The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

[MattS]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

When the government mandates demand, of course there will be a huge amount of traffic on the first day everyone is required to start purchasing the product. They didn't design to handle peak needs.

Let's be fair. The site was unable to handle the incoming traffic for one day. That's all we know so far. That one day when, with high probability, will be the only day said need will be necessary. Any other day from yesterday on forward will not have that kind of peak demand. Now if say 1 month from now, or worse yet, a year from now, the same issues are still there then a legitimate problem exists. Otherwise this is just a bunch of hand waving for either polticial gain or news ratings.

[FreshFish]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

That doesn't mean they're overpaying.

Apparently arithmetic is not part of your skill set. If you don't understand how the transitive property works by now, I doubt that trying to explain it on a message board will help you.

[unofan]

Apparently arithmetic is not part of your skill set. If you don't understand how the transitive property works by now, I doubt that trying to explain it on a message board will help you.

That's rich coming from someone who doesn't understand the math behind lotteries, roulette, and coin flips.

[jerphisch]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

Apparently arithmetic is not part of your skill set. If you don't understand how the transitive property works by now, I doubt that trying to explain it on a message board will help you.

Apparently actually answering questions is not part of your skill set. If by your definition young people overpay now, and will continue to do so, how is this a travesty of Obamacare? If you dont understand how health insurance works by now, I doubt trying to explain it on a message board will help you.

[Priceless]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

What a travesty.

Butch Matthews is a 61-year-old former small business owner from Little Rock, Arkansas who used to wake up every morning at 4 A.M. to deliver canned beverages to retailers before retiring in 2010. A lifelong Republican, he was heavily skeptical of the Affordable Care Act when it first passed. “I did not think that Obamacare was going to be a good plan, I did not think that it was going to help me at all,” he told ThinkProgress over the phone. But after doing a little research, Matthews eventually realized how much the law could help him. And on Tuesday, his local Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) provider confirmed that he would be able to buy a far better plan than his current policy while saving at least $13,000 per year through Arkansas’ Obamacare marketplace.

Matthews was self-employed between 1997 and 2010, meaning he had to purchase his own plan on the individual market. He chose a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan for himself and his wife that charged a $250 per month premium and had a $2,000 deductible. But the price of that policy kept rising even as it covered fewer of his costs, eventually devolving into his current rate of $1,069 per month with a $10,000 deductible. At this point, it doesn’t even cover his medication or doctors’ visits — particularly concerning considering he had to have two stents placed in his heart in 2006.

“I do not work now, I’m 61, and we do have assets saved up. But still, to come up with that $1,069 per month….” he said, trailing off. “I went to Blue Cross Blue Shield, and they don’t even sell that plan anymore, but I could not change it to anything else. So I was locked in with it.”

That all changed once Obamacare’s state-level marketplaces opened to the public on Tuesday. Matthews knew that, at his income level, the law would help him pay for insurance. But even he might not have expected just how good of a deal he could get: his new coverage will cost him absolutely nothing in monthly premiums after factoring in federal subsidies, and has a deductible of $750. “Which is a lot different from $10,000,” he pointed out, laughing. The mid-level “Silver” policy that he picked out also offers a significantly better benefits package. “It’s a lot better plan,” Matthews said. His old plan was considered to be “Bronze” and had much higher co-pays. Under Obamacare, when Matthews visits a doctor, it will no longer cost him around $150. It will cost $8.
So what would Matthews tell other Americans who are skeptical about Obamacare? “I would tell them to learn more about it before they start talking bad about it,” he noted. “Be more informed, get more information, take your time and study and not just go by just what you hear on one side or the other. Actually check the facts on it.”

Facts? We don't need no stinkin facts!

[St. Clown]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

What a travesty.



Facts? We don't need no stinkin facts!

Congratulations to him, he's now successfully placed himself on the dole.

[Priceless]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

Congratulations to him, he's now successfully placed himself on the dole.

Yes, he should still be paying $13K per year to get crappy coverage so the CEO of BCBS can get a $50M bonus.

[LynahFan]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

When the government mandates demand, of course there will be a huge amount of traffic on the first day everyone is required to start purchasing the product. They didn't design to handle peak needs.

I presume there were also a lot of "tourists" just checking out the exchanges to see what they were like, even if they had no intention of purchasing a plan on the first day (or ever, in some cases - I'm sure I'll browse around at some point to check it out, even though I doubt I'd find a plan better than my current employer-provided one).

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

Yes, he should still be paying $13K per year to get crappy coverage so the CEO of BCBS can get a $50M bonus.

50 Million? Heh, peanuts for them guys. I bet he gets more than that.

[St. Clown]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

Yes, he should still be paying $13K per year to get crappy coverage so the CEO of BCBS can get a $50M bonus.

I completely understand the man's motive, and I'd do the same if I was in his position, however, let's simply not fool ourselves as to what's ultimately happening here.

[Priceless]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

50 Million? Heh, peanuts for them guys. I bet he gets more than that.

I haven't checked recently, I just remember that the CEO of BCBS received a $44M bonus in the first year of MaineCare, when the insurance giant was supposed to reimburse the state of Maine...$44M....what a happy coincidence.

[Old Pio]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

What a travesty.



Facts? We don't need no stinkin facts!

You want facts? Check with Ira Magaziner.

[walrus]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

I completely understand the man's motive, and I'd do the same if I was in his position, however, let's simply not fool ourselves as to what's ultimately happening here.

The money to pay for his insurance come from out of the air,its FREE

[Rover]

The money to pay for his insurance come from out of the air,its FREE

Those poor, poor, poor rich people, who have to pay a little more to fund healthcare. I almost missed the story where they gave away all their money and became homeless in order to beat the new taxes.

[Priceless]

Re: The PPACA - Implementation Phase I

Congratulations to him, he's now successfully placed himself on the dole.

Just curious. Do you also consider Exxon on the dole? Lockheed? ADM? Monsanto? Am I on the dole? Who do you consider to be "on the dole"?