Obamacare for the unemployed

[ChristieP]

Originally Posted by Dopo

A person can have a ACA and refuse to take the one provided by their employer

Of course they can, but WHY? Most employer plans are PPO with lower deductibles and better provider networks than the Obamacare plans. Many employers also give a HRA to help with their deductible.

Originally Posted by Dopo

The subsidy will be based on the estimated income and whether or not the calculation was done right, that will come up when doing taxes

Yes, it is a calculated risk, and if things don't go in their favor, they end up owing a substantial amount of money.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

Of course they can, but WHY? Most employer plans are PPO with lower deductibles and better provider networks than the Obamacare plans. Many employers also give a HRA to help with their deductible.



Yes, it is a calculated risk, and if things don't go in their favor, they end up owing a substantial amount of money.

I agree with this. Before I moved to Texas I was making in the ballpark of $40k a year. My employer insurance was about $200 mo but had a high deductible. Obamacare plans were approximately $300 a month and still a fairly high deductible. It was basically a tax on insurance I would never be able to use and candy wrapped as 'Affordable Healthcare' not to mention that at the time I needed a $80k operation that insurance was not even going to pay for. I was glad when the Trump admin removed the tax penalty from Obamacare.

I do think we need a better solution to healthcare access, but Obamacare and mandating everyone have health insurance was not that answer, and lets not forget that the act actually caused premiums to rise overall.

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

I agree with this. Before I moved to Texas I was making in the ballpark of $40k a year. My employer insurance was about $200 mo but had a high deductible. Obamacare plans were approximately $300 a month and still a fairly high deductible. It was basically a tax on insurance I would never be able to use and candy wrapped as 'Affordable Healthcare' not to mention that at the time I needed a $80k operation that insurance was not even going to pay for. I was glad when the Trump admin removed the tax penalty from Obamacare.

I do think we need a better solution to healthcare access, but Obamacare and mandating everyone have health insurance was not that answer, and lets not forget that the act actually caused premiums to rise overall.

Premiums were rising MUCH faster before Obamacare. After passage of the ACA, the growth in premiums was cut in half. So arguably, the ACA reduced health care inflation rather than increased it. It just didn't reduce it down to zero because we have actual inflation. The ACA exchanges started in 2014

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

Premiums were rising MUCH faster before Obamacare. After passage of the ACA, the growth in premiums was cut in half. So arguably, the ACA reduced health care inflation rather than increased it. It just didn't reduce it down to zero because we have actual inflation. The ACA exchanges started in 2014

Obamacare passed in 2010 when health insurance was at an all time low and saw an immediate spike directly following it. The chart is adjusted for inflation which accounts for the price increase of goods and property across the board, of which especially lately has been heavily saturated into housing, fuel, food and automobiles - health insurance just has not increased as rapidly as those entities as of late, but how many American salaries are adjusted for the same? The numbers below are what American's really experienced:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/...e-coverage-us/

Currently the average cost for an ACA plan is $456 for an individual and $1,152 for a family on a per month basis. How many people looking for affordable healthcare can really afford that ontop of their living expenses?

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

Of course they can, but WHY? Most employer plans are PPO with lower deductibles and better provider networks than the Obamacare plans. Many employers also give a HRA to help with their deductible.

I guess you've never worked in a small company

[ChristieP]

Originally Posted by Dopo

I guess you've never worked in a small company

Only once, and I have no desire to do it again.

[RMESMH]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

Premiums were rising MUCH faster before Obamacare. After passage of the ACA, the growth in premiums was cut in half. So arguably, the ACA reduced health care inflation rather than increased it. It just didn't reduce it down to zero because we have actual inflation. The ACA exchanges started in 2014

Being true in the aggregate doesn't make it true for many people individually.

Not true for me.

At passage, it lacked customization.

People were paying to be covered for things they were covered for but didn't want to be covered for, and paying for things that it would be impossible re ever applying to them (two different issues).