The Democrats are still assuming people are stupid. This benefits season, the health insurance "news" environment is less about reality and more about campaigning. Headline after headline is announcing that Obamacare exchange rates are dropping. If you vote Democrat based on that, like we did in 2010 and beyond, you'll likely feel the sting of the "stupidity of the American voter" that Obamacare architects relied on to get this law passed in the first place.
Here I'm calling out New York Magazine again, and its spinner in chief, Jonathan Chait, because when you tell half-truths, like a little bit pregnant, it's a lie. This week Chait's snidely writing, "Trump Tried to Kill Obamacare by Driving Premiums Up. Instead, They Went Down." Except, not truth, but half-truth, and DEFINITELY not true in New York.
Some states higher, some states the same, some lower for exchanges: Start with USA Today's article by Maureen Groppe that reports on 10/11/2018 in "Trump administration touts 2019 drop in average Obamacare premiums after big increases this year." In that article, Groppe writes, "Of the 39 states that use the federal marketplace, rates will go up on average in 20 states, down in 16 and stay the same in three," and Groppe includes a CMS interactive chart to support her writing.
But what of New York? It's in GRAY, because it's excluded from the CMS report because New York runs its own exchange. OK, Chait is two for two on his half-truth/lie scale, not only does Chait mislead about an overall "drop," but he provides no information for the people he writes for, those in New York, except to misinform with his half-truth that premiums on Obamacare exchanges are down.
New York State doesn't agree with Chait: New York Department of Financial Services contradicts Chait's nonsensical campaigning. For New York's story, you've got to go to a DFS, NY.Gov website press release entitled, "DFS Takes Action To Ensure A Continued Healthy And Competitive 2019 New York Health Insurance Market Despite Continued Wrongful Federal Attacks on the Affordable Care Act." Clearly, New York government despises the current Administration, but even they don't out-and-out lie like Chait. Note, New York government isn't advertising rate drops on their exchange because for New Yorkers THEY'RE GOING UP. The press release announces INCREASES in premiums New Yorkers can expect including 4.8 percent in individual and small group markets. That's right UP 4.8 percent.
And Chait's smug storytelling also contradicts New York government's views when it comes to the repeal of the individual mandate. Unlike Jonathan Chait who strings together his campaign piece stating that repeal of the individual mandate was "intended to destroy the economic basis for making…exchanges work. They failed." New York's DFS states, "…the recent federal 2017 Tax Cut and Reform Bill eliminated the individual mandate penalty for not having health insurance effective January 1, 2019. Given this recent timing, the present impact of the repeal of the individual mandate is uncertain."
NY State believes the impact is uncertain, but Jonathan Chait writes as if he has more knowledge of government than government.
New York's DFS states "330,000 New Yorkers are currently enrolled in an individual commercial plan," according to DFS, out of a state population of 19.85 million, these are equivalent to Obamacare exchange plans through the federal marketplace and in New York this year, they're GOING UP 8.6 PERCENT. (More than twice that number, 740,000 New Yorkers use New York's Essential Health Plan, for the very poor.) The final group addressed in the press release, the small group market, with companies from 1-100, their rates are GOING UP 3.8 PERCENT in New York.
Then, again distracting from New York's truth, Honathan Chait doesn't talk about New York for New York Magazine, but jumps over to New Jersey and claims rates are dropping 14 percent. No evidence that that's true. Actually according to the CMS chart New Jersey will see an average INCREASE of $289 or 7.1 percent (see interactive map in Maureen Groppe's article).
Jonathan Chait, without citing his source, makes the claim that New Jersey rates are going down 14 percent, which is contradicted by both CMS and by New Jersey's governor, who on 9/7/2018, in a News 12 reported story, "Gov. Murphy says insurance rates to drop 9.3 percent for some." So, 9.3 percent for SOME. Apparently Jonathan Chait once more knows more than the Governor of New Jersey.
If you read articles other than Chait's about the "rate drops," you'll find that states are enacting Obamacare style but even more drastic laws for their residents. Take case of the Obamacare TEMPORARY provisions for reinsurance, which expired under that law at the end of 2016, having been put in as TEMPORARY financial incentives to get insurance company participation on exchanges. States like New York and New Jersey love these payoffs to insurers, going beyond Obamacare. New York is still studying it, but New Jersey's done it.
New York also went beyond the law of Obamacare banning short term limited duration insurance plans. Obamacare didn't even do that, though in order to force more people onto exchanges in 2016 Obama's Administration did pass rules restricting the availability of such plans.
New Jersey has also enacted its own individual mandate, so though for most of us there is no individual mandate, no IRS tax penalty for not purchasing the consumer financial product of health insurance, in the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont (starting in 2020), residents WILL HAVE TO PURCHASE HEALTH INSURANCE OR PAY A PENALTY.
States like New Jersey "…will use revenue generated from state individual mandate, federal funds received as part of the program's approval, and if necessary, an annual appropriation from the state budget's general fund to pay for the reinsurance," Christian Hetrick, Obamacare insurance rates to fall 9.3 percent in New Jersey," 9/7/2018, "The Inquirer."
Chait ends his half-truth tale with the vague promise that "if Democrats regain control of government, they could implement similar steps very quickly and bring down rates." "Could" means nothing, and based on the misinformation Chait spouts in his article, you've got to ask, "Are we still that stupid?"
