Obamacare marketplace premiums in Florida lower than expected

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seekerz said:
There is an answer for each of your questions at healthcare.gov but I’ll give it a brief try:
  1. any eligible person may buy a plan on the marketplace and benefit from the income-based tax credits available; eligibility is determined by lack of employer-based insurance and a particular minimum income level (not sure if that varies from state to state but I would imagine so - you’d have to enter your state on the website to see)
  2. those whose income levels fall below the minimum to qualify for the marketplace may be able to get Medicaid coverage if their state is expanding Medicaid.
  3. according to my insurance companies, during open enrollment - whcih starts Oct 1st, people can also buy plans directly from the companies (I do believe I read that the pricing will be the same as on the marketplace) but they won’t be eligible for tax credits that way
As for your doctor, he must know something I don’t or your state must be different in its hrequirements, because I know plenty of docs and not one has had to hire a single person to prepare for Obamacare.
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Thank you. I’m I NC not sure if McCory is going to expand Medicaid. My mom is in SC and I know they are not and SC Also does not want the gov in their healthcare period. Looks like things are going to be dicey in the red states.
 
Julianna said:
Thank you. I’m I NC not sure if McCory is going to expand Medicaid. My mom is in SC and I know they are not and SC Also does not want the gov in their healthcare period. Looks like things are going to be dicey in the red states.
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Gov is not in anybody’s healthcare, they just make it easy for insurances to compete for YOUR business. Don’t knock it before you try it, is my advice.
 
seekerz said:
Gov is not in anybody’s healthcare, they just make it easy for insurances to compete for YOUR business. Don’t knock it before you try it, is my advice.
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I am trying to understand how it is going to work so I can pass the info on to my kids and help them through the process. The folks in the red states especially SC see it very differently. Mine and my husband’s FEHB is going up 4.4%…I want to make sure my kids get what they need as well as the little one my daughter is carrying. Tbey are not getting married because they believe the would lose benefits. That is the way it has been for decades. I am concerned about my son though. …since he was “denied” SSDI…he still has nothing. I do know he cannot be denied because of his autism under Obamacare. We have 5 adults and a precious one on the way…we are managing because in tbis economy we have to stick togetber to survive.
 
Julianna said:
I am trying to understand how it is going to work so I can pass the info on to my kids and help them through the process. The folks in the red states especially SC see it very differently. Mine and my husband’s FEHB is going up 4.4%…I want to make sure my kids get what they need as well as the little one my daughter is carrying. Tbey are not getting married because they believe the would lose benefits. That is the way it has been for decades. I am concerned about my son though. …since he was “denied” SSDI…he still has nothing. I do know he cannot be denied because of his autism under Obamacare. We have 5 adults and a precious one on the way…we are managing because in tbis economy we have to stick togetber to survive.
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Well I hope I’ve clarified things a little. The website is really informative though and many states have people specially trained to guide you through the process. I believe the main point is that below a certain threshold income level (seems to be somewhere between 15 and 20 thousand annual income) you get left out in the cold if your state is not expanding Medicaid. Above that, you may qualify for significant savings. There is a calculator which you can use to estimate costs: kff.org/interactive/subsidy-calculator/ depending on your family size and income.

As for postponing marriage because of benefits, I am in no place to cast judgment either way, but there may be help on the horizon in the health insurance department. From my calculations, an uninsured family of 3 with one child and 2 adults, making $20000/yr in the 29601 zip code, would qualify for a subsidy that would make their contribution to the premiums 400/year. Not sure that Medicaid could serve them much better than that.
 
I don’t know all the answers, obvioiusly, and I am in no position to dispute that Obamacare has its flaws. I am just concerned about the health of our citizens, both physically and financially.

I feel that Obamacare is just a step in the right direction to getting the 47+ million people who have no insurance the medical care that they need and deserve as American citizens. I want people back to work so that they can pay taxes and pay down our debts. If we aren’t willing to pay higher taxes to pay off our debts, then how else is the debt ever going to get paid? We need healthy workers on the job.

Maybe Obamacare is not the exact answer to our problem, but it is a start. It will, of course, take time to even out the bumps and/or mountains that will surely come with anything that is new and untethered. I just want the government to take care of its’ people instead of taking care of its’ politics.
 
seekerz said:
Well I hope I’ve clarified things a little. The website is really informative though and many states have people specially trained to guide you through the process. I believe the main point is that below a certain threshold income level (seems to be somewhere between 15 and 20 thousand annual income) you get left out in the cold if your state is not expanding Medicaid. Above that, you may qualify for significant savings. There is a calculator which you can use to estimate costs: kff.org/interactive/subsidy-calculator/ depending on your family size and income.

As for postponing marriage because of benefits, I am in no place to cast judgment either way, but there may be help on the horizon in the health insurance department. From my calculations, an uninsured family of 3 with one child and 2 adults, making $20000/yr in the 29601 zip code, would qualify for a subsidy that would make their contribution to the premiums 400/year. Not sure that Medicaid could serve them much better than that.
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Thank you for your help. I will check out tbe calculator and see what comes up for them. I do worry about my mom. …she is in deep red state. My daughters fiancee makes $9.00 hr. Ill start there. He also pays child support. …which would take a chunk out of tbeir total income should tbey marry. I appreciate the non judging. …I have known you quite awhile on CAF and I know you are not like that. 🙂
 
Julianna said:
Thank you for your help. I will check out tbe calculator and see what comes up for them. I do worry about my mom. …she is in deep red state. My daughters fiancee makes $9.00 hr. Ill start there. He also pays child support. …which would take a chunk out of tbeir total income should tbey marry. I appreciate the non judging. …I have known you quite awhile on CAF and I know you are not like that. 🙂
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Thanks, happy to help. Oh, you might also consider if there is anyone you claim as dependents on your tax returns and whether that might qualify you as a family (dependents do not qualify for plans of their own), for a subsidized plan on the exchange…

PS Sorry, forgot you mentioned that you work for Uncle Sam, which means you already have coverage. Anyhow, let me know how things work out…
 
My aunt has already lost her job as a direct result of obamacare. The doctor who employed her couldn’t afford to keep his practice running with all the additional costs.

On top of that, Just this week I received my health premium increase for my wife and daughter. We’re now paying $844 per month in addition to a $5000 annual deductible. This does not include the cost of my own health insurance. Let me assure you, this is no Cadillac plan. There is a small discount on any prescriptions, doctor visits - aside from an annual physical - are discounted about 10%. On top of that, I’m now told that at the first of the year, the cost of this plan will increase nearly 200% for my wife as a direct result of obamacare. That’s assuming I’m even allowed to keep it.

It’s also important to make sure people stop confusing health insurance with health care. They are completely different.

As to “wealth redistribution,” forcibly taking - under threat of imprisonment or worse - anything that someone has earned is theft. Period. Forced redistribution is precisely anti-biblical in that it removes room for generosity. I am forced to give such an exorbitant proportion of my income to the government that it leaves very nearly nothing for me to truly give to someone who is in need. Instead, this filthy goliath called government spends what I earn on providing for abortion, funding corruption in unions and associations, bullying and bombing nations we have no business interfering with, and promoting laziness by offering free money to those that will not work. Yeah; redistribution works so well; it does nothing but keep the poor where they are while bringing those just anywhere in the vicinity of poverty, down into it.

And now, not only will I be taxed if I don’t buy health “insurance,” I will be taxed for having “insurance.” The better they perceive my insurance to be, the more I’m forced to pay. Anyone supporting this unrighteousness should be downright ashamed of themselves.
 
seekerz said:
Should they have said everyone must signup or face prosecution? For any demand, there must be an alternative or consequence if it is not met. Of course there is incentive to sign up - they’re called tax credits and for some people…well, I better not. Check out the Kaiser calculator and see.
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We will see if sign-ups are as expected, but do the tax credits impact people who don’t have to file taxes, or who claim no income over a year (a large amoung of twenty-somethings these days)? I am asking as I have no need for the ACA coverage myself, nor will I ever, so the tax credits for sign-up don’t affect me.
 
BChartowski said:
My aunt has already lost her job as a direct result of obamacare. The doctor who employed her couldn’t afford to keep his practice running with all the additional costs.

On top of that, Just this week I received my health premium increase for my wife and daughter. We’re now paying $844 per month in addition to a $5000 annual deductible. This does not include the cost of my own health insurance. Let me assure you, this is no Cadillac plan. There is a small discount on any prescriptions, doctor visits - aside from an annual physical - are discounted about 10%. On top of that, I’m now told that at the first of the year, the cost of this plan will increase nearly 200% for my wife as a direct result of obamacare. That’s assuming I’m even allowed to keep it.

It’s also important to make sure people stop confusing health insurance with health care. They are completely different.

As to “wealth redistribution,” forcibly taking - under threat of imprisonment or worse - anything that someone has earned is theft. Period. Forced redistribution is precisely anti-biblical in that it removes room for generosity. I am forced to give such an exorbitant proportion of my income to the government that it leaves very nearly nothing for me to truly give to someone who is in need. Instead, this filthy goliath called government spends what I earn on providing for abortion, funding corruption in unions and associations, bullying and bombing nations we have no business interfering with, and promoting laziness by offering free money to those that will not work. Yeah; redistribution works so well; it does nothing but keep the poor where they are while bringing those just anywhere in the vicinity of poverty, down into it.

And now, not only will I be taxed if I don’t buy health “insurance,” I will be taxed for having “insurance.” The better they perceive my insurance to be, the more I’m forced to pay. Anyone supporting this unrighteousness should be downright ashamed of themselves.
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I don’t know about unrighteousness, but I support Obamacare.

You failed to tell us by what percentage your premiums were increasing before the ACA started going into effect or by how much you imagine it would increase in the absence of the ACA.

As to doctor’s increased costs because of Obamacare, that makes no sense to me. Why would he let go an employee he wanted to keep over health insurance costs? He had the option to stop offering health benefits and let her go buy insurance on the exchange, no? And depending on the size of his business the mandate for employers has been delayed, no? So what was the rush to get rid of an employee? Is there more to the story?

As regards redistribution of wealth, I dunno about threat of imprisonment. What I do know is that there is a fine for not having a plan that meets some basic criteria - I forget the technical name, now. As far as I know, the fine is waay less than the yearly cost of most plans.
 
Julian_Bashir said:
We will see if sign-ups are as expected, but do the tax credits impact people who don’t have to file taxes, or who claim no income over a year (a large amoung of twenty-somethings these days)? I am asking as I have no need for the ACA coverage myself, nor will I ever, so the tax credits for sign-up don’t affect me.
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To my knowledge, the tax credits do not impact those at or below the poverty line. There is a minimum income requirement to participate in the marketplace, and to my best recollection that is the only way to qualify for tax credits.
 
kmcarl56 said:
I don’t know all the answers, obvioiusly, and I am in no position to dispute that Obamacare has its flaws. I am just concerned about the health of our citizens, both physically and financially.

I feel that Obamacare is just a step in the right direction to getting the 47+ million people who have no insurance the medical care that they need and deserve as American citizens. I want people back to work so that they can pay taxes and pay down our debts. If we aren’t willing to pay higher taxes to pay off our debts, then how else is the debt ever going to get paid? We need healthy workers on the job.

Maybe Obamacare is not the exact answer to our problem, but it is a start. It will, of course, take time to even out the bumps and/or mountains that will surely come with anything that is new and untethered. I just want the government to take care of its’ people instead of taking care of its’ politics.
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The problem is
  1. 30+ million are still left without any coverage
  2. How are people supposed to pay more in taxes when the ACA continues to cause more layoffs and reduction in hours? People are paying less in taxes, thanks to a moribund economy, increased federal interference and regulations, and the ACA’s loopholes that weren’t thought out at all when pased. Companies layoffs and reductions will continue as the law comes to frution.
  3. Simply bypassing or editing the law as the President does on the fly is illegal, and sets the stage for even greater abuses as we go forward. As nice as those intentions are, the ramifications of simply editing the law passed by Congress as you go on the part of Obama are horrific. There is no legal authority to do it, but what is a citizen to do about it?
The only bright side is that a Republican president with a backbone (I’m dreaming perhaps) can do the same thing as was done with DOMA and the ACA and simply ignore the law as written, rendering it useless. And thus the spiral of US governnace contunes downward. But if that is what you are asking for, so be it. I’d be learly of saying editing the law as you go is a good thing.
 
BChartowski said:
On top of that, Just this week I received my health premium increase for my wife and daughter. We’re now paying $844 per month in addition to a $5000 annual deductible.
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Out of curiosity I’d like to hear back from you next week after the exchanges have been set up.
 
seekerz said:
Ridgerunner;11243480:
seekerz;11243436:
And, that makes me what? Pope Benedict called for good ways to redistribute wealth, was he off base somehow?
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Wealth and income are not the same thing, of course. And, of course, if he called for governments to increase indirect taxes on middle class people to give to other middle class people, I’m not aware of it. Possibly you could give me a source on that.

I doubt you will because that’s definitely not the teaching of the Church. Of Saul Alinsky, yes, but not the Church.
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seekerz said:
Well I hope I’ve clarified things a little. The website is really informative though and many states have people specially trained to guide you through the process. I believe the main point is that below a certain threshold income level (seems to be somewhere between 15 and 20 thousand annual income) you get left out in the cold if your state is not expanding Medicaid. Above that, you may qualify for significant savings. There is a calculator which you can use to estimate costs: kff.org/interactive/subsidy-calculator/ depending on your family size and income.

As for postponing marriage because of benefits, I am in no place to cast judgment either way, but there may be help on the horizon in the health insurance department. From my calculations, an uninsured family of 3 with one child and 2 adults, making $20000/yr in the 29601 zip code, would qualify for a subsidy that would make their contribution to the premiums 400/year. Not sure that Medicaid could serve them much better than that.
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If one goes up the income scale to about the median income nationally, the out-of-pocket costs are much larger than with the typical employment-based plan. That’s for the silver plan. Possibly the idea is to discourage people from getting the plans that are comparable to what employers (at least used to) provide.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the premiums for the silver plan are not lower than they would be without Obamacare. It’s just that up to a level, there are large subsidies.

Looks to me like the big “savings” for individuals are only in the bronze (lowest) plan.

Interesting too is the really massive subsidy (tax credit) on any income level that is reasonably typical in this society. The government is undertaking an enormous liability if very many people sign up for the exchanges. As employers dump their plans (which is probably why Obama put off the employer mandates) I really do wonder whether the 1.5 trillion addition to the debt is perhaps a conservative estimate.

But on the whole, it looks to me like the government is paying out a lot of borrowed money for some not-too-good plans.
 
Julian_Bashir said:
  1. How are people supposed to pay more in taxes when the ACA continues to cause more layoffs and reduction in hours?
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This actually is an empirical question, so it might help to look at the data.

If you look at the average hours worked data it does not appear like it is going down and that appears to be across all sectors of the economy. So it may be that these stories of firms cutting hours are merely anecdotal because the systematic data does not seem to show such an effect.

bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t18.htm
 
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