Obamacare TrainWreck Continues ...
. . . Premiums Higher As Employers Drop Coverage - No More Health Benefits For Spouses - Higher Deductibles For Employees - More Cost-Sharing
In a must-read article today, National Journal writes, “Republicans have long blamed President Obama's signature health care initiative for increasing insurance costs, dubbing it the ‘Unaffordable Care Act.’ Turns out, they might be right.
“For the vast majority of Americans, premium prices will be higher in the individual exchange than what they're currently paying for employer-sponsored benefits, according to a National Journal analysis of new coverage and cost data. Adding even more out-of-pocket expenses to consumers' monthly insurance bills is a swell in deductibles under the Affordable Care Act. Health law proponents have excused the rate hikes by saying the prices in the exchange won't apply to the millions receiving coverage from their employers. But that's only if employers continue to offer that coverage--something that's looking increasingly uncertain. Already, UPS, for example, cited Obamacare as its reason for nixing spousal coverage. And while a Kaiser Family Foundation report found that 49 percent of the U.S. population now receives employer-sponsored coverage, more companies are debating whether they will continue to be in the business of providing such benefits at all.” But, National Journal writes ,“The trap is that the exchanges also present a savings for some employers but a rate hike for their employees. And shifting employees to the exchanges also is just logistically easier than trying to meet the law's employer mandate.”
The article explains, “Whether the quality of care in the new market is comparable to private offerings remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: The cost of care in the new market doesn't stack up. A single wage earner must make less than $20,000 to see his or her current premiums drop or stay the same under Obamacare, an independent review by National Journal found. That's equivalent to approximately 34 percent of all single workers in the U.S. seeing any benefit in the new system. For those seeking family-of-four coverage under the ACA, about 43 percent will see cost savings. Families must earn less than or equal to $62,300, or they, too, will be looking at a bigger bill. Those numbers include the generous tax subsidies designed to make the new system more attractive to consumers. . . . On average, a worker paid between $862 and $1,065 per year for single coverage in 2013, according to Kaiser's numbers. For the average family plan, defined as a family of four, insurance cost between $4,226 and $5,284. Fewer than half of all families and only a third of single workers would qualify for enough Obamacare tax subsidies to pay within or below those averages next year.”
At the same time, many employers are facing higher costs, leading them to drop benefits or pay for less health care for employees. CNNMoney writes today, “No more health benefits for spouses. Higher deductibles for employees. More cost-sharing. Employers are citing increased costs imposed by the Affordable Care Act -- as Obamacare is formally known -- as part of the reason they are pulling back on benefits. President Obama said this spring that little will change for the 85% to 90% of Americans who already have coverage, only that ‘their insurance is stronger, better, more secure than it was before.’ But that's actually not the case at a growing number of companies. [UPS], for instance, recently told employees that health reform is contributing a 4% increase to the cost of coverage for 2014, while health care inflation adds another 7.25%. And Delta Air Lines said that Obamacare and inflation would increase costs by $100 million, though it only identifies $38 million as due to health reform. The University of Virginia, meanwhile, said it will have to pay more than $7 million in Obamacare fees and taxes in 2014, which would result in a ‘double digit premium increase’ if it didn't implement savings measures. As a result, UPS and UVa said they are dropping coverage for employees' spouses that have access to benefits elsewhere. Delta said in a letter to administration officials that it will have to pass along some of the rising costs to its employees.”
As Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said this year on the third anniversary of Democrats passing their unpopular health care law, “Republicans have long warned that Obamacare would have a devastating impact on our country. I’ve spoken about 100 times on the Senate floor against Obamacare, and I’ve warned about its consequences: increased premiums, lost jobs, higher taxes. Unfortunately, many of those things have already started happening – and the federal government has only just begun implementing this law. . . . Members of the President’s own party have begun sounding the alarm about the law’s tax hikes, including its tax on medical devices. His union allies are concerned the law will make them less competitive too. Well of course it will. Perhaps some of those union bosses should have more thoroughly considered the wellbeing of their members before supporting Obamacare’s passage in the first place. . . . In my view, Obamacare is a colossal mistake for our country. There’s just no way to fix it. It needs to be pulled out by its roots and we need to start over. This bill needs to be repealed and replaced – not with another unreadable law or another 20,000 pages of regulations – but with common-sense reforms that actually lower health care costs.”
Fox News's "Happening Now" this morning reported on another Obamacare delay, quoting U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said, "I've been warning that a train wreck is coming with this law, but the truth is that no train wreck has ever had this many warning signs."
It is obvious to all but the desperate acolytes of Mr. Obama that the wheels are coming off Obamacare and we are watching a major Train Wreck occurring in slow-motion. The questions now become, why isn't President Obama pulling the emergency cord to stop this destructive event? Doesn't he care about the USA? Does he believe America will be better with a third world healthcare system?
Tags: Obamacare, train wreck, Higher premiums, employers dropping coverage, - no health benefits,, spouses, higher deductibles, more cost-sharing To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
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| The Train Wreck Continues |
“For the vast majority of Americans, premium prices will be higher in the individual exchange than what they're currently paying for employer-sponsored benefits, according to a National Journal analysis of new coverage and cost data. Adding even more out-of-pocket expenses to consumers' monthly insurance bills is a swell in deductibles under the Affordable Care Act. Health law proponents have excused the rate hikes by saying the prices in the exchange won't apply to the millions receiving coverage from their employers. But that's only if employers continue to offer that coverage--something that's looking increasingly uncertain. Already, UPS, for example, cited Obamacare as its reason for nixing spousal coverage. And while a Kaiser Family Foundation report found that 49 percent of the U.S. population now receives employer-sponsored coverage, more companies are debating whether they will continue to be in the business of providing such benefits at all.” But, National Journal writes ,“The trap is that the exchanges also present a savings for some employers but a rate hike for their employees. And shifting employees to the exchanges also is just logistically easier than trying to meet the law's employer mandate.”
The article explains, “Whether the quality of care in the new market is comparable to private offerings remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: The cost of care in the new market doesn't stack up. A single wage earner must make less than $20,000 to see his or her current premiums drop or stay the same under Obamacare, an independent review by National Journal found. That's equivalent to approximately 34 percent of all single workers in the U.S. seeing any benefit in the new system. For those seeking family-of-four coverage under the ACA, about 43 percent will see cost savings. Families must earn less than or equal to $62,300, or they, too, will be looking at a bigger bill. Those numbers include the generous tax subsidies designed to make the new system more attractive to consumers. . . . On average, a worker paid between $862 and $1,065 per year for single coverage in 2013, according to Kaiser's numbers. For the average family plan, defined as a family of four, insurance cost between $4,226 and $5,284. Fewer than half of all families and only a third of single workers would qualify for enough Obamacare tax subsidies to pay within or below those averages next year.”
At the same time, many employers are facing higher costs, leading them to drop benefits or pay for less health care for employees. CNNMoney writes today, “No more health benefits for spouses. Higher deductibles for employees. More cost-sharing. Employers are citing increased costs imposed by the Affordable Care Act -- as Obamacare is formally known -- as part of the reason they are pulling back on benefits. President Obama said this spring that little will change for the 85% to 90% of Americans who already have coverage, only that ‘their insurance is stronger, better, more secure than it was before.’ But that's actually not the case at a growing number of companies. [UPS], for instance, recently told employees that health reform is contributing a 4% increase to the cost of coverage for 2014, while health care inflation adds another 7.25%. And Delta Air Lines said that Obamacare and inflation would increase costs by $100 million, though it only identifies $38 million as due to health reform. The University of Virginia, meanwhile, said it will have to pay more than $7 million in Obamacare fees and taxes in 2014, which would result in a ‘double digit premium increase’ if it didn't implement savings measures. As a result, UPS and UVa said they are dropping coverage for employees' spouses that have access to benefits elsewhere. Delta said in a letter to administration officials that it will have to pass along some of the rising costs to its employees.”
As Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said this year on the third anniversary of Democrats passing their unpopular health care law, “Republicans have long warned that Obamacare would have a devastating impact on our country. I’ve spoken about 100 times on the Senate floor against Obamacare, and I’ve warned about its consequences: increased premiums, lost jobs, higher taxes. Unfortunately, many of those things have already started happening – and the federal government has only just begun implementing this law. . . . Members of the President’s own party have begun sounding the alarm about the law’s tax hikes, including its tax on medical devices. His union allies are concerned the law will make them less competitive too. Well of course it will. Perhaps some of those union bosses should have more thoroughly considered the wellbeing of their members before supporting Obamacare’s passage in the first place. . . . In my view, Obamacare is a colossal mistake for our country. There’s just no way to fix it. It needs to be pulled out by its roots and we need to start over. This bill needs to be repealed and replaced – not with another unreadable law or another 20,000 pages of regulations – but with common-sense reforms that actually lower health care costs.”
Fox News's "Happening Now" this morning reported on another Obamacare delay, quoting U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said, "I've been warning that a train wreck is coming with this law, but the truth is that no train wreck has ever had this many warning signs."
Tags: Obamacare, train wreck, Higher premiums, employers dropping coverage, - no health benefits,, spouses, higher deductibles, more cost-sharing To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Posted by Bill Smith at 12:21 PM - Post Link
1 Comments:
It is a TOTAL DISASTER!
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