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I am like you. My family has always been covered under my employers insurance plan, with a large portion of the premiums being paid by the employer.

Not all employers are like that. Many employers will cover the employee, paying that large portion of the employees premium, but coverage for children and spouse shift a larger portion of the premium onto the employee. Sometimes the employee is responsible for the entirety of dependent premiums.

This is where the problem crops up in Obamacare. During the last year qualifications to receive subsidized premiums were interpreted to mean that if the employee of a company received "affordable" (less than 9.5% of total wages) insurance then the spouse and children would not receive a subsidy.

For example, Matt and Leanne and their child are a young couple. Matt works for an employer that provides single coverage for $150 a month and the employer pays the rest. For Matt to buy coverage for his wife and kid would cost and extra $600 a month because the company doesn't pay any of the premium. They still receive the benefit of group coverage and protection from pre-existing conditions even before the ACA showed up. This $600 a month is a lot because Matt is a machinist and only make $40k a year.

Here is the problem with the ACA. If Matt wasn't covered by his employer, the employer would eventually have to pay a $2000 penalty per year, Matt would go on the exchange and probably receive subsidized insurance for his whole family for around $350 a month. Because he receives "affordable" care for himself, he is supposed to buy that and his wife and kid don't get subsidized coverage on the exchange. Instead they have to buy a bronze plan for $450 a month that has a $12,500 out of pocket cap. Now Matt and Leanne are paying a total of $600 month in premiums plus they have two separate deductibles to meet with one of them being 30% of their annual wages.

Aaaaargh! I’ve read your post (thanks so much!!) twice now and am trying to digest it. No wonder most Americans are totally lost in this sorry, sorry story. Unlike many here, I have some sympathy for people lost in this morass.

Again, thank you for taking the time. I’m gonna have my husband explain it in the morning, lol!