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U.S. companies hoard record amount of cash

before the ACA exchanges, most of the employment non-specific plans were hopelessly expensive, and your choices depended on where you live. even after the ACA, that's often still the case. the best plans have always been employer based. that's a poor way to distribute access to health care.

Prior to Obamacare at least the individual plans were based on risk. My first individual plan cost me $280.00 per month. The risk was based on my age. The young programmar in the next office bought the same policy $103.00 a month. He was 23. I was 57 at the time. Ofcourse Obamacare killed those plans.
 
Prior to Obamacare at least the individual plans were based on risk. My first individual plan cost me $280.00 per month. The risk was based on my age. The young programmar in the next office bought the same policy $103.00 a month. He was 23. I was 57 at the time. Ofcourse Obamacare killed those plans.

like all of the other stupid parts of the American health care distribution system, it depends on where you live. for an individual plan that doesn't completely suck ass, i pay about three hundred a month in premiums, and that's employer provided health care. even with that, my out of pocket costs can still be ridiculous if i actually have to use the insurance. we can do a lot better.
 
9% to 3%, huh? Big deal. That is an opinion piece posted at Forbes that deals mainly with large employers. Problem is that most Americans are employed with small employers.

No, they aren't. The SBA keeps data on firm size. Two-thirds of employees work for a firm of 100 employees or larger. For them, the employer mandate is in effect and whatever impact it was going to have was apparent during their open enrollments last fall. Turns out the impact was minimal.

Another 28% of employees are in firms with 49 or fewer employees--firms that aren't subject to the mandate ever.

Prior to Obamacare at least the individual plans were based on risk. My first individual plan cost me $280.00 per month. The risk was based on my age. The young programmar in the next office bought the same policy $103.00 a month. He was 23. I was 57 at the time. Ofcourse Obamacare killed those plans.

Plans are still age rated. That's why the young pay less than the old for any given marketplace product.
 
No, they aren't. The SBA keeps data on firm size. Two-thirds of employees work for a firm of 100 employees or larger. For them, the employer mandate is in effect and whatever impact it was going to have was apparent during their open enrollments last fall. Turns out the impact was minimal.

Another 28% of employees are in firms with 49 or fewer employees--firms that aren't subject to the mandate ever.



Plans are still age rated. That's why the young pay less than the old for any given marketplace product.

In other words, the big scary employer mandate from Obamacare has mostly come and gone with little impact.

Looks like there are no more shoes to drop.

The ACA has been at best, an impressive success at bending the cost curve and delivering care to previously uninsurable people, while establishing affordable health care for most citizens. At worst, it really hasn't changed much for most people.
 
9% to 3%, huh? Big deal. That is an opinion piece posted at Forbes that deals mainly with large employers. Problem is that most Americans are employed with small employers. They are the ones that are devastated by the mandates of Obamacare. They are the one's dropping coverage or restricting new hires to 30 hours or less. Like it or not, Obamacare has been a disaster from the beginning, and the worst is yet to come.

A six percent shift at the national level is quite substantial. And "large" must be defined, but Obamacare took effect on Jan. 1 for employers with over 100 employees, that is not all that large, certainly not in the GM or IBM sense of "large".

From the article:
Mercer’s survey of employers comes less than three months after employers with 100 or more workers in January were required by the Affordable Care Act to offer 70% of their full-time workers coverage. In 2016, employers with 50 or more full-time workers have to start offering coverage.

My wife works for a roofing company that does commercial buildings, they have 250 people, and they offered ins. in the past and will continue to this year. I am not sure what the rate will be this year, find out 5/1.

I'll leave you with some quotes from Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers FB page, where she asked people to share their Obamacare horror stories, and there are just several consecutive quotes, so not cherry picked:
Janet Clark My story is this: my husband and I worked to pass Obamacare because we believed all Americans should have access to quality healthcare, like we did through his workplace. We never thought it would affect us. Then one day I came home and found my strong, apparently healthy husband dead in the backyard. He had experienced cardiac arrest. Within one week I was off his plan. I purchased COBRA for a year and then looked for a less expensive plan. I applied for Blue Cross and was turned down due to pre-existing conditions: arthritis and bunions. I was so happy when Obamacare went through and I had access to healthcare. Never thought it would be me who needed it, but it was. Thanks, President Obama!
March 24 at 9:42am

Jennifer Holden My biggest problem with Obamacare: My partner and I no longer have health benefits from an employer, and the ACA has made health insurance more accessible and less expensive for us.Oh wait, that isn't a problem!
March 24 at 8:37am

Laura Walker Oh, my, where to start? Let's see, I now am able to get annual exams for breast cancer, colon cancer, depression screening, bone density tests and overall wellness exams FOR FREE! My insurance (thanks to Medicare) covers eye care and dental care, plus fitness program INCLUDED! I also have 24/7 access to health professionals. And I'll tell you what else: I required extensive tests last year to find out what was wrong with my heart and guess what?! My insurance covered all but $250. The bill came to $7,000! Yes, thanks to #ACA, my coverage has not only improved through Medicare, it's broadened and my premiums (MA) haven't risen nearly as much as they did before this.

You have to be the most cynical, or the most insulated official to keep beating the dead horse about ACA being such a travesty. The only promises broken are those of GOP - #GOPBROKENPROMISES
March 23 at 10:57pm

Nancy Lazarus Taylor Thanks, Obama!! Because of the ACA, I have health insurance and with a pre-existing condition. Without this, I would most likely be dead or on gov't assistance, something else you, CMR, don't like. And I managed to do my taxes myself. No nightmare. Next fallacy to debunk?
March 27 at 6:36am

Dean Vercruysse I love people like you Cathy who HAVE Gov't Health Care who want to cancel it for others! it's the Christian thing to do!
March 23 at 9:43pm

Robert Fairfax I work for cancer care northwest. We actually have more patients with insurance and fewer having to choose treatment over bankruptcy. Cathy, I'm a die hard conservative and I'm asking you to stop just slamming Obamacare. Fix it, change it or come up with a better idea! Thanks
March 23 at 9:33pm
https://www.facebook.com/mcmorrisrodgers?fref=ts

That is what you call SUCCESS!
 
like all of the other stupid parts of the American health care distribution system, it depends on where you live. for an individual plan that doesn't completely suck ass, i pay about three hundred a month in premiums, and that's employer provided health care. even with that, my out of pocket costs can still be ridiculous if i actually have to use the insurance. we can do a lot better.

Yes...we sure can....and with common sense reform based on market solutions as well as tort reform. We just need to make healthcare as affordable as it once was. For instance your individual plan....at least prior to obamacare would be much less expensive if there were not barriers to selling individual health insurance policies across state lines. Competition is what drives the prices down.
 
In other words, the big scary employer mandate from Obamacare has mostly come and gone with little impact.

Looks like there are no more shoes to drop.

The ACA has been at best, an impressive success at bending the cost curve and delivering care to previously uninsurable people, while establishing affordable health care for most citizens. At worst, it really hasn't changed much for most people.

Will you ever tire of spreading progaganda to sell obamacare? If it was such a success story, the democrats would still be in control of both houses of congress. Obamacare has been a major disaster for the democrat party. Everyone knows it. Even you!
 
A six percent shift at the national level is quite substantial. And "large" must be defined, but Obamacare took effect on Jan. 1 for employers with over 100 employees, that is not all that large, certainly not in the GM or IBM sense of "large".

From the article:


My wife works for a roofing company that does commercial buildings, they have 250 people, and they offered ins. in the past and will continue to this year. I am not sure what the rate will be this year, find out 5/1.

I'll leave you with some quotes from Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers FB page, where she asked people to share their Obamacare horror stories, and there are just several consecutive quotes, so not cherry picked:

https://www.facebook.com/mcmorrisrodgers?fref=ts

That is what you call SUCCESS!

First, I am not impressed with cherry picked success stories. I have personally seen the devastating downsides of obamacare, including having my own individual health insurance policy canceled by obamacare. Second....when you consider the fact that most Americans are employed by small employers....not the big corporations. The corporate giants can shift costs around, raise the price of the goods and service etc and get by. The smaller employers are devastated and have responded by limited unskilled new hires to part time wages so they do not have to provide them with health insurance. Obamacare is devastating the very people it is claiming to be trying to help.
 
Yes...we sure can....and with common sense reform based on market solutions as well as tort reform. We just need to make healthcare as affordable as it once was. For instance your individual plan....at least prior to obamacare would be much less expensive if there were not barriers to selling individual health insurance policies across state lines. Competition is what drives the prices down.

Guaranteed issue is far and away the primary reason that premiums in the individual market are higher for some people than they once were.

To go back to what was before, you need to bring back pre-existing condition exclusions and kick some of the sickest folks out. "Competition" used to mean being the best at shedding risk, not delivering the best product in a transparent, open market as it does now. If you want to go back to that, premiums may come down for the fortunate ones but the human cost will be pretty high.
 
First, I am not impressed with cherry picked success stories. I have personally seen the devastating downsides of obamacare, including having my own individual health insurance policy canceled by obamacare. Second....when you consider the fact that most Americans are employed by small employers....not the big corporations. The corporate giants can shift costs around, raise the price of the goods and service etc and get by. The smaller employers are devastated and have responded by limited unskilled new hires to part time wages so they do not have to provide them with health insurance. Obamacare is devastating the very people it is claiming to be trying to help.

Those are not cherry picked stories, I just copied 5 consecutive from real people signed up on facebook (their timelines go back years, so they were not created for this exercise). You fail however to see the upside, you just complain about your personal experience. If you got an obamacare policy it is superior to the one that was cancelled, since that one, you could be dropped if the ins. company so chose. If you want your opinion to be respected, you will have to look at obamacare objectively, how it affects everyone, not just you.
 
Those are not cherry picked stories, I just copied 5 consecutive from real people signed up on facebook (their timelines go back years, so they were not created for this exercise). You fail however to see the upside, you just complain about your personal experience. If you got an obamacare policy it is superior to the one that was cancelled, since that one, you could be dropped if the ins. company so chose. If you want your opinion to be respected, you will have to look at obamacare objectively, how it affects everyone, not just you.

They are cherry picked stories and it's laughable that you got them from Facebook. It is also laughable that you think an obamacare policy would have been superior. The obamacare approved policy I was supposed to sign up for had a nearly 300% increase in the monthly premium and a 500% increase in the deductible. Yes...I could have signed up for a cheaper policy on the exchanges, however it would have still had the massively high deductible and a very shrunken network of doctors and hospitals. Nothing superior there. I was happy with the policy I had that Obamacare canceled.
 
Yes...we sure can....and with common sense reform based on market solutions as well as tort reform. We just need to make healthcare as affordable as it once was. For instance your individual plan....at least prior to obamacare would be much less expensive if there were not barriers to selling individual health insurance policies across state lines. Competition is what drives the prices down.

i don't see the market solving the problem when they can charge you basically anything and you have to pay it. when my kids is seriously sick, i doubt that i'll ever say, "nope, that's too much. get bent." it's an essential service with inelastic demand. if my arm is broken, i'm going to the closest emergency room regardless of the cost. the price reflects that. selling insurance across state lines and tort reform will help a little, but not enough. i support doing what we can, though.

anyway, we've been around this barn plenty of times already. we have a tiny bit of common ground on the issue, but not much. repeating ourselves again probably isn't going to resolve our differences on this issue.
 
They are cherry picked stories and it's laughable that you got them from Facebook. It is also laughable that you think an obamacare policy would have been superior. The obamacare approved policy I was supposed to sign up for had a nearly 300% increase in the monthly premium and a 500% increase in the deductible. Yes...I could have signed up for a cheaper policy on the exchanges, however it would have still had the massively high deductible and a very shrunken network of doctors and hospitals. Nothing superior there. I was happy with the policy I had that Obamacare canceled.



There are 25 million stories like that.
 
i don't see the market solving the problem when they can charge you basically anything and you have to pay it. when my kids is seriously sick, i doubt that i'll ever say, "nope, that's too much. get bent." it's an essential service with inelastic demand. if my arm is broken, i'm going to the closest emergency room regardless of the cost. the price reflects that. selling insurance across state lines and tort reform will help a little, but not enough. i support doing what we can, though.

Once again, we have had different experiances. When I bought individual policies, I shopped around. And I read the contracts. I knew what was covered and what was not. If anything covered was refused, I had the option of taking the carrier to court for breach of contract.


anyway, we've been around this barn plenty of times already. we have a tiny bit of common ground on the issue, but not much. repeating ourselves again probably isn't going to resolve our differences on this issue.

However one area where we should have common ground is that if health insurance was once affordable and efficient(and it was), it can be again. It's just a matter of going back to what worked before. I understand your fears of financial ruin for an unexpected illness, however healthcare should not be an entitlement for the entire population.
 
There are 25 million stories like that.

Exactly. The obamacare apologists on the talkboard though just do not want to hear it. They hope that everyone has a short memory on major news events such as millions getting their individual policies canceled by obamacare...or the disastrous rollout of "healthcare.com". Theire retort is: "But but but.....more are now insured!" which is meaningless when one considers that most....even on the exchanges are ending up with deductables so high that they need to win the lottery just to take advantage.
 
Exactly. The obamacare apologists on the talkboard though just do not want to hear it. They hope that everyone has a short memory on major news events such as millions getting their individual policies canceled by obamacare...or the disastrous rollout of "healthcare.com". Theire retort is: "But but but.....more are now insured!" which is meaningless when one considers that most....even on the exchanges are ending up with deductables so high that they need to win the lottery just to take advantage.

LIE!

Even the CBO says there are still 15 million people without coverage....it was 16 actual [those who wanted it] when this started.

In 2020 the CBO says there will still be 50,000,000,000 people without coverage, 12 million more than the entire population of Canada. There were 25 million estimated [before Obama inflated the figures unchallenged] so you are NOT better off, but paying more for less covering less.

Have a nice day America, even an Edsel had value.
 
The point he is making is that it's Fascism. People are forced to provide profits to multinational companies.

Obamacare might work if there were not-for-profit insurance companies like here, but it can't with insurance companies jacking high profits out of the cash flow.

Which is what is wrong with healthcare mandates. The insurance companies gleefully went along with it because they were thrilled about the concept of a captive customer base.
 
Which is what is wrong with healthcare mandates. The insurance companies gleefully went along with it because they were thrilled about the concept of a captive customer base.

According to reports here, it is what Obama had to give them to make them go along. If there was to be change, they wanted more $ and got it.

A politician here proposed that our provincial health agency go into the for-profit insurance in post Obamacare America. An insurance man he preached there was enough profit in it we would be able to expand health and dental care 200%

I thought is was a great idea, since we run a not-for-profit insurance company now. It was rejected for many reasons. I figured Americans wouldn't care that a Canadian provincial government was paying its way with their money since they have been lining the pockets of Wall street anyway for the past hundred years
 
Once again, we have had different experiances. When I bought individual policies, I shopped around. And I read the contracts. I knew what was covered and what was not. If anything covered was refused, I had the option of taking the carrier to court for breach of contract.

my experience has been take it or leave it at whatever job i was working at the time. then premiums and copays got ridiculous. i have pretty good insurance, too. i would trade it for medicare in a heartbeat.



However one area where we should have common ground is that if health insurance was once affordable and efficient(and it was), it can be again. It's just a matter of going back to what worked before. I understand your fears of financial ruin for an unexpected illness, however healthcare should not be an entitlement for the entire population.

it was always going in this direction. Truman wanted to fix it before it became a massive problem, and we probably should have listened to him. anyway, that's my opinion, based on what other countries have done. you have yours, and i just disagree.
 
Will you ever tire of spreading progaganda to sell obamacare? If it was such a success story, the democrats would still be in control of both houses of congress. Obamacare has been a major disaster for the democrat party. Everyone knows it. Even you!

Funny... The guy it's named for seemed to have no trouble getting reelected, but you seem to skip over that.
 
Funny... The guy it's named for seemed to have no trouble getting reelected, but you seem to skip over that.

Nothing funny about it.

Obama...the most politically motivated, most lying politician in the most lying Party...not surprising he suckered voters into electing him.

Obamacare...the worst, most damaging and free choice denying legislation to ever be shoved down the American people's throat by a party that doesn't care if the people didn't want it.
 
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