Health Issues (US) Obamacare (Affordable Care Act)

[ledboots]

I think that the above part is confusing. If employees are not getting it via their employeur does the goverment
subsdise it ?
Do over 65s get automatic 100% medicare ?

Tx for the nutshell.

Over 65s choose from a variety of plans. If they need it, medicaid picks up their remaining costs.

Employees without health insurance who make too much for medicaid qualification are the ones the new government health care marketplace is aimed at. Previously, it was expensive and difficult to buy private insurance, especially with a preexisting condition or if you were over 50. According to the person's salary, the government will subsidize the new insurance, and also those with private insurance from work get tax breaks according to salary level as well.

It is confusing to everyone now, but I think things will settle down after people who want the new insurance get more information about the available plans.

 

[Amy SF]

Part of the problem is the government has done little to educate the public on all the details of the ACA, so that most of what people know, if they know anything, are the lies spread by the GOP. People who lose their insurance don't understand that they can get a better plan. If they had to pay for something before, they may not have to pay for it with a new plan. Yes, there are flaws. Obama knew that he couldn't have healthcare reform HIS way, so he had to give in to GOP demands, and the only reason the GOP had demands is because they didn't want healthcare reform at all. Obama is hoping that the ACA is the first step towards single payer. T"he GOP knows that, and that's why they've been trying to stop the ACA from going forward.

 

[Calliegirl]

Many Americans get health insurance as a benefit with their jobs. There are new mandatory coverage requirements for insurance companies that are very expensive: for example, the policies used to cover non-school attending offspring until 18, now it is until 26 years old. They also have to cover maternity, well person checkups, vaccinations, birth control at no cost to consumer, and much more.

Because of the extended coverage, costs are higher. Some businesses are dropping employee health insurance as a benefit, or using part time workers to avoid the costs.

That is the private insurance. Around half of Americans are covered by government insurance, either Medicare for the elderly and disabled, or Medicaid for the poor. Under the new law, more people will have access to Medicaid, but about half the states, who partially fund Medicaid in partnership with the federal government, have not agreed to the changes.

For people who aren't covered by insurance from work or the government programs are now required to purchase health insurance or pay a fine with their taxes. They can purchase insurance from the federal government, choosing from 4 plans with varying deductibles, etc. The website is faulty, so people are complaining that they can't sign up, a month now after its launch.

Kind of a confusing nutshell.

Companies have been doing this for years to avoid giving their employees health benefits, especially the big box stores. I worked for one many years ago and everyone (about 60 employees) except managers were considered part time and not eligible for benefits. When I became a manager and was offered insurance, I declined. The lowest premium offered was around 50% of my pay, and it was for one of the worst HMOs around.

 

[beancounter]

Companies have been doing this for years to avoid giving their employees health benefits, especially the big box stores. I worked for one many years ago and everyone (about 60 employees) except managers were considered part time and not eligible for benefits. When I became a manager and was offered insurance, I declined. The lowest premium offered was around 50% of my pay, and it was for one of the worst HMOs around.

Yea, I've seen this before too. At my current company, as long as 3 years ago, they had people on the payroll for 39.8 hours so they wouldn't be eligible for benefits.

Also, this notion of companies dropping healthcare because of the ACA is so transparent, it laughable. Companies are simply using the ACA as an excuse/cover to cut costs.

 

[beancounter]

Apparently actuaries are claiming that premium will increase for most people.

ObamaCare Will Raise Average Premiums By 32% For Individual Coverage
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertl...surance-premiums-by-32-for-21-million-people/

 

[rainforests1]

Obama knew that he couldn't have healthcare reform HIS way,

Only Obama knows what he really wants. Just because he says something, doesn't make it true.

 

[rainforests1]

The media is not ignoring the story.

" By Lisa Myers and Hannah Rappleye, NBC News
President Obama repeatedly assured Americans that after the Affordable Care Act became law, people who liked their health insurance would be able to keep it. But millions of Americans are getting or are about to get cancellation letters for their health insurance under Obamacare, say experts, and the Obama administration has known that for at least three years." http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_...illions-could-not-keep-their-health-insurance

In general, his lies are being ignored by the media. I didn't say all media sources are ignoring it.

 

[shyvas]

Over 65s choose from a variety of plans. If they need it, medicaid picks up their remaining costs.

Employees without health insurance who make too much for medicaid qualification are the ones the new government health care marketplace is aimed at. Previously, it was expensive and difficult to buy private insurance, especially with a preexisting condition or if you were over 50. According to the person's salary, the government will subsidize the new insurance, and also those with private insurance from work get tax breaks according to salary level as well.

It is confusing to everyone now, but I think things will settle down after people who want the new insurance get more information about the available plans.

That is very positive that the elderly are cared for. Even over here we don't get 100% coverage. Once you are
retired and if you can't afford private insurance you have to pay a certain percentage for medical fees. This is what worries me as private insurance companies charge a lot for the elderly.

 

[Amy SF]

The Real Story Behind the Phony Canceled Health Insurance Scandal

 

[Amy SF]

And, at the end of the day, millions of people SUCH AS MYSELF who can't afford to buy private insurance, has a preexisting condition and before Obamacare wouldn't even be able to buy insurance anyway, PEOPLE SUCH AS MYSELF, are unemployed or underemployed SUCH AS MYSELF and can't get insurance through an employer WILL BE ABLE TO HAVE INSURANCE. And I am fed up with everyone screaming about how evil the ACA is when it will be the only thing keeping people SUCH AS MYSELF alive. If you don't like, fine, don't sign up, pay the fine and STFU about it and let the rest of us get covered and live our lives without worrying about going bankrupt just because we needed medical care.

 

[Wolfie]

From what I looked at in my state, it's unaffordable for many who work. The subsidies are for the unemployed or those with a bunch of kids.

 

[RabbitLuvr]

That is very positive that the elderly are cared for. Even over here we don't get 100% coverage. Once you are
retired and if you can't afford private insurance you have to pay a certain percentage for medical fees. This is what worries me as private insurance companies charge a lot for the elderly.

There are plenty of things that Medicare doesn't cover, or only covers a very low portion of. Many elderly go without care or meds they need, as a result.

 

[RascalsMom]

From what I looked at in my state, it's unaffordable for many who work. The subsidies are for the unemployed or those with a bunch of kids.

Yeah. I work, and it would take a lot of my pay check - something I can't afford.
Of course, if I didn't try and didn't work, the government would help me out more.

 

[rainforests1]

And, at the end of the day, millions of people SUCH AS MYSELF who can't afford to buy private insurance, has a preexisting condition and before Obamacare wouldn't even be able to buy insurance anyway, PEOPLE SUCH AS MYSELF, are unemployed or underemployed SUCH AS MYSELF and can't get insurance through an employer WILL BE ABLE TO HAVE INSURANCE. And I am fed up with everyone screaming about how evil the ACA is when it will be the only thing keeping people SUCH AS MYSELF alive. If you don't like, fine, don't sign up, pay the fine and STFU about it and let the rest of us get covered and live our lives without worrying about going bankrupt just because we needed medical care.

Some will benefit, while others will suffer. We're replacing one very imperfect system with another very imperfect system. There's much better options than Obamacare.

 

[Wolfie]

Yeah. I work, and it would take a lot of my pay check - something I can't afford.
Of course, if I didn't try and didn't work, the government would help me out more.

Have a couple kids you can't afford and you'll get even more help. That's the Obama way.

I do think everyone should have health care and food, don't get me wrong. But our current system rewards those who don't try while taxing the hell out of those who do.

 

[RascalsMom]

Have a couple kids you can't afford and you'll get even more help. That's the Obama way.

I do think everyone should have health care and food, don't get me wrong. But our current system rewards those who don't try while taxing the hell out of those who do.

 

[rainforests1]

Have a couple kids you can't afford and you'll get even more help. That's the Obama way.

They've been rewarding people for having children for decades now. How's Obama worse this way than the others?

 

[Wolfie]

Well you have a point there. But I was referring to Obamacare specifically.

 

[das_nut]

They've been rewarding people for having children for decades now. How's Obama worse this way than the others?

It's a shame how we incentivize such behavior. If we cut all benefits, I'm pretty sure babies would think twice before being born to poor parents.

 

[beancounter]

I have come to the conclusion that it's not the insurance industry, but the medical industry where the problem lies:

Warning *Rant*

Several months ago, my wife went to outpatient surgery for a routine procedure. We have been getting bills piecemeal ever since. I have called the hospital on more than a dozen occasions for billing/coding errors that I caught. I often wonder how many I didn’t catch. The errors amounted to thousands of dollars. The errors were so obvious that even a layman could see them. That makes me think that medical coders are lazy, poorly trained, or “encouraged” to make errors…

Just this past week, I received a bill for my annual physical up. My health plan covers physicals 100%, but the doctor charged me for an additional office visit because I brought up a self-diagnosed issue that was apparently “outside the scope” of a routine physical. The whole conversation about this issue lasted less than 30 seconds and amounted to the doctor saying. “You don’t need a prescription. Don’t worry about it”. A 30 second non-issue was worth a second office visits charge? The also claimed a prescription refill was justification for an office visit charge.

The physicians group that my doctor belongs to claims the charge was within AMA guidelines to “protect the patient”. Really?!?, Sounds more like an opportunity to protect the doctor’s cash flow…

edit:Add

Just this morning I had to make another call because an in-network lab was coded as out-of-network..sheesh...