Suddenly, there’s virtual silence. The creepy kind of awkward silence that’s sometimes filled with meaningless drivel. But it’s there—the sheer, “We have no ideas,” from both parties when it comes to what’s been imposed on the majority of American people when it comes to Obamacare.
Suddenly the propaganda of how great Obamacare is has quieted as even the biggest big mouths and manipulators appear virtually unable to muster a HURRAH absent a Republican prompt of REPEAL. Republicans are similarly unable to give a full-voiced, “Repeal,” having proven that their best ideas include WORSE conditions for consumers who likely will not “TRUST” the promises of the politicians who crafted and imposed a law on citizens that they themselves are not affected by.
There are a few things that we KNOW:
The out-of-pocket expenses that WE pay have been raised for 2016 up to $6,850 (from $6,600) for individuals and up to a whopping $13,700 from $13,200 for other-than-individual or as it’s called, “Self-only coverage.”
After enduring whopping increases in the cost of health insurance premiums, this year insurance companies will again charge more.
If you choose not to purchase health insurance the INDIVIDUAL MANDATE PENALTY also goes up.
The Medical Debt Relief Act (HR 2362) designed to prevent medical debt that is newer than 180 days old from impacting your credit score is introduced but is not law. GOOD NEWS is that the consumer credit bureaus have “decided” to phase in a policy to wait the 180 days before posting medical debt (see http://time.com/money/3737140/credit-score-medical-debt/). About 42.9 million Americans have medical debt according to YAHOO! Finance, http://finance.yahoo.com/news/42-9-million-americans-unpaid-050259601.html.
And don’t think that those getting rich off the “new” health care rules are sitting idly by:
The risk reinsurance program under Obamacare designed to lure insurance companies into participation in exchanges by preventing them from losing money is set to expire next year. The promise of the “choice” of insurance plan for exchange participants, which has already disappointed will become worse once those payments expire. Some government folk comfortable with spending our money will likely recommend EXTENDING those payments to protect the insurance companies.
Hospitals are absorbing physician practices, often by offering the lure of higher incomes and less paperwork and more patients. Physicians are enjoying the fruits of Obamacare absorptions. Likely, in the next decade we’ll see physicians whine as hospitals who squeeze every last cent out of government and patients begin to exert their authority over physicians and cut into their salaries to further inflate their own earnings.
Then there are insurance companies, combining in huge mergers like Anthem and Cigna, leaving patients with less choice than ever.
Of course, we can’t leave out the IRS which is busily trying to figure out how to get people to actually pay their share of health insurance that the government has so willingly allowed to go through contrary to the language of the PPACA (King v. Burwell), contrary to fraud in the system and contrary to the government’s own stated purpose to get paying patients through exchanges.
The IRS in September again warned that those who got advance payments for premium who didn’t file a 2014 tax return will be ineligible for premium assistance for 2016 benefits—we’ll see, since fraud is rampant and because the government has shown its willingness to bend, stretch and break its own rules to keep enrollment numbers as high as possible.
The individual mandate penalty is supposed to go up this year for people who don’t enroll, but naturally, it’s susceptible to above-board modification as it has been in the past with additional opportunities to enroll to avoid paying the penalty or trying to get an exemption, which list has expanded since the implementation of the Act. A third choice is not legitimate but happens...Gambling that the IRS won’t notice you didn’t purchase health insurance.
Enrollment goals published by the government are lower this year so the government can keep pushing Obamacare’s “success” which can only be done confidently by lowering the bar of what “success” means.
As for the government savings so often touted as a “it’s working” number—Recall the government changed the way it calculates those savings examining only how much less it spends on individuals rather than including the other payments it makes connected with the Act. It’s the old technique of omitting costs to conclude you’ve saved money.
Sure, if we don’t count and calculate costs spent on government employees, payments by government for third party helpers, et cetera and only look at how much less is paid on behalf of consumers the numbers look lower but look carefully…How is paying less on behalf of consumers a win? Lots of double-talk there, we know how THOSE costs were lowered, consumers are given less choice and have to pay more. How do we know? Because the COSTS of healthcare in the US for needed medical services have gone up, not down, so SOMEONE is paying and Obamacare means it’s likely YOU.
Consumer silence in reaction to propaganda silence makes little sense. For me there are some easy changes that would ease our pain—
First, OUT OF POCKET MAXIMUMS for consumers should follow the Social Security COLA increase parameter that partners increases to the economy—this year it’s zero for many recipients. That means that our out of pocket maximums should also have been zero not increased randomly by $500 for non-individual coverage and $250 for individuals.
Second, SUSPEND the premium assistance ADVANCE PAYMENT option until the government is able to implement the program completely including VERIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND RECOUPING OVERPAYMENTS. As we know from the government’s own report, fraud has been rampant in terms of who is getting premium assistance and instead of recouping overpayments of premium assistance the government has given forgiveness of those overpayments.
Third, introduce consumer financial incentives for reporting fraud. Healthcare fraud, primarily by providers is an estimated multi-billion dollar business in the US. Government investigators and arms of government and their employees are paid for the job of pursuing this fraud so why not consumers? The ads encouraging us all to examine our records and discover fraud emphasize the fact that WE know best whether we’ve gotten a treatment, had a doctor’s visit and what was done yet we get NO DIRECT FINANCIAL BENEFIT for discovery and reporting of this fraud comparable to that of whistleblowers who share in financial recovery. CITIZEN WHISTLEBLOWERS who are COMPENSATED much as fraud investigators and other whistleblowers are the BEST and ultimately cheapest option for making a dent in the fraud business.
