once again, I enrolled for Health Insurance....

[callmeslick]

....and, like last year, it was simple. Ten to fifteen minutes on the phone, and done. Further, my plan only went up $12 per month, the smallest monthly increase I've seen in over 15 years. I got dental coverage for another $80 tossed in, and am STILL paying less than I did for COBRA coverage from my employer when I retired back in 2012. For the record, the plan my wife and I have has a $500 family deductable, $2000 cap on out of pocket, $10 visit co-ay, $10 prescriptions, $15 lab fee. In other words, a Platinum Plan. Only costs $1780 per month, I get $400 per month taken off that, because I keep my taxable income to a minimum in my retirement(I'm cheap and have pretty low expenditures, now that child and grandchildren aren't in my care). I spent a good deal of my visit, a couple weeks back, to friends in CT urging them to sign up. Many are woodcutters, self-employed and lower income. They can provide great coverage for their families via the ACA. Many had been intimidated by the BS floated by the haters and nay-sayers.

Let's hear those annual scare stories about the ACA, one more time!!

[Foil]

As I posted last year, I started a contractor position, found that the best deal by far was through the Colorado exchange, and ran into some extremely frustrating system issues with the carrier.

Update:

The carrier issues slowly got better throughout the year, and they handled the coverage without too much hassle (which was a good thing, because we had some massive medical expenses this year). That said, one frustrating point was that we found that although the exchange policy was through the same carrier (Anthem BCBS) as my previous employer-paid policy, it covered far fewer doctors, and that meant that we had to quit a couple of our long-time family providers and find other options.

Since then, I've been hired on permanently, so my coverage is now back to an employer-paid plan, which happens to be with the same carrier. Although the coverage amounts are similar, the one major difference (again) seems to be in how many providers are in-network; unlike the exchange plan, we can now go back to our old doctors.

So, it was a 'mixed bag' in my brief experience with the ACA policy this past year. The price vs. coverage on the exchange plan was good, but the early system issues and lack of in-network providers was pretty frustrating.

[Tunnelcat]

My grandfathered plan is still around $100 dollars a month cheaper than anything on the ACA. I do have a higher deductible, but that's the way I want it. You can't get a plan like that currently in the marketplace either. All deductibles are required to be lower than what I currently have.

Here is Oregon, a company called Moda Health, formerly ODS, suckered a large percentage of people into their plans by offering really cheap rates last year. Well, now that they have that large chunk of the market they were looking for, they are raising their rates substantially and pissing people off. Plus, no one has anything much better to offer either. It's almost like collusion....

[callmeslick]

here in Delaware, I had 14 plans to choose from, with 3 different companies issuing them. TC, I cannot understand how the rate on the exchange, minus the rebates you might be entitled to, cannot be better than the grandfathered plan with similar coverage. You might be the only person I know making that claim. Foil's experience(frustrations) seem to vary from state to state, and I suppose can be expected with a new system. As for loss of in-net doctors, I saw none of that, and last year, my plan was covering a bunch of people seeing everything from pediatricians, to specialists for a range of adult issues. Haven't had to drop any physician here, and IMO, all of the ones we hire are well regarded.

[Top Gun]

I'm finally working full-time, so I have fairly good employer-paid coverage (though I admittedly haven't had to use it much yet). I would have gladly jumped on an ACA plan last year, except our ★■◆● of a (now-former) governor didn't expand Medicaid, and I wasn't eligible for any normal subsidies at my income level. It'll be interesting to see how the landscape changes now, since Tom Wolf has stated that he'll be accepting the Medicaid expansion when he takes office.

[Will Robinson]

So you, a relatively wealthy person, are getting $4,800 a year in Obamacare subsidies for your healthcare insurance.

I'm guessing if you are getting that much then everyone earning what you earn or less (which is likely a vast majority of the taxpayers) is going to be getting at least $4,800 as well, on up to the full $21,360 in subsidies (your plans cost).

And supposedly there will be millions more of the 20+ million previously uninsured added to the total number of subsidy recipients, most of them will be getting the full subsidies since the reason they weren't insured before was it was too expensive to buy....

And add to it the millions of new 'citizens-in-waiting' that are going to now be added, again low income/high subsidy types....

That's a whole lot of subsidies being paid out...

So who is paying more to cover all these additional dollars that the insurance companies are taking in? Are we just printing extra money to cover the subsidies or is there something you aren't telling us? I'm starting to think some of our local car dealerships have written the Obamacare legislation because they are always selling new cars for less than cost. Seems like a similar plan.

[callmeslick]

So you, a relatively wealthy person, are getting $4,800 a year in Obamacare subsidies for your healthcare insurance.

yup, so long as I keep my taxable income under 35K.

I'm guessing if you are getting that much then everyone earning what you earn or less (which is likely a vast majority of the taxpayers) is going to be getting at least $4,800 as well, on up to the full $21,360 in subsidies (your plans cost).

well, every middle aged couple making 35K or less, yes, they do. NO ONE gets the Platinum Plan cost in subsidies. I believe those are capped to a max of the average Silver plan.

And supposedly there will be millions more of the 20+ million previously uninsured added to the total number of subsidy recipients, most of them will be getting the full subsidies since the reason they weren't insured before was it was too expensive to buy....

ok

And add to it the millions of new 'citizens-in-waiting' that are going to now be added, again low income/high subsidy types....

here comes the first lie. No one who is not a legal, PERMANENT resident or citizen qualifies. That was and has been made plain. You choose to lie about it. Why? Oh, maybe because your arguments sound stupid unless you lie to bolster your point?

That's a whole lot of subsidies being paid out...

and, of course, this being a private-insurer based plan, those costs will be recouped via both rates and larger pools of enrollees. Were there no subsidies, my plan might be less costly. HOWEVER, that plan might not be offered to me(blood pressure) or my wife(chronic neuralgia), nor would it be to millions of other citizens. So, yes, the benefits and the costs are weighted to average out. And, study after study shows they both do, and that overall, the cost is going to LESS than the pre-ACA trajectory. So far, it works.

[Will Robinson]

slick, it isnt a lie, hundreds of thousands were just granted another 6 month extension after already being found to be non citizens who were receiving the subsidy.
The extra time to allow them to continue trying to prove they are actually citizens.
I dont know why they need that much time to prove the initial finding is wrong. Seems like people would know if they are citizens or not....unless someone is telling them that status is unclear....perhaps changing...

But really, if you want to, deduct those people from the Obamacare subsidy. My point is still valid, the vast majority of all people here are getting a subsidy now. And when you take those illegals of the front end of the cost analysis you don't get to make them disappear from the accounting.
Where do they end up? On the local jurisdiction's balance sheet as a negative entry using the emergency rooms as 24/7 healthcare. That was one of the things that Obamacare was supposed to fix. And relieving that kind of burden on those hospitals was cited as a part of that magic accounting that 'says' "Obamacare is going to cost less".

Also the looming amnesty legislation makes them eventually qualified for Medicaid, again counter to the Obamacare sales pitch...
And if they aren't going to qualify for Obamacare they aren't going to have to pay the mandated coverage penalty our legal citizens are faced with. A penalty that was supposed to contribute to making the Obamacare program viable...

And now I hear Obamacare will offer businesses a discount/exemption to the mandate penalty if the new employees they hire are....illegals....
Nothing mentioned about legal young black citizens whose unemployment rate is still much higher than the national average for other groups....hmmm...6+ years in and the first black President is importing replacement workers.
I guess Politicians=Scorpion, Loyal Constituents= Frogs

So you can spin it anyway you want but those illegals-who-shall-not-be-named-illegal ARE a burden on the bottom line...ARE effecting the actual net cost in a way counter to the way that cost is being reported in the numbers you have relied upon.

[Will Robinson]

... So, yes, the benefits and the costs are weighted to average out. And, study after study shows they both do, and that overall, the cost is going to LESS than the pre-ACA trajectory. So far, it works.

Have you seen what happens to those numbers if the Supreme Court strikes down the mandate? Premiums go up by 65%.

By the way, I'm not against the goal or the sentiment, I have signed up this year too and want to thank all my fellow citizens for making my family's healthcare coverage affordable. I'm not making any long term plans to count on it but I'll take what I can get.

My problem with it is the management is such a bunch of lying scumbags that it cant last. It's a Ponzi scheme.

[Tunnelcat]

here in Delaware, I had 14 plans to choose from, with 3 different companies issuing them. TC, I cannot understand how the rate on the exchange, minus the rebates you might be entitled to, cannot be better than the grandfathered plan with similar coverage. You might be the only person I know making that claim. Foil's experience(frustrations) seem to vary from state to state, and I suppose can be expected with a new system. As for loss of in-net doctors, I saw none of that, and last year, my plan was covering a bunch of people seeing everything from pediatricians, to specialists for a range of adult issues. Haven't had to drop any physician here, and IMO, all of the ones we hire are well regarded.

Believe me, my grandfathered plan has a much cheaper monthly rate BECAUSE of my $7500 deductible, WHICH I WANT. You cannot get a deductible that high in the ACA marketplace, at least here in Oregon. Thank God I'm glad I didn't fall for the temptation of changing my plan right before the ACA went active. They plied me with an even higher deductible, $10,000, the year before the ACA went live, but I sensed something was not right with their pitch and I stayed with my same plan. If I hadn't, my plan would have been dropped out from under me and I would have been forced onto the marketplace with a vastly higher monthly rate and a lower deductible I didn't want. They KNEW!

[callmeslick]

I guarantee you that if I could get into your marketplace, I could find you better coverage(lower deductable) at a lower cost. I'm that certain the option would be out there. If the plan isn't compliant, your grandfather will run out, this year or next, so that will become a moot point, unless current insurer wishes to bump it up? How much do you consider a fair rate per month, if you don't mind me asking? Just trying to understand your point of view. I won't be offended should you decline to answer.

[Tunnelcat]

When I went to the marketplace, the cheapest plan for my age group (under 60) and with NO risk factors like smoking or drinking and in my county area, is a Bronze Plan HSA EPO by Lifewise, which happens to be offered by my current company. The estimated deductible was listed as $6350 and the estimated monthly premium was listed as $379 a month. This rate is out of the exhaustive list that was generated by the Healthcare.gov website for my zip code. Remember, our state and Oracle screwed up our state marketplace, so we have to go to the federal one instead. That Bronze Plan is also a damn HSA at that, which limits which doctors AND hospitals I can use. In comparison, my current grandfathered plan has a $7500 deductible and will have a $240 premium next year, which went up from $231 this year. My current plan has pretty much the same, plus a few added dollars here and there, doctor, drug and hospital co-pays as this cheapest Bronze plan offered by the marketplace. And yes, it does worry me that this plan I currently have will be dropped in the future because it doesn't really meet the ACA's deductible standards and I'll have to cough up more per month in a year or 2. Slick, make no mistake, I WANT the higher deductible in trade for the lower monthly premiums and I HAVE the savings to pay for care to meet that higher deductible. It's the damn monthly premiums I want lower! Why should I have to pay for insurance I don't want?

Now for grins, the most expensive Platinum Plan for my age group, area and no risk factors had a $776 a month premium. Bump that up to age 64 and the premium climbs to $894 a month. Add in those risk factors and it further climbs to $938 a month. If I lived in Portland, I can guarantee you that I could find a cheaper rate, but I live in the Corvallis Good Samaritan area, which pretty much covers the south Willamette Valley north of Eugene, and rates are quite a bit higher here. Plus, if I lived in the eastern part of Oregon on the other side of the Cascade mountains, or in the coastal regions, the rates go WAY up from what I'm paying. It all depends on where you live in this state that determines what rates you'll get soaked with. Rural areas with no close doctors or hospitals are royally getting hosed. I'd probably have to move to Portland myself to get better rates.

So get this, I looked up the Bronze Plan rate for an 18 year old with no risk factors in my area. It came out to $93 a month with a $6350 deductible. Now I ask you, how many 18 year old people working at minimum wage are going to be able to afford that every month?

[callmeslick]

are you factoring in the tax rebates for those numbers, TC? I don't know how you can, because you wouldn't have set rates. You have the price of policy LESS the tax credit/rebate. So, that 93 bucks a month for most workers starting out might be reduced to 60 per month, which if employed is NOTHING. If one isn't employed, one can be on the parental family plan, also at no cost to you.

[Will Robinson]

TC that's just completely whack.
I often thought you must be from another planet, now I know it is a fact!

[Tunnelcat]

are you factoring in the tax rebates for those numbers, TC? I don't know how you can, because you wouldn't have set rates. You have the price of policy LESS the tax credit/rebate. So, that 93 bucks a month for most workers starting out might be reduced to 60 per month, which if employed is NOTHING. If one isn't employed, one can be on the parental family plan, also at no cost to you.

In the first place, the tax rebates do not apply to me at all, so those rates are probably pretty close to what I'd have to pay. Plus, once I hit 60, my rates go up dramatically. As for the 18 year old rates, I'll concede I hadn't factored the tax rebates into my point. I did say they were estimates in the beginning of my post.

Will Robinson, what's "whack" about what I'm saying?

[Will Robinson]

..

Will Robinson, what's "whack" about what I'm saying?

It isn't 'what' you are saying that seems bizarre, it is the conditions you are faced with there. I am looking at the Federal exchange plans since South Carolina doesn't have a state exchange and slicks predictions of what you should have available are right in line with what I have here.
Granted I'm under 60 so maybe that is the threshold to the problem.

[Tunnelcat]

I went in again and checked. For my income bracket, zip code and age, no Bronze plan from any company has less than a $360 premium and most of those have a $5000 or $5250 deductible. They all go up in premium price from there as you go from page to page. Now mind you, all these plans show estimated prices and I haven't actually gone on further in the site to shop, but since I don't qualify for any tax rebates because of income, I'm guessing those quotes are going to be pretty close to accurate. By the way, the Bronze plan with the highest deductible, $6350, has a $371 premium. That's a $141 more than I'm currently paying per month for mostly the same benefits, with the only difference being the higher deductible that I currently have.

[callmeslick]

sometimes, TC, the devil is in the details(co-pays for common things, lab work fees, etc).

[Tunnelcat]

And all that depends on where you live.

[callmeslick]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/insuranc ... ar-BBgnPVu

[Tunnelcat]

Unfortunately, there's one area that NOT being addressed, or followed so well, price transparency. There is still resistance to the patient trying to find out what it's going to cost before they pay. Our local paper recently did a story on whether they could find out the costs of procedures in local hospitals and clinics. What they found was that it was still very hard, if not impossible, for the consumer to find out prices before they get service, despite that being an ACA requirement for hospitals. I can't find the local story again though, but I can tell you personally that is still an issue. It's not truly a free market unless that detail is met.

http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/20 ... der-o-care]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickglea ... re-prices/

[callmeslick]

true, TC, the law didn't attempt to deal with that........hospitals and other providers should have at least estimated costing scales available.