated, re-aligned, or even just operational to avoid the all seeing eye of the IRS.

For example, under your Steve and Dave scenario, Dave would have to get a liquor license (I going to assume there is beer there!) and that usually takes several months, and then there would be the cancelling of Steve's license, the required food prep certifications etc, etc.

(Sigh, it makes my head hurt.)

[RikaStrom]

Hey Steve, here are the basics that I came away with on Friday - and this is for private companies under the 50 eligible employee thresh-hold - straight from the broker's mouth. My example is with Blue Cross/Blue Shield because that is what we have.

1) less than 50 employees - cancel the plan no penalty
2) anyone on the plan has pre-existing can possibly be denied until 2014 with caveat goes into play the “guarantee shall issue” and with the individual mandate you most prove that for year of 2013, you have coverage, or be penalized when you do your taxes in 2014
3) no maternity on individual plans, period - only on group
4) minimum percentage of the employee only premium is paid by employer - nothing for dependents - based on BCBS (or your company's contract with your provider)
5) as long as your provider offers grandfathered plans, you can continue that particular plan, provided you make NO changes to it at all
6) if employee declines company insurance, then they (the employee) must have insurance somewhere somehow or pay the penalty on their personal taxes
7) BCBS does offer individual plans, but whether they offer through the exchange is debatable
8) Essential Coverage is only through the exchange - Bigger Cost, Bigger Deductible
9) Claims experience on your group plan is included for 5 years in claims history once a “user” leaves the plan. The insurance company already paid out the claim, they are going to get their money back one way or the other.

There is absolutely no incentive to grow small companies under this debacle of OCare.

[KevinDavis]

I wasn’t written in a hurry.. It was written sometime ago and it was stashed away for a later use..

[AbolishCSEU]

Here's something that you all are forgetting--the dirty little secret that minorities are "rubber stamped" in for all of these programs. Caseworkers tend to overlook details like the recipient is gainfully employed when it comes to being a minority.

Whereas caucasians are audited, reaudited and made to jump through several flaming hoops to prove eligibility. All things being equal (which they are not) two households with exactly the same financial circumstances will not have an equal outcome. To avoid trouble from "anti-racist" groups and community organizers, caseworkers will look the other way with documentation and eligibility requirements when it comes to minority applicants. Ask me how I know this! (I used to work for subsidized housing as a clerk and have seen things that would make your hair stand on end)

[ponygirl]

Did the a$$hole$ who voted democrat really think that there could be free health insurance for all and that no one would have to pay?

Yes.

I can say that with all honesty. I am surrounded by these people every day.

One of them told me that "People really like some aspects of the Affordable Health Care Act. I think it will be great that my kids can remain on my healthcare insurance until they are 26."

Me: "Wouldn't it be even more great if we had an economy where your kids could go out there and get a decent job and then they could have their own healthcare?"

Silly Lib: "Derp." 0_o

[jurroppi1]

I have heard about this, in fact there was a thread here on FR I read just yesterday alleging exactly what you state (minorities are rubber stamped while white are severely scrutinized even with same/similar inputs during the application process).

[ponygirl]

I’ve been thinking this same thing. Certainly they’ve put in contingencies for companies that split up divisionally into separate companies, i.e, finance/payroll, human resources, marketing, research & development, etc. all operate as separate entities? As long as each division is under 49 employees.

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

Silly Lib: "Derp."

Ugh. They make me feel like Dr. Smith. "The pain, the pain!"

[Faith-Hope]

I have heard that my Dr. and his Partner are on their way out.
They are both in their mid 50’s. They are trying to sell their practice. So sad.

[USAF80]

Anyone know the true cost of health care? I know what we pay but that is because the health care providers milk insurance companies.

For instance an MRI in the US cost approx $5000

An MRI in Africa cost $250

Same pictures everything.

[AbolishCSEU]

It’s actually a FACT. I have two children (now grown and productive) I was married twice and divorced twice. One child from each father. My son happens to be bi-racial—my daughter is white. There was a time when I qualified for reduced price school lunch. EXACT same info on EACH of my children’s applications. My son’s app was NEVER questioned—went sailing through with no issues. My daughter, however was audited EVERY.SINGLE.TIME. I asked about this and got “blank stares” over the phone and an “uh oh, she’s on to us and the system” type voice.

[hinckley buzzard]

Home Depot is hiring large numbers of "seasonal Part Time employees," --interviewing now.

[steve86]

Thank you!

BTTT

[RipSawyer]

We know that there is a lot of cutting back on hours going on to get people below the threshold and avoid having to furnish insurance. I wonder what the possibilities are for breaking a big company into small units that employ 45 to 48 people in each unit to avoid the insurance threshold.

[RipSawyer]

You’re dead right, it is classic big government chess, create a problem where none existed, then offer a relatively small government solution which makes matters far worse, then insist on a BIG government solution to take over the whole system and destroy any private offering. Then crow about how the government solved the problem that didn’t even exist until the government created it and never admit that everyone is far worse off than when the process began.

Our future health care system will be as great as our current educational system in which lives and fortunes are squandered to produce college graduates in their twenties and thirties who could not possibly pass an eighth grade final that used to be required before a student could ENTER a public high school in the mid twentieth century. Future graduates will be as physically sick as they are ignorant thanks to the wonders of government.

[cuban leaf]

I wonder what the possibilities are for breaking a big company into small units that employ 45 to 48 people in each unit to avoid the insurance threshold.

---

I can see them subcontracting out a lot of work. Heck, Boeing already does that. A friend of mine does some fabricating work for them and his company has ONE employee: Him.

[jurroppi1]

It just blows me away what passes for normal behavior nowadays. People promote obvious falsehood as fact and treat facts as though they are something to be abhorred - especially when they don’t match a given person’s agenda/worldview.

I’m sorry to hear about your experience with this, really I am. It is just plain disheartening to continually be reminded that it is as commonplace as it seems from the outside looking in!

[jurroppi1]

just using the 2010 census numbers against the 48 mil that was cited by the previous post and the percentages quoted by said poster.

48 mil on welfare total (I assume it is food stamp recipients from other numbers I have heard recently). Regardless, a much higher percentage of the black population and the hispanic population are receiving those benefits than white people are. Numbers - wise, more blacks receive those benefits than any other demographic anyhow (the biggest percentage of the 48 mil number cited).

I was just illustrating how the numbers had to work based on the limited info that was posted (again, which is what I was originally responding to). If I had all of the real numbers, I would entertain the thought of doing a more in-depth analysis of the raw data.

Go through my post and do the math, it can only work the way I point out that it can (yet again, with the caveat of the limited info provided).

[clearcarbon]

"Wheels coming off... ObamaCare policies will cost more, cover far fewer than promised"

As obvious now as it was more than five years go.

"

[Varsity Flight]

Life....L I B E R T Y, and the Pursuit of Happiness:

And at the first penalty fine, how shall you stand for LIBERTY?

We have STANDING.