The Obamacare Decision

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Breaking news (if there is such a thing): The individual mandate in Obamacare stands.

Maybe you’re seething; maybe you’re jumping up and down.

I have no idea what this means for the future of healthcare and I don’t think experts for or against know either.

But here’s what I do know…

We pay $350/month for our health insurance and have an $11,000 deductible.  We don’t have health insurance; we have bankruptcy insurance.

Our premium jumped $30 since last year, despite another year of not even coming close to reaching our deductible.

Last year we paid cash for the birth or our son since we didn’t have maternity coverage. We shopped hospitals first. “Hey, we’re having a kid. What kind of deal can you give us?”

People very close to me have health issues that make them uninsurable…until now.

People very close to me pay a monthly health insurance premium that is more than my mortgage.

People very close to me lost their jobs and lost their health insurance. That’s just crazy.

My wife worked for a doctor who didn’t provide a penny toward his employees’ health insurance.

Health insurance was becoming less and less affordable way before Obamacare was a twinkle in President Obama’s eye. I hope the Affordable Care Act makes insurance…well… more affordable.

I have no idea if it will, but the direction things were going wasn’t sustainable.

How unaffordable has your health insurance become?

 
13 comments

As a retired state of Illinois employee, my husband is about to lose the insurance he was told he had paid for when he was working. Cost to continue it will be approximately a fourth of his retirement pay. My older daughter pays about a third of her monthly income for insurance, and my younger daughter, adjunct faculty at a state university, simply has none. Neither does her grown daughter. This national insurance plan that so many derisively call Obamacare has been a long time coming.

Kelsey says:

Angela, Seems we live in an age of broken promises. Your generation suffers for it. Hopefully the next learns that no pension or retirement plan is guaranteed and we need to adjust our lifestyles and savings accordingly. Not having insurance is super scary, but so is facing financial ruin over paying ever-rising premiums.

Stephanie says:

We pay $424 a month for crappy insurance. $100 of that is for a false positive one of our kids had as a baby. If it wasn’t for Obamacare we wouldn’t even have been able to change to this cheaper insurance plan. We were paying about $650/month for equally crappy insurance.

Kelsey says:

Stephanie, I know a lot of people that if not for Obamacare would be uninsurable.

Jim, I’m not sure what news channels you are watching, but I think there is a lot of positive response to the ruling. When tens of millions of people get insurance, I think it will be even more positive. Folks seem to like their medicare. Only time will tell if this is a promise government and society keep or one that is a huge financial burden.

Dan says:

I am right there with you… We have a $7000 deductible and contribute heavily into a HSA and it has definitely made us conscious consumers of healthcare. The good news is ACA has a lot of things that will help the struggling middle class. For instance subsidies all the way up to 400% above the poverty line… A family of four with income around 90k will qualify! However, how do we combat the rising numbers of obesity, diabetes and unhealthy Americans? That’s the other big contributor to rising costs…

Kelsey says:

Dan, So you’re the one I hear crying every month when it’s premium time! Good point about getting healthier. We eat awful. Also, sorry you have a high deductible HSA/medical bankruptcy insurance.

Adam Kuban says:

I wonder how they reacted when you had the “we’re-having-a-kid” conversation. If their reaction to your situation was indifferent or nonchalant, then I think that further illuminates the state of healthcare in our country.

Kelsey says:

Adam, They didn’t bat an eye. The immediately pointed us to a program they had in place where the fees were reduced based on your income. Scary.

Jim Barnes says:

Glad someone has something positive to say about the supreme court ruling. I think if a different president had proposed this, one with a name like Bush or Romney, it wouldn’t be getting all the negative reviews. Some people I guess have to experience life without health insurance or bad insurance to appreciate what Obama is trying to do.

Jim Barnes says:

Kelsey, I was watching Fox News and also had a lot of Facebook Friends who were being negative about Obamacare. I think most of the negative talk was from the GOP and Romney who are totally against it. They were making false statements about it resulting in more government debt, higher taxes, killing jobs, and people having less freedom. The November elections will make the big difference in whether Obamacare lives or whether Romney and the GOP will kill it.

I work for an employer that provides health insurance for the purpose of being able to get health insurance. Thankfully, I now for for the State again, too. But, it’s not always possible to get health insurance. I have gone without before (a very scary/risky venture!).

I’ve had cancer, back surgeries, etc., (14 surgeries in my life total), so it’s a good thing I had health insurance during those times!!!!
My husband is self-employed and can’t get health insurance because of a prior condition and his age(well, couldn’t before Obama Care – plus, it wouldn’t be affordable). I wanted to hurry up and marry so I could cover him through my work.
It’s horrible to have to plan your life around health insurance and, even then, sometimes you just can’t get it.

Working to be healthy is important but I got breast cancer at age 32 and I was a jogging vegetarian. One just never knows… – such a thing as family history.

Life is imperfect but I believe in health care for everyone and am in favor of Obama Care.

Let your voice be heard!

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