Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Regarding the "Affordable Care" Act...Here are some facts from a wise young man (under 35 so yeah, he's young, it's all relative)

Obamacare is now the law of the land (actually the Constitution should be viewed as same but we'll talk about that another time). Yay!!! Health care for all, and only the rich are going to suffer. Boo! Not true...

Here's a couple of facts for ya...It is estimated that Obamacare will add $1.79 per hour to the cost of each employee. If employers choose to pay the mandated fine rather than spend the $1.79 it will cost them $.98 per hour per employee. As many as 1/3 of companies in the U.S. are considering canceling health coverage for employees as they can't afford it. Dozens of very large businesses have already announced layoffs in anticipation of increased health coverage costs. AND, if you don’t have health insurance you will be fined AND the IRS will withhold your tax refund…Awesome.

Now, some will say all that is 'theory.' Here are some facts from a wise young man (under 35 so yeah, he's young, it's all relative).
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"Please, if anyone reading this has seen their family insurance premiums decreased by $2500 over the past 4 years, I would like to hear your story.  Who is your provider? Do you work for a large company? Small company? Self-employed? I’m trying to get a sampling from my 250+ FB friends. Anyone seen their premiums decrease? Benefits increase? I want to know what industry you work in and how it has improved. Let’s have an adult discussion, no politics, just facts please.

I couldn't stand the suspense so I just went and looked at a pay stub from 2009. In '09 (before my employer had a chance to push Obamacare costs onto its employees) we were paying $141 every 2 weeks, 26 times per year that is $3666. My last paycheck 2 weeks ago we paid $210. 26 times a year that comes out to $5460. That is $1794 out of pocket difference just for the premiums. In addition, we have since lost our copay plan, now instead of paying flat rate per visit, we pay $1k minimum deductible per family member per year. After that we pay 10% of all costs. Additionally, our ER visit costs have gone up, RX co-pays have doubled, dental and vision have both increased proportionately also. I understand how inflation works, I understand things are going to cost more over time, don't need an economics lesson, but this is NOT inflation, this is insurance companies pushing the smothering costs of Obamacare onto its clientele. Still waiting for someone to inform me how this new health care plan has helped anyone. 

In '09 (pre-Obamacare insurance costs) it cost us ~$450 to have our second child. That’s, OB visits for 9 months, 5-day inpatient for both mom and baby (including c-section) and post-care visits. If we had that same baby today it would cost us over $4k out of pocket. Math majors, that is a 1000% increase. Still waiting for someone to show me the silver lining. I’m not seeing it.

My angle is always to win people with facts, arguing the politics of socialism vs free enterprise falls on deaf ears, we should all know that by now. Showing people how much real $$ something actually costs a hard working family may actually have more sway. Listening to Obama brag about how has he met all/most of his objectives in the recent debates really set me off. Don’t pee on my shoe and tell me it's raining! I’m well educated, I have a high paying job,Ii own all my vehicles, I have owned a home for all 11 of my adult years, I have ZERO consumer debt, and somehow even given all of that, I still can't pay for fuel to put in my car and I routinely have to choose between taking my child to the doctor’s office or putting food on my table. 

Tell me how redistributing wealth has helped anyone in this country. If people want handouts, come to church. At our church we freely give. Let the government protect us from terror, let the people take care of our own welfare. Let big bird pay for his own cable network, I’ll pay for the NFL network if I want to watch the NFL!"

True that.

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