Obamacare cost...

[statman]

My Fortune 50 company had big changes in our health plans for the coming year. Rather that the multiple choices I had in the past, including a PPO-like plan, I only had two choices. Both were high-deductable type plans, with different deductables. Only the higher deductable plan had an HSA available (the other one had an FSA), which was one of the reasons I chose it.

By law only high deductable plans are allowed to be tied to HSAs. That's the answer to doctorcoug's question about why someone would choose an FSA over an HSA - they choose it because legally the HSA is not available to them.

[ERCougar]

Listening to Left, Right, and Center this morning was a nice break from the doom and gloom on here regarding Obamacare. While ACA is hardly perfect, there are two very good things it will do:
1) Divorce health insurance from employment. This is an absurd feature of our health plan. Didn't do this perfectly, and yes, there are problems (requiring small businesses to insure employees is just stupid), but for the first time ever, Americans can enter an insurance pool without being employed.
2) Eliminate pre-existing conditions from insurance pools. I think this is a great thing. Every one of us is a diagnosis from being uninsurable.

I'm obviously not talking to Uncle Ted and those who don't believe we should have a government safety net, but for the rest of us Republicans who think the government should have some sort of role in healthcare, this act isn't nearly the bogeyman that some are making it out to be. It's far from perfect, and has some huge problems, but I still have hope a lot of these will be worked out.

[Mormon Red Death]

Listening to Left, Right, and Center this morning was a nice break from the doom and gloom on here regarding Obamacare. While ACA is hardly perfect, there are two very good things it will do:
1) Divorce health insurance from employment. This is an absurd feature of our health plan. Didn't do this perfectly, and yes, there are problems (requiring small businesses to insure employees is just stupid), but for the first time ever, Americans can enter an insurance pool without being employed.
2) Eliminate pre-existing conditions from insurance pools. I think this is a great thing. Every one of us is a diagnosis from being uninsurable.

I'm obviously not talking to Uncle Ted and those who don't believe we should have a government safety net, but for the rest of us Republicans who think the government should have some sort of role in healthcare, this act isn't nearly the bogeyman that some are making it out to be. It's far from perfect, and has some huge problems, but I still have hope a lot of these will be worked out.

#2 will bring a large increase in everyone's premiums.

[ERCougar]

#2 will bring a large increase in everyone's premiums.

I understand that. But I also consider that part of living in a society that cares about each other. I'm not trying to demonize libertarians here--I get that they care about people. I just disagree with them as to the means.

[Mormon Red Death]

I understand that. But I also consider that part of living in a society that cares about each other. I'm not trying to demonize libertarians here--I get that they care about people. I just disagree with them as to the means.

There are better ways (less expensive to everyone) to deal with pre-existing conditions that would fit your society clause.
Instead we have an overshadowing rule that will increase costs for everyone.
Sent from my SGH-T839 using Tapatalk 2

[ERCougar]

There are better ways (less expensive to everyone) to deal with pre-existing conditions that would fit your society clause.

Such as?

[Tone Loc]

I understand that. But I also consider that part of living in a society that cares about each other. I'm not trying to demonize libertarians here--I get that they care about people. I just disagree with them as to the means.

This is just another form of welfare. And while I understand the need to care for those who can't provide for themselves, I really think programs like this expand that pool instead of decrease it. The ultimate goal in helping people should be to propel them to self-sufficiency, so they can provide for themselves. Giving people something for free will usually do the opposite of what is intended, especially when the government is involved because of the lack of personal resposibility attached.

[ERCougar]

This is just another form of welfare. And while I understand the need to care for those who can't provide for themselves, I really think programs like this expand that pool instead of decrease it. The ultimate goal in helping people should be to propel them to self-sufficiency, so they can provide for themselves. Giving people something for free will usually do the opposite of what is intended, especially when the government is involved because of the lack of personal resposibility attached.

Yes, it is another form of welfare. People with preexisting conditions CAN'T provide for themselves--the insurance market won't even let them. So we all pay a little more so they can participate in covering their own costs, instead of waiting until their medical expenses bankrupt them and they become completely dependent on the state.

This seems like the kind of thing you could really get behind, if I believe the rest of your paragraph.

[il Padrino Ute]

Such as?

The free market. Allow insurance companies to sell across state lines to compete for consumers.

[The_Douger]

The free market. Allow insurance companies to sell across state lines to compete for consumers.

BINGO.

I think it's time we quit pretending that local insurance companies in each state actually compete.

[pellegrino]

BINGO.

I think it's time we quit pretending that local insurance companies in each state actually compete.

if you want to see competition between insurance companies move to Massachusetts.

[ERCougar]

The free market. Allow insurance companies to sell across state lines to compete for consumers.

How does that affect the uninsurable patient again? No one WANTS to insure them.

BINGO.

I think it's time we quit pretending that local insurance companies in each state actually compete.

Enlighten me--what exactly do they do?

[snowcat]

Listening to Left, Right, and Center this morning was a nice break from the doom and gloom on here regarding Obamacare. While ACA is hardly perfect, there are two very good things it will do:
1) Divorce health insurance from employment. This is an absurd feature of our health plan. Didn't do this perfectly, and yes, there are problems (requiring small businesses to insure employees is just stupid), but for the first time ever, Americans can enter an insurance pool without being employed.
2) Eliminate pre-existing conditions from insurance pools. I think this is a great thing. Every one of us is a diagnosis from being uninsurable.

I'm obviously not talking to Uncle Ted and those who don't believe we should have a government safety net, but for the rest of us Republicans who think the government should have some sort of role in healthcare, this act isn't nearly the bogeyman that some are making it out to be. It's far from perfect, and has some huge problems, but I still have hope a lot of these will be worked out.

The are both reasonable benefits. These could have been done without creating the beauracratic nightmare of Obamacare.

[ERCougar]

The are both reasonable benefits. These could have been done without creating the beauracratic nightmare of Obamacare.

Agreed. But I'm sure plenty on the left would have liked to simplify the whole thing by just going straight to one-payer--there's plenty about ACA that is distasteful to liberals.

If Republicans wanted a more conservative-looking solution, they should have jumped on this twenty years ago.

[The_Douger]

How does that affect the uninsurable patient again? No one WANTS to insure them.




Enlighten me--what exactly do they do?

The few dominant ones here just undercut each other a little bit. So, companies go back and forth between a few larger insurance providers much of the time, switching often, making people change medical providers, changing plans every few years.

Opening it up accross state lines would increase the competition and lower prices.