Obamacare and you

[DGuller]

11B has no boyz.  He's in the middle & slings shit at both sides.

Raz would say he lacks moral courage.

It's true, he does.  He's not so much in the middle as being against everything.  It's a safe position to take, you can look like someone who has an interest in politics without actually being for something.  If you aren't for something, you can never be wrong.  You never have to worry about the embarrassment or heart break that comes with being wrong.  Politics is a bit like dating, you have to invest some of yourself and you'll likely get burned sometimes.  The cynic that laughs at everyone else but stand for nothing is like a person who doesn't have the courage to get in a relationship because of fear of rejection.  Instead he just goes home and jerks off.  The cynic does the same thing, except instead of massaging his gentiles he massages his ego by laughing at others who were foolish enough to support an idea or person.

That was so poignant.  Did you copy it from somewhere?

[11B4V]

11B has no boyz.  He's in the middle & slings shit at both sides.

Raz would say he lacks moral courage.

Doesnt take moral courage to be on one of those fucked up teams. Just laziness.

[alfred russel]

On the flip side, there are significant subsidies available to many people that people seem to be unaware of.

Right, and that's a political question.  Well lower income mandatees think "gee, I'm getting $2,000 worth of insurance for only $1,500," or will they think "that fucker is forcing me to spend $1,500 I could have spent on booze."

My understanding is the subsidies can be much more generous than you mention. Also, some people are going to have the opportunity to get their families primary care for the first time.

Obamacare basically takes from the young, healthy, and rich to give to the old, sick, and poor. The people getting benefits will know what they are losing. The people paying in will get insurance, but many may not be aware they are paying in more than the actuarial cost of their benefit. See young healthy men who want insurance even though they have few assets and could sign up for insurance without regard to their medical history.

[garbon]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/11/14/obama-obamacare-white-house-announcement/3525383/

Obama: Canceled plans can be kept for a year

President Obama said Thursday that Americans can keep canceled health insurance policies for a year as companies and consumers adjust to the new demands of the health care law.

In the coming weeks, insurance companies must also notify customers of what those policies lack, and of options consumers have for better coverage under the new law, Obama said in a statement at the White House."Americans whose plans have been canceled can choose to re-enroll," he said.

The president responded to criticism from lawmakers and Americans who have received cancellation notices since the Obamacare law came on line last month, a period also marred by a malfunctioning website.

"I think it's fair to say the rollout has been rough so far," Obama said. "This fix won't solve every problem, but it will help a lot of people."

Obama told reporters he knows he has to "win back some credibility" on the health care law."We fumbled the rollout," he said.

Administration officials have said policies have been canceled because they do not comply with new coverage requirements prescribed by Obamacare, and that the new system offers consumers better, higher quality options.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, reacting to news reports of the extension, said that "I'm highly skeptical they can do this administratively," but he awaited the details.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Obama's statement represented "the clearest acknowledgment yet that his oft-repeated pledge 'if you like your plan, you can keep it' was false all along."

President Obama indicated he would oppose a House Republican plan that would let people keep their plans for longer, saying it would undercut the structure of the Affordable Care Act.

Kaiser Family Foundation senior fellow Karen Pollitz says giving everyone another year to keep their plans and better understand their options is a "reasonable response" by President Obama.

"If people have the option to renew the policy for another year and if they're also informed about their new options and limitations of their current policies, they can decide their own timing for a transition," says Pollitz. "If they'll be better off moving this open season to ACA market (on Jan. 1) they can; if they decide it makes more sense to wait, they can do that too."

Obama and his signature health care law have come under sharp attack from lawmakers and people who have lost their insurance since the new law came on line last month.

A malfunctioning health care website has also drawn heavy criticism.

Fellow Democrats have been urging Obama to make changes, and a number of bills are making their way through Congress.

Obama's announcement comes a day after the administration announced that only 26,794 people have been able to enroll in Obamacare because of the balky website.

All told, there were some 106,000 sign-ups in October, including about 79,000 who enrolled in 14 states that have their have their own websites, all number lower than projected.

The health care problems appear to be taking a toll on Obama's popularity and approval ratings.

A Quinnipiac Poll this week said that "for the first time" a majority of Americans -- 52% to 44% -- say that Obama is not honest and trustworthy.

"His previous lowest marks on honesty were May 30, when 49% of voters said he was honest and 47% said he wasn't," Quinnipiac reported.

The health care law appears to be the root of Obama's current problem.

His ratings have fallen since the beginning of October and the unveiling of the malfunctioning web site.

Voters are also criticizing Obama for his long-ago pledge that people who like their existing insurance policies could keep them. Many Americans have received cancellation notices, though administration officials said that many of the affected policies do not meet new federal quality standards.

Administration officials, noting that Congress has an even lower approval rating, said voters are upset with all of Washington.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the president is working to fix problems with the health care law, and other challenges facing Americans.

"We need to focus here on getting the work done that the American people sent us to do," he said. "And that means working together to fix problems when they arise, not to try to score political points, and it means taking ownership and responsibility for problems that happen on your watch."

President Obama isn't just facing lower approval ratings -- people are starting to question his honesty and trustworthiness.

A Quinnipiac Poll this week said that "for the first time" a majority of Americans -- 52% to 44% -- say that Obama is not honest and trustworthy.

His ratings have fallen since the beginning of October and a rollout of the health care law that has featured an infamously malfunctioning web site.

Voters are also on Obama for his long-ago pledge that people who like their existing insurance policies could keep them. Many Americans have received cancellation notices, though administration officials said that many of the affected policies do not meet new federal quality standards.

White House officials, noting that Congress has an even lower approval rating, said voters are upset with all of Washington. Spokesman Jay Carney said the president is working to fix problems with the health care law and other challenges facing Americans.

During his statement, Obama said: "We are going to solve those problems. We are going to get this rught, and the Affordable Care Act is going to work."

[alfred russel]

I'm not an expert on this at all, but from what I know I'd say 5 years. For Obamacare to really work you need functioning exchanges and significant mandates. There probably also needs to be some loss experience for actuaries to base rates off of, and some time for people to become familiar with their options. I don't think we will have significant mandates for another 4 years (I could be completely wrong on that).

Okay.  What are the metrics, in general terms?

Percentage of uninsured people
Affordability of health care
Aggregate health care spending
Changes in health care outcomes (I suspect this will not be easily measurable)
Changes in health care quality
Public perception of Obamacare

[11B4V]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/11/14/obama-obamacare-white-house-announcement/3525383/

Obama: Canceled plans can be kept for a year

Well, well.

[Admiral Yi]

Looks like our bet is off Before.

[derspiess]

Percentage of uninsured people
Affordability of health care
Aggregate health care spending
Changes in health care outcomes (I suspect this will not be easily measurable)
Changes in health care quality
Public perception of Obamacare

Okay-- just wasn't sure if you were going for one thing alone.  What is your expectation on spending & public perception 5 years from now?

[11B4V]

During his statement, Obama said: "We are going to solve those problems. We are going to get this right, and the Affordable Care Act is going to work."

[derspiess]

So many good things in that ACA bill.  Pelosi was right-- they had to pass the bill before we could see it.

[11B4V]

My understanding is the subsidies can be much more generous than you mention. Also, some people are going to have the opportunity to get their families primary care for the first time.

This is the plus of the ACA

Obamacare basically takes from the young, healthy, and rich to give to the old, sick, and poor. The people getting benefits will know what they are losing. The people paying in will get insurance, but many may not be aware they are paying in more than the actuarial cost of their benefit. See young healthy men who want insurance even though they have few assets and could sign up for insurance without regard to their medical history.

How much did allowing a kids, till the age of 26, to stay on their parents plans, throw a possible wrench into the ACA? Seems like that is counter productive to the above statement. Seems a lot of revenue lost.

[11B4V]

Looks like our bet is off Before.

It would appear. 

[11B4V]

So many good things in that ACA bill.  Pelosi was right-- they had to pass the bill before we could see it.

[alfred russel]

Okay-- just wasn't sure if you were going for one thing alone.  What is your expectation on spending & public perception 5 years from now?

I think the public perception will be positive. I think the act will generally work, but more than that I think that government programs that touch people's lives tend to be thought well of.

I don't think the ACA will be effective at reducing spending. I think that is the one place it is going to fail.

[alfred russel]

How much did allowing a kids, till the age of 26, to stay on their parents plans, throw a possible wrench into the ACA? Seems like that is counter productive to the above statement. Seems a lot of revenue lost.

The revenue isn't lost. The cost of insuring a 25 year old will just be picked up by their parents' plan (which will become more expensive).

The key to making the health care law work is finding private sector pockets to pay for insurance for healthy people. Since young people tend to be healthy, getting them insured is important. That is why right now you see a bunch of ads trying to get young men to sign up for health care, but not so many for old people.

The problem is that in a world where you can sign up for insurance after you get sick, and don't have a bunch of assets that are at risk to an expensive emergency room visit, it doesn't make so much sense to sign up for healthcare. Hence pushing them onto their parents plan until 26, and putting an individual mandate on them.