How has Obamacare effected you or your family?

[nextJin]

Seen this being discussed all to often here with one group saying "research shows it's going down" vs "My rates are going up, damn the research".

 

[brycejones]

Obamacare killed my dog and took my pick up truck.

I really won't know for abut another month.

 

[fskimospy]

As a cancer survivor the ACA means that I no longer have to worry that if I lose my job that I won't be able to get health insurance. My brother is a diabetic and he will similarly benefit. It is amazing.

 

[nextJin]

As a cancer survivor the ACA means that I no longer have to worry that if I lose my job that I won't be able to get health insurance. My brother is a diabetic and he will similarly benefit. It is amazing.

The government couldn't provide it's own insurance plan just like any other company and base it off Social Security payments?

I've honestly thought that if they were to do it they would just roll it into Social Security reform. It's irrlevant now but I thought it would work

/shrug

 

[Genx87]

It hasnt affected me just yet. My employer's rates have gone up significantly. However after listening to what was said in our meeting yesterday. Apparently our plan is real close to a cadilac plan(2500 deduct single, 4000 family hsa, company kicks in half the deductible). The way the system is setup within a few years we will see our insurance planned reduced or risk having our plan taxed at cadilac rates. Eventually it sounds like our plan should be what can be purchased on the exchanges.

We are also introducing a secondary plan that will have a more limited network but cost less in premiums.

 

[brycejones]

The government couldn't provide it's own insurance plan just like any other company and base it off Social Security payments?

I've honestly thought that if they were to do it they would just roll it into Social Security reform. It's irrlevant now but I thought it would work

/shrug

That sounds like the so called public option?

 

[fskimospy]

The government couldn't provide it's own insurance plan just like any other company and base it off Social Security payments?

I've honestly thought that if they were to do it they would just roll it into Social Security reform. It's irrlevant now but I thought it would work

/shrug

My preference would have been an expansion of Medicare to cover everyone to make the US into a true single payer system, but nobody asked me, haha.

 

[EagleKeeper]

My son lost his job because of it.

 

[Brainonska511]

As a cancer survivor the ACA means that I no longer have to worry that if I lose my job that I won't be able to get health insurance. My brother is a diabetic and he will similarly benefit. It is amazing.

If the healthcare exchanges had opened sooner, it may have saved my uncle's life. He put off most care (probably) because it would have all been out-of-pocket expenses under his catastrophic coverage plan (covering only hospitalization, but for some ridiculous reason, not even the doctors in the hospital). Instead, things just got worse and worse and blew up in his face. He was waiting for the exchanges to be available, so that he would finally be able to get decent, affordable coverage in NY as an individual.

My preference would have been an expansion of Medicare to cover everyone to make the US into a true single payer system, but nobody asked me, haha.

I don't know why this wasn't done (well, yes I do...). The system is largely in place, all it would need is an expansion - which is probably easier than building something from the ground up. From the articles I've seen, Medicare already does a decent job keeping costs under control. If people wanted above and beyond what Medicare would provide, they would always be free to buy supplemental insurance.

 

[nextJin]

That sounds like the so called public option?

Yea basically, I was against the current AHCA, Public Option and Single Payer though.

 

[Genx87]

My preference would have been an expansion of Medicare to cover everyone to make the US into a true single payer system, but nobody asked me, haha.

After listening to how the govt is defining cadilac plans yesterday. I think the long term result of ACA will be a single payer system. It sounds like they will squeeze the insurance companies, employers, and employees into these standardized higher dedictible plans via taxation that imo will be nearly impossible for the insurance companies to sell at the govt defined rate.

I cant tell if it is pure genius or complete stupidity. I guess we will find out in a decade.

 

[fskimospy]

After listening to how the govt is defining cadilac plans yesterday. I think the long term result of ACA will be a single payer system. It sounds like they will squeeze the insurance companies, employers, and employees into these standardized higher dedictible plans via taxation that imo will be nearly impossible for the insurance companies to sell at the govt defined rate.

I cant tell if it is pure genius or complete stupidity. I guess we will find out in a decade.

My hope is this, yes. Eventually I hope we are able to get to something more like Germany with a minimum level of insurance provided for all along with the ability to get private insurance on top if you can afford it.

 

[Anubis]

it has not effected me yet, plan i get through work is still ~90$ a month for pretty awesome coverage

 

[Strk]

It hasnt affected me just yet. My employer's rates have gone up significantly. However after listening to what was said in our meeting yesterday. Apparently our plan is real close to a cadilac plan(2500 deduct single, 4000 family hsa, company kicks in half the deductible). The way the system is setup within a few years we will see our insurance planned reduced or risk having our plan taxed at cadilac rates. Eventually it sounds like our plan should be what can be purchased on the exchanges.

We are also introducing a secondary plan that will have a more limited network but cost less in premiums.

That's a Cadillac plan?

ACA hasn't done anything yet, but I will get hit with the excise tax in 2018 if I haven't managed to get a new job.

 

[soulcougher73]

Healthcare plan for my wife and I is $5/m more then last year. Dental and Vision are $2/m more each than last year. But we also got an HSA we didnt have before.

 

[IronWing]

My group health insurance premium will rise by 14% for 2014. This has nothing to do with the ACA as the plan already exceeded the requirements of the ACA.

Private health insurance is destroying American competitiveness.

 

[Genx87]

That's a Cadillac plan?

ACA hasn't done anything yet, but I will get hit with the excise tax in 2018 if I haven't managed to get a new job.

I was surprised at that as well. I think it is the raw cost of the plan vs the benefits that they are defining. And they set the rate of inflation for these plans for premium increases at the rate we see within our economy. Meaning our economy see's 3% inflation but our health premiums go up 12%. Eventually ours plans will be deemed cadilac and then taxed. Or the plan's cost reduced to fit the guidelines. And by cost reduced that means less and less coverage until it hits the min coverage you see within the exchanges. But I think at the end of the day no private insurance company will be able to sell these plans. And that is where govt will step in with a single payer system.

 

[dawp]

it hasn't effected me at all. nor has it affected me.

 

[OutHouse]

my wifes hours got cut from 38, down to 28. so yea thanks government for fucking with my families income.

 

[OutHouse]

As a cancer survivor the ACA means that I no longer have to worry that if I lose my job that I won't be able to get health insurance. My brother is a diabetic and he will similarly benefit. It is amazing.

this i agree with 100%

 

[EagleKeeper]

As a cancer survivor the ACA means that I no longer have to worry that if I lose my job that I won't be able to get health insurance. My brother is a diabetic and he will similarly benefit. It is amazing.

You may be able to qualify for insurance; but will you be able to pay for it while out of work.

 

[OutHouse]

nice timing for this thread. here is a email we got from HR this morning.

PLAN CHANGES EFFECTIVE NOVEMBER 1, 2013
BCBS Express Plan Changes:
• Plan Year deductible has increased to $1,250 Individual/$2,500 Family
• Maximum Out-of-Pocket has decreased to $9,000 Individual/$18,000 Family
• Prescription Drug Retail Co-pays
o $15 Generic; $60 Brand/formulary
o 70% to max of $250 Brand/non-formulary
• Prescription Drug Mail-Order, 90 day Co-pays
o $37.50 Generic; $150 Brand/formulary
o 70% to max of $625 Brand/non-formulary

Freedom Plan Changes:
• Outpatient Surgery Co-pay 80% after deductible
• Prescription Drug Retail Co-pays
o $20 Generic; $40 Brand/formulary
o 80% to max of $100 Brand/non-formulary
• Prescription Drug Mail-Order, 90 day Co-pays
o $50 Generic; $100 Brand/formulary
o 80% to max of $250 Brand/non-formulary

 

[dank69]

My son lost his job because of it.

Me, too. They gave some lame excuse like "you were using your workstation to look at porn," but they can't fool me. I know it's really Obama's fault.

 

[fskimospy]

You may be able to qualify for insurance; but will you be able to pay for it while out of work.

Depending on what my then-diminished income would be I would qualify for subsidized insurance or Medicaid, so yes. People without such pre-existing conditions will never understand what a nightmare our old system was.

The ACA is nowhere near perfect, but it's such a massive improvement over what we had before it's almost unbelievable. Hopefully this is only the first of many steps.

 

[nextJin]

Me, too. They gave some lame excuse like "you were using your workstation to look at porn," but they can't fool me. I know it's really Obama's fault.

I had 2 family members lose their jobs and my dad took a 700 dollar a month paycut so he probably was not lying if his son worked in the healthcare industry. There are huge shifts going on atm.

Luckily he is going to retire in Jan '14 so it could have been worse had we got Obamacare in say 1990.