Well, I see that the Star has a story quoting one of Governor Pence’s political appointees; said employee is predicting a huge increase in health insurance premiums, caused, of course, by the hated “Obamacare.”
The prediction is interesting in light of recent news from elsewhere. On July 17, Reuters reported “Many New York state residents who buy health insurance next year will most likely see their premiums cut by half as President Barack Obama’s healthcare law creates subsidies that may increase the number of people in this market by the hundreds of thousands.”
News reports suggest that other states anticipate similar decreases. Evidently, officials in other states know something ours don’t.
Even if you are stuck in backward Indiana–even if you don’t live in New York, or one of the other states anticipating reduced premiums, you still may be one of the 8.5 million people who will get a check from their health insurance companies this summer. The checks are rebates required by the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) from companies that failed to spend at least 80% of premiums received on actual medical care. Insurance companies that fail to pay out 80% on claims are obliged to send the difference between what they did spend and 80% back to the policyholders.
Has there ever been such an outrageous assault on the American Way of Life?
But never fear, policyholders–the House GOP just took its 39th vote to repeal this affront to liberty, and to protect you from its horrors. In fact, protecting you from Obamacare is so important, they haven’t done anything else.
Evidently there is nothing in the Oath of Office for Representatives to protect their constituents, both those who elected them and those who did not. Exactly what is in the Oath of Office for all elected officials and where do we find copies to read so we know when they fail to honor these oaths or if there is anything for them to honor? Gov. Sanford of South Carolina, while being of low morals and an unfaithfut husband, was never called to task for leaving the entire state without leadership; no appointment of temporary replacement and none could be appointed because no one knew if he was alive or dead, was he gone forever or would he return? He has since been elected to another political office in that state making requirements for elected officials to be questionable. South Carolina is one of the states battling the ACA. This situation does effect the entire country because it leaves us wondering exactly what is expected and what is demanded of those we elect to any public office and pay for with our tax dollars.
We are all aware of big business lobbyists who buy politicians and get huge returns on their investment. This is more true of health care insurance than any other big business because it deals with maintaining health or on-going serious illness, life or death. My son and daugher-in-law pay for a health care family plan that contains a $9,000 annual deduction – this issue is one that needs to be stopped but is ignored. Exactly what are we paying politicians for? Daniels appointment as President of Purdue University is an excellent example of lobbyist payback – now he has “earned” a bonus. Oath of Office to any political position, elected or appointed, means no more than marriage vows have come to mean to far too many people in this country. Electing someone to represent us in Washington, D.C., or in state capitals is a form of marriage, a committment to faithfully serve and protect. This never-ending GOP vote to recall the AFFORDABLE CARE ACT, referred to as Obamacare, is the most important and the most expensive use of time and money this country has spent on any issue. The Constitution and the Amendments provide no protection from these people but protects them from honoring their word and their oath – whatever the hell the oath contains…or does not contain but should.
Hey, Sheila, what do you say you trade places with me. I’ll take your generous taxpayer-paid insurance plan at IUPUI if you’ll take the private individual insurance plan I have to purchase with a huge deductible that still isn’t affordable. Are you going to take me up on that offer? I didn’t think so. That generous rebate doesn’t even come close to covering one month’s premium. You people who live on a government paycheck don’t have a clue what the rest of us are suffering. I notice that you haven’t commented on what one of Obama’s number one fans, Teamsters boss James Hoffa, had to say about this wonderful Obamacare. Is he full of crap too?
Gary; I Googled IUPUI health care coverage for employees, it only brought up IU employee information. This did not print out as the chart shown and we do not know, do not need to know, Sheila and Bob’s income range but this shows that her health care is NOT paid for by IUPUI. They make monthly payments and have annual deductable just like other folks.
Coverage
Monthly Employee Contribution
Employee’s Annual Base Salary*
Below $30,000
$30,000 –
$49,999
$50,000 –
$99,999
$100,000 –
$149,999
$150,000 –
$199,999
$200,000 –
$249,999
$250,000
and Above
Employee only
$28.93
$39.74
$53.25
$66.77
$80.28
$93.81
$107.33
Employee and Child(ren)
$57.69
$79.26
$106.22
$133.19
$160.15
$187.11
$214.08
Employee and Spouse
$70.52
$96.90
$129.86
$162.82
$195.78
$228.75
$261.71
Family
$80.09
$110.04
$147.48
$184.91
$222.35
$259.78
$297.21
* The employee’s salary band is determined by the annual base salary at the time payroll runs each month.
• Employee contributions are deducted before taxes.
•Subtract $25 per month for an employee or spouse ($50 for both) who do not use tobacco.
What I don’t like is the FORCED payment for health insurance. It will be abused like the FORCED payment for auto insurance. I remember the days before auto insurance was forced on us by government. I always carried auto insurance and the rates were reasonable before the law, forcing insurers to work for their clients and provide good coverage at a competitive rate. One could drop their insurer for an injustice and still be able to drive to work until finding another…if they chose to do so.
After the law I have seen more abuse, including being billed by a specific insurer after dropping them, bait and switch tactics to lour one into a insurers office, rates that vary over $100 per 6-month policy, and increases in monthly payments for no reason at all, no tickets, accidents…ect. They know one needs the auto insurance to survive, or be punished by the government…so the abuse is rampant.
…If our government is going to force us to buy anything, that government MUST provide guide lines for payment to that we are forced to buy…like setting standard rates for all insurers to follow. Otherwise it is government extortion for profit to a privet corporation.
…What is next, being forced to buy life insurance because the coroners office is filled up with the corpse’s of people who can’t afford funeral services?
It is my understanding that in states that already required insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions, insurance rates will go down. In states where such coverage was not required, premiums may go up. (Probably another reason to regret living in Indiana.) I’m not sure I follow Mr. Welsh’s argument. I personally think we should all get the same coverage as Congressmen get, but that would mean universal, single payer coverage. I think he’s right that people who have wonderful, inexpensive coverage have a lot of nerve constantly voting to deny it to the rest of us. Is Mr. Walsh saying the Health Care Act doesn’t go far enough? It sounds as though (like many in Congress) he’s against the act entirely. I’m confused. He’s welcome to send his check back if he doesn’t want it, but I would recommend moving to a more enlightened state if he wants real savings.
According to the Department of Health and Human Services, all eleven states that have released data on the estimated costs of insurance affected by the ACA have gone down by an average of 18%. Most of those states FULLY implemented the ACA.
So, the question is, is it the ACA’s fauly as Pence’s administration would like you believe? Or Daniels/ Pence/ and the GOP supermajority in the Indiana chambers that prevented Indiana from doing ANYTHING but the bare minimum?
Ms. Prince; below is the FactChek answer to your comments regarding Congressional health care coverage. I have responded to countless others who have this same false assumption. Congressional members do not have to subscribe to the optionS offered by the federal government.
Q: What type of health insurance do members of Congress receive? Is it a single-payer, government-run system?
A: Members of Congress are covered by private insurance under the same system that covers all federal workers.
FULL ANSWER
Members of Congress have good health insurance by any standard, but it’s not free and not reserved only for them – and it’s not government insurance. House and Senate members are allowed to purchase private health insurance offered through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, which covers more than 8 million other federal employees, retirees and their families.
It’s not a “single-payer” system where the government acts as the one and only health insurance company. As President Bush’s chief of personnel Kay Coles James said in 2003, while lecturing at the conservative Heritage Foundation, “the FEHB program is not centralized, government-run health care.” It has drawn praise both from conservatives and liberals, including President Obama, who held it up as a model for his own health care proposals.
JoAnne,
You seem to misunderstand how health insurance payments work. The figures your printed show only the employee portion. IU pays an additional, non-taxable portion for each employee. My health insurance is literally 10 times higher.
I object to the forced payment of insurance premiums that are higher than necessary to help defray the costs of all the uninsured when they need treatment. When others go to hospital emergency rooms for primary care, that is passed along to all of us who have health insurance. When a hospital does not turn away the uninsured who do need emergency care, that also is cost shifted to those with insurance.
If I have to have insurance to drive a car so that I can pay for damages to my car and others’, I don’t see why health insurance for all is such a bad expectation. It’s called taking responsibility for oneself, and it something that most politicians say they support – except when they don’t.
It’s disgusting that America is the only country in the world (western standards that is) that doesn’t have single payer Healthcare for its citizens. It’s really disgraceful that our citizens aren’t able to see a doctor without worrying that they might find something and it will bankrupt the family to treat it, even if they HAVE insurance.
Socialized medicine in the UK was created after the war and it is the most civilized medicine in the world. Shame on America for not having the same.
My niece is 28 yrs old and works full time at 8.75 dollars an hour with no health care except what she pays out of pocket. She also has a pre-existing condition that will follow her the rest of her life and thankfully Obamacare outlawed insurance companies from not covering her. She makes TOO MUCH MONEY to be covered by Medicaid yet can’t afford to pay for her own insurance premiums and it’s not offered by her employer. What do you who oppose Obamacare expect her to do when the state refuses to set up exchanges for those like her? From what I understand, mandating insurance is what the GOP proposed when Hillary took up the cause for healthcare back in the 90s. Why can’t you remember that?
Adam; Ms. Prince was under the impression Congressional health care is single-payer, it is not. The health care options offered to Congressional workers are also offered to GSA – janitorial services in federal buildings. Yes; I fully understand that the figure I showed listed only the employee portion. Many people believe congress receives free health care coverage, Mr. Welsh (#2) believed mistakenly Sheila’s health care was paid for with tax dollars. Everyone, including myself, understands that employers pay a larger portion than employees which they consider as a portion of our salary but we would never see on our paycheck if they stopped providing health care options. I happen to have IU Health Medicare supplemental plan; I receive a statement after each physician visit and/or lab test showing my co-pay and what IU Health pays in addition to Medicare’s portion. (I, of course, pay monthly for my Medicare coverage from my limted Social Security check.) These statements are typical procedure. I have paid health care premiums for many, many years in addition to co-pays for medical care and prescription. My current IU Health plan has no prescription coverage; fortunately most of my prescriptions are covered by CVS medical plan for which I pay a yearly membership fee and a set amount for prescriptions. Those not covered by CVS plan, I pay in full. “There is no free lunch.”
Actually, I’ve come to the conclusion that the only way to achieve any fairness now is to implement a single payer system. Everyone gets the same health care plan regardless of their status in life and it is not tied to one’s employment, whether private or public. This system we have now was designed to fail and create harsh consequences depending on your status. The health care market has been so distorted by government intervention that there’s no way of fixing it. The hospital czars won’t stop building costly and unnecessary new buildings. Pharmaceutical companies have rigged the market prices to their advantage and bribed health care providers and brainwashed the public into believing they should be prescribed medications that have no real benefit, while the life-saving drugs are for the most far unaffordable without insurance. Health insurers make more decisions now than doctors, and the doctors, well, they’re just getting screwed by the government, insurers and the hospitals that have taken over the profession. Maybe they should look for a new profession.
Gary, the light has shined upon you! Excellent rationales.
All of the states for which we have data have predicted premiums that will be lower than current average rates. http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/reports/2013/MarketCompetitionPremiums/rb_premiums.cfm
JoAnn Green said:
“A: Members of Congress are covered by private insurance under the same system that covers all federal workers.”
Ya forgot to mention that each and every member of congress receives $500 each month of their expenses, (our tax dollars) to pay for that insurance.
Mark; I did more Googling to respond to your comments, please note that there is no mention of $500 expense checks issued to members of Congress to pay for their insurance. Please reread my copied and pasted information in #7 regarding their insurance coverage. I could not copy and paste the information below but carefully copied by hand, word-for-word, regarding paid expenses. Yes, congress is paid high salaries and do get benefits we do not but the portion of their insurance paid for by tax dollars is “employer portion” just as we pay through our employer offered coverage.
Copied from Congressional Research Services
“Summary on Congressional Salaries and Allowances:
These Allowances cover official office expenses, including staff, mail, travel between a Member’s district or state and Washington, D.C., and other goods and services.”
Mark; I neglected to include the information that congressional members and all federal employees pay the same payroll taxes for Medicare, Part A. They are elegible to enroll in Medicare, Parts B, C and D.
“I did more Googling to respond to your comments, please note that there is no mention of $500 expense checks issued to members of Congress to pay for their insurance.”
…was last year it was reported, and I think it was Mother Jones mag or Democracy Now. They called it an allotment or allocation for their insurance. $500 each month, $6000 a year. if I remember correctly
I’ll see if I can find it…