Yeah, that’s not working out so well (via Hot Air)
(CNN)But a CNN analysis shows that in the largest city in nearly every state, many low-income younger Americans won’t get any subsidy at all. Administration officials said the reason so many Americans won’t receive a subsidy is that the cost of insurance is lower than the government initially expected. Subsidies are calculated using a complicated formula based on the cost of insurance premiums, which can vary drastically from state to state, and even county to county.
That doesn’t change the fact that in Chicago, a 27-year old will receive no subsidy to help offset premiums of more than $165 a month if he makes more than $27,400 a year.
In Portland, Oregon, subsidies for individuals making just $28,725 a year phase out for those younger than 35 years old.
Quite a few of these young healthies who are depended on, well, forced or pay a fine/tax, to sign up with Obamacare will be exactly within the range of being below the 400% of poverty line as they start their careers. Obviously, not all will be dependent upon the Exchanges, as they will be provided with insurance through their companies. Of course, once the employer mandate kicks in, all bets are off.
Here’s Ed Morrissey at Hot Air
The trigger on this is the premium price for a qualifying “bronze†plan in the exchange for the consumer. If the premium does not go over a certain percentage of income, then the formula produces a zero for the calculated subsidy. The problem for these consumers is that the baseline plans still cost more than their previous options, and have large deductibles to boot. That sets the incentives for younger consumers to bail out of the system, paying the fine and only signing up for insurance after a catastrophic event, which they cannot be denied under the new law.
Go that? It’s so simple, right? Health insurance was already complicated as it was, this makes it even more complicated as the Helpful Hand Of Government becomes involved.
Newsalert writes
ObamaCare needs 38% of the pool to be young. Who knew that federal tax credits aren’t uniform but based on where someone lives! Justice Roberts and Strongman Obama sure did re-write the U.S. Constitution. Goodbye 14th Amendment.
Instead of making insurance, it has become a rigamarole of government beauracracy and variable standards.
[…] making just $28,725 a year phase out for those younger than 35 years old. (Read More)Oh my! How did this happen? And how is it that nobody noticed?Rush Limbaugh offers a clue to the last question. You know, […]
The horror! Because of market forces, insurers are offering bronze policies at such low prices that some folks don’t qualify for a subsidy! Because of Obamacare people are getting low priced policies without needing gov’t help. Why is that a conservative’s nightmare?
Bummer. In California they’re processing over 10,000 applications per day. From Kentucky to Connecticut to California to NY people are signing up for Obamacare. Even Healthcare.gov is starting to work!
Obama took a big hit over the disastrous rollout, and deservedly so. The Republican plan to sabotage universal healthcare (along with the administration’s fecklessness) has hurt the nation but we will recover. The Republicans are right to worried.
Really Jeffy?
The government taking over and controlling both ends of the market is your definition of “market forces?”
You just can’t make this comic gold up.
gibby,
Let’s see… a marketplace is established where companies can freely compete, offering products to customers, where customers can directly compare prices (where it was almost impossible to do before) and prices fall significantly. In addition, government regulations assure the policies meet minimum standards (which they did not do before). The companies get millions more customers; the customers get affordable, quality healthcare.
Why is this a conservative nightmare? Are you against competition? Are you afraid the insurance companies will make less profit? Do you oppose poor people finally having access to affordable, quality healthcare?
In the US, one of the most significant redistribution of wealth schemes is healthcare. Americans pay an annual healthcare “tax” of about $1 trillion that is redistributed up to insurance companies, hospitals, clinics, executives, drug companies, doctors and lawyers. Our healthcare costs are double those of other advanced nations.
You really need to get it straight who you are talking to J. As there is no “gibby” here.
Once again you are wrong. completely wrong. There were many online sites that allowed one to compare health insurance policies in one’s state. You could even call the vendors and ask them for prices. NOvel concept I know, but it has happened for decades before.
However, why do you think that the gov’t must “allow” or “set up” a place before a market can be created there? So, you think markets can only be created when the gov’t creates one?
But, weren’t you just complaining on the other thread that gov’t is killing the economy with policies that are driving the jobs overseas? And keeping the wealth out of the working class?
Minimum standards were met. They had to meet state minimum or federal minimum standards prior to ObamaCare. OCare just raised those standards and deductibles so that now previous plans became illegal. People were happy with those plans. If they weren’t they would have left them for other, better plans.
Please show us where “companies” are getting millions more enrollees. This will be breaking news if you can scoop even the MSM or White House.
Or, are you referring to the hundreds of thousands being forced on to Medi* after having been forced out of their private insurance?
The citizens of this nation already had affordable quality health care. That is not and has not been the topic of this law or discussions around the travesty of a law.
This law redistributes forced premiums from one group of healthy people who would not have gotten insurance, to those people who would not have been able to get cheap insurance before due to various reasons. It FORCES American citizens to buy a product or else be fined by their gov’t. It also moves more doctors and patients on to government controlled Medicare and Medicaid.
This law had nothing to do with providing CARE to the few millions of people who could not get insurance. They could always get CARE. Even illegals get CARE. This law is all about penalizing American citizens and companies in order to redistribute wealth to a very high risk pool of limited people.
Now, the original point of the law was to cover those high risk people. But, they’ve forced everyone in the nation to now join the high risk pool for the sake of those few. Instead, they could have expanded Medicaid to include those people, if they so choose to join.
But this forced, mandated under penalty, immoral law is an anti-American travesty of our Constitution. It must not stand.
And Obamacare doesn’t allow that.
Companies are not allowed to freely compete on anything. Customers are forced to buy products they may not need.
Prices have gone up, not down.
Best of all, the system that was designed to help some alleged 30 million people to get insurance (even though most of those choose not to carry insurance) is now costing 80 – 100 million people to lose their insurance.
By any definition, that is not a “free market.”