If You Like Your Current Health Insurance...
... expect a big price increase.
From my broker, in response to my wife's query as to why our health insurance renewal was so much more expensive this year. It is by far the largest single year increase we have ever had. He said:
this is just he beginning of higher costs for insurance and many changes will be taking place due to the full implementation of Obamacare
jon:
hhhmm... We have a high deductible plan for a family of 5. I'm learning programming and not really working much now (was doing electrical engineering) and living off savings until I get good enough at the programming and making money at it as a freelancer. I think we pay about $200/mo right now for a $10k deductible. Much higher than that and we will be priced out.
May 1, 2013, 8:50 pmherdgadfly:
Speaking of Obamacare, I see where the FDA has let Hobby Lobby off the hook. The Plan B morning-after pill now can be sold without prescription in order that 15 year-olds can buy the drug without parental involvement. Obamacare, of course, doesn't pay for over-the-counter drugs.
May 1, 2013, 9:25 pmmogden:
We know that health care reform was critical in order to bend the cost curve. It has been a great success so far. Unfortunately, we got the sign wrong.
May 1, 2013, 10:04 pmBenjamin Cole:
I am no fan of Obamacare, but you are getting a nice bit of shilly-shally there.
You are getting older, and rates have been rising for years. Compound those two trends, and whammo.
Plus something else: Remember the whole Terri Schiavo episode? The GOP Congress holding a special session (Bush cancelled his vacation!) to save the carcass of Schiavo (whose husband was trying, with good reason, to pull the plug?).
Then, the GOP attacks on "death panels?"
Let me tell you an ugly truth: We waste 50 percent of health care dollars on patients who are both terminally ill and aged.
Euthanasia is the answer. It is the free market answer, and it should be the socialized medicine answer.
Try telling that to the American people. They do not want to hear it. Try getting the GOP to embrace euthanasia.
Or even the Dems, who are no better.
May 1, 2013, 10:36 pmPaul:
I have a high deductible policy with a reasonable (well, I'm 60 so I don't get the same rate as my kids) rate. But that is going to be illegal because apparently it isn't "real" insurance (lol). But maybe I'm old enough that my kids will have to make up the difference and my rate won't change. Not that I wish that on them of course.
May 1, 2013, 11:00 pmRay Van Dolson:
At some point (cost-wise), it may make sense to just pay the penalty for not having insurance and then sign up when you need it. I don't think companies are able to ask about pre-existing conditions after the beginning of next year, correct?
May 2, 2013, 5:51 amMNHawk:
Surprised a little as you don't look young. I figured the biggest increases would be for the youngest. Such as for the major med policy I carried between getting weaned from mommy and daddy and getting the "real" job.
May 2, 2013, 6:57 amCapitalistRoader:
I've been trying to get a handle on Obamacare vs. my high deductible health insurance plan. As it stands now, it looks like the ACA's Bronze plan qualifies as an HDHP. Rates will continue to go up but, depending on your income level, rates may be subsidized. Apparently the federal government will credit the health insurance company directly so the monthly premium to the insured will reflect the subsidy.
May 2, 2013, 7:10 amdc:
you miss the root of the question - why have rates been rising for years?
so once you look more closely and realize that rates are rising far higher than most other things, consider...
that just about anything the government gets its hands on, increases in price as everyone flocks to get a free lunch.
warren has written about it many times here and he is absolutely correct. from college education to welfare to warfare to health-sick-care-financing to actual "healthcare insurance" (you know, those catastrophic plans that dont cover maintenance, the definition of INSURANCE...)
oh, and did I miss banking?
so once you've read up on that, then ask the question why do we spend such a percentage on the aged - why, because we all get there eventually and the study of how bodily systems break down is a challenge, we'll continue to spend an inordinate percentage on it until we get past that coefficient of friction.
comparing this to a guy who wanted to pull the plug on his malfunctioning wife is intellectually dishonest.
May 2, 2013, 7:17 amDavid:
That is an extremely fascinating side-effect. I had not thought about this. However, doesn't the Hobby Lobby case also include other stuff other than BCP and the morning-after pill?
May 2, 2013, 7:46 amDavid:
I am shocked, shocked to hear that government involvement will lead to higher prices all around.
May 2, 2013, 7:48 ammarque2:
The big problem is they are mandating extra services. For instance, last year, my plan changed to force me to pay for birth and birth control services for my family, even though, 1: I am male and don't give birth and 2: Due to age we can no longer produce children 3: the kids that I have are too young to give birth or require birth control as well.
That and the "free" annual checkup, in which I am not allowed to complain about anything new, and the "free: diagnostic tests, raised our premiums 30% last year!
May 2, 2013, 10:12 ammarque2:
The can't complain about anything new in the annual physical is part of the law. It used to be you brought up changes with your doctor. Doc, in the last year I have been getting more headaches, and there is this growth on my arm.
No longer, you just have to get your heart listened to, your knee tapped, and your "free" diagnostic tests. If there is anything new, it requires a separate appointment
May 2, 2013, 10:14 ammarque2:
The big increases are for everyone because of all the extra mandated services. Yes the yout's have to pay at least 1/3 of the elderly, but when you add free exams, free diagnostics, free birth and birth control, keep the yout's on until 27, etc, the costs tend to "lift all boats" so to speak. And that was just last year.
Add to it this years new mandates, no preexisting conditions, can't deny folks entry, etc, and the costs are bound to go up dramatically again this year.
May 2, 2013, 10:16 amnehemiah:
Yeah, but you can get a fee Colonoscopy almost whenever you want in addition to the reaming you are getting on your premium..
May 2, 2013, 10:34 amnehemiah:
It may be available without a prescription, but someone still has to pay for it and of course that is what health insurance if so isn't it?
May 2, 2013, 10:36 amnehemiah:
I can almost assure you that it will be a cluster f___!
May 2, 2013, 10:40 amnehemiah:
That is what is happening with Romneycare in the Soviet Republic of MA. People are paying the lower penalty and then when diagnosed with something they sign up for coverage and cannot be denied. That is why the employee mandate penalty was crucial for Obamacare was so crucial and why CJ Roberts decision was so damaging to Liberty. We are on a fast tract to single payer (big Gov).
May 2, 2013, 10:43 ammarque2:
dc has good points, however to get more directly to your discussion - and somewhat immoral euthanasia discussion.
It is very easy to look back at charts and in hindsight figure out that oh look here six months prior to this persons death, expenses went up. If we just kill kill the elderly at this point, we will save tons of money. Give grandma that pill!
However foresight is not as good as hindsight. It is actually difficult in many cases to know if the disease you have or the set of undiagnosed symptoms you have are terminal until you have already spent a lot of money.
I had something similar happen to me with a cat (sorry not old enough to have directly dealt with terminally ill humans) My childhood cat was nice, but it was just a cat. Sad to see it go, but I wouldn't spend 2 grand in today's money to save it. But in the last six month the cat was a bit sick, and needed a minor operation, and then some medication, then it had a lump ... it all added up to $800 in the mid 80's. In hindsight if we had the cat euthanized we would have saved 800 bucks, but by the time we realized the cat was terminal, it was too late.
May 2, 2013, 10:52 ammarque2:
Death panels will also have two additional impacts most haven't thought of.
1: The more obvious one is that politically correct diseases will be favored over non pc disease. You in the last stages of Aids induced agony, spend the bucks, you got pancreatic cancer with the same potential success of cure, denied.
2: Speaking of denying pancreatic cancer - no brainer because there is only something like a 10% success rate in getting it cured. However, if the death panels prevent doctors from attempting to cure pancreatic cancer, there will be little in the way of research in how to fight the disease better. Dr X might have an innovative approach taht would increase the success rate from 10% to 15% but the panel would say no, this would prevent Dr Y from coming up with an additional technique which would bring the rate up from 15% to 20% etc. We will forever just give up on treating that disease, unless some government funded research center takes up the cause - if it is PC enough.
May 2, 2013, 11:32 ammarque2:
Also in the vein of your argument, we should also force women who have babies with birth defects to abort, because they just cost cost cost.
and premie babies before about 28 weeks should not be aggressively aided - cuz it costs too much.
My girl @ 25 weeks cost 250K to keep alive for goodness sake .
It is always a bad idea for Government to encourage killing people for the cost savings. In some European countries (Denmark) they already have problems with doctors aggressively demanding that patients with certain diseases off themselves rather than try to live on - even when the patient wants to live.
May 2, 2013, 11:39 ammarque2:
You might look into some other options. I don't know if your wife can get insurance, but you can through your school, and that tends to be very cheap. The kids are already eligible for a variety of state sponsored plans.
May 2, 2013, 11:41 amdvonroeder:
I live in Southern California and have an individual health insurance policy from Anthem. I received a letter yesterday which informed me that my premiums were going up on July 1.
My premiums will increase 16.9%.
What I find interesting about this is that, at age 56, I'm in an older age group which is not expected to see large increases in premiums. If us 56 year olds are getting hit with 17%, pity the youngsters who have individual policies.
May 2, 2013, 11:54 ammarque2:
Health insurance doesn't pay for over the counter drugs. Plan B is so cheap though, that it is much like Sandra Fluke whining that she can't afford the $8 - $9 a month for the pill, or $10 a month for an IUD.
If they are that poor, then they can just get a bit of cash off of the EBT.
May 2, 2013, 2:46 pmRon H.:
What is a "yout?
May 2, 2013, 4:01 pmmesaeconoguy:
'Zactly. And they wonder why entitlement spending is skyrocketing.....
May 2, 2013, 4:01 pmmesaeconoguy:
As Marque says, the biggest increase is for everyone, but you are likely correct in that the young (those not on mommy & daddy's Obamascare plan) will be forced to increase from $0 currently to whatever the expensive going rate is next year.
That'll leave a mark.
May 2, 2013, 4:03 pmmesaeconoguy:
Oh yeah, you got that right.
These IPAB death panels will be rife with political cronyism and patronage.
This whole thing is a nuclear trainwreck in the making...
May 2, 2013, 4:05 pmmesaeconoguy:
Opting out of this country is looking increasingly better daily.
The list of things we have here better than the rest of the developed world is shrinking rapidly.
May 2, 2013, 4:06 pmmarque2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVjbf-dHjW0
May 2, 2013, 6:02 pmDaveK:
I'm yet another who has high-deductible private insurance, and expect my premiums to go through the roof when January rolls around. Fortunately, I'm in a position to limit my income by reducing what I withdraw from my IRA's (I'm over 60). I'm pretty sure I can avoid any big withdrawals from the IRA's and so be elegible to switch over to Oregon's Exchange, getting enough in subsidies to actually reduce my total premium to much less than I currently pay.
I'd rather continue with my current policy, but it looks like economics will dictate otherwise. If you can't beat the system, use it's rules to your benefit.
May 2, 2013, 7:02 pmmesaeconoguy:
State-sponsored euthanasia is not the answer.
But that's Obamascare's answer.
May 2, 2013, 8:44 pmRon H.:
Heh. Yes. I see my question doesn't really look like a link, but it is. Give it a try.
May 2, 2013, 10:47 pmnehemiah:
It doesn't matter how cheap it is. It is the principle of forcing someone else to pay for it and it is even sweeter to the left if that someone has a conscientious objection to doing so.
May 3, 2013, 8:24 amskhpcola:
I haven't seen Benjitard here much, but he has a long and sordid history at the Carpe Diem blog. He and Lartard are both leftist filth and troll like little girls, provoking laughter and disgust. Intelligent discourse with either of them is impossible.
May 4, 2013, 11:40 ammarque2:
I think I may not have stated myself clearly. It is so cheep they shouldn't have to require it free from give rent or health insurance. I don't think I could get it covered because the cost is below my deductible
May 4, 2013, 12:47 pmSteven Walser:
Do I get to decide when to pull the plug on you? Could be lots of good reasons, outside of infirmity and age, why I might think it a good idea to "slightly" accelerate a visit from the grim reaper.
May 4, 2013, 6:59 pmMike:
Through my employer, our premiums increased by 46% in 2010. At first they accredited it to Obamacare. But now they blame my co-workers to being "unhealthy" and abusing emergency rooms. I really don't like that my premiums are tied to my co-workers' collective health.
May 5, 2013, 6:11 ammarque2:
At least he didn't answer back 1000 times with more inanities after more inanities, like some that other guy who posts here a lot.
May 5, 2013, 4:27 pmBenjamin Cole:
Steven-More importantly, do you pull the plug on your 83-year-old Grandma, when the hospital says it will cost $350,000 to do the operation, but no sure result?
Your money, its free enterprise.
No doubt, you will dodge this question, blah-blah about insurance. Okay, when insurance costs $67,000 a year for Grandma, do you keep it up?
You can resent my statements, but its euthanasia or ask Uncle Sam to print money and pay your bills....
May 5, 2013, 11:35 pm