Posted on 01/11/2016 10:09:20 AM PST by Kaslin
Liberal public health advocates and left-of-center health policy wonks have long thought every American needs health insurance (they don't, but that's another discussion). Lefties assume health insurance is the only way Americans access medical care. After all, the purpose of the Affordable Care Act was to insulate Americans from the financial hardship of medical care they couldn't afford to pay for out of pocket. Moreover, many pundits believe having to reach for one's wallet during a medical encounter is unacceptable. So imagine my shock when I read a headline in The New York Times claiming that Obamacare is no guarantee against crushing medical bills.
In a survey of non-seniors, the New York Times/Kaiser poll found about one-in-five people struggle with medical bills even though they have insurance. Among insured people who reported crushing medical debts, about three-quarters reported putting off vacations, major purchases and cutting back on household spending. Nearly two-thirds used up all or most of their savings. Far fewer had to resort to second jobs, take on more hours or ask family members for funds (42 percent to 37 percent).
Why are these insured Americans having to reduce their standard of living and, in fewer instances, having to resort to more drastic measures? Was it entirely because they're sick? A common refrain among those struggling with medical bills was that money was tight prior to a family illness. This includes high-income households as well as low income households.
Money is fungible; it can be spent on vacations or medical needs. However, there are trade-offs in life. Like it or not, medical care is a component of household budgets. Funds spent on vacations cannot be spent on medical care; and funds spent on medical care are no longer available for vacations. Yet, putting off a vacation to pay medical bills is certainly not a travesty. Most would consider vacations a luxury, not a necessity.
One final thought about polls. A couple weeks ago in an earlier Townhall commentary, I explained that people tend to report problems paying bills they don't want to pay. Yet, they are seemingly willing to purchase items they should probably have left at the store. For example, people may report experiencing problems paying medical bills, but are unlikely to say they have trouble affording alcohol. They may report problems buying cigarettes but continue to buy them anyway. Americans report putting off vacations and major purchases because of medical bills. But why didn't they report having no problems with medical bills, but problems paying for vacations or major purchases? It's a reflection of their priorities. Consider this: in the survey the uninsured reported problems with medical bills at a much higher rate than those with insurance. Just over half of the uninsured people surveyed reported problems with medical bills compared to about 20 percent of the insured. But when asked what they've had to give up to pay medical bills, the uninsured actually had an easier time with medical bills when compared to the insured. Less than two-thirds of the uninsured put off vacations, major purchases and had to cut back on household spending. Only half used up savings. Those are smaller proportions than those with health coverage -- possibly because they had not sank money into coverage that provided little of their needs.
However, a growing problem that could increase the ranks of the uninsured is the cost of Obamacare policies -- even if you don't experience an illness. Take the example of my family. Insurance for my wife and me costs approximately $12,000 per year. Annual deductibles for that level of coverage are nearly $13,000 per year. Suffice it to say that $12,000 in premiums and any health care spending we may encounter before our deductibles are met would buy a lot of amenities that would enhance our standard of living. Indeed, the cost of our health insurance would buy a months-long stay at a renovated farm house in the Spanish, French or Italian countryside.
The cost of Obamacare is undoubtedly straining other Americans' household budgets just as it is straining ours. After paying $1,000 per month for family coverage, few families can afford any type of health complaints which requires another $13,000 annually in deductibles. As an earlier article in The New York Times explained, high premiums and high deductibles are causing many people to weigh the cost of forgoing coverage entirely and just paying the penalty. In many people’s minds, it’s already a given that they will have to pay out of pocket for all their day-to-day medical needs. So what good is expensive insurance if you have no funds left over to see a doctor?
Whether your priorities are medical care or vacations, Americans will increasingly find they cannot afford both Obamacare and a decent standard of living on the same budget. I have an idea: why don't we take a vacation from Obamacare?
SOMEBODY has to pay for all those sex change operations and HIV treatments. It won’t be the government and it won’t be the LGBTs. Sorry, Middle Class America, the cost has been transfered to you.
Good news is most people will forced to go on to Medicaid.
I feel sorry for the suckers who insist on paying up the wazoo for skimpy health insurance coverage.
While I pay zero premiums and have low doctor visit co-payments.
What? Sex change operations are covered? You gotta be kidding.
“Good news is most people will forced to go on to Medicaid.”
The income ceiling for Medicaid is very low. I think there will be many people who will be paying the penalty for lack of insurance *and* doing without medical care.
The point of the NY Times article was to promote taxpayer paid free health care for all, aka single payer. The ultimate sugar daddy for planned parenthood.
A large point missed in the article is the fact that Obamacare policies FORCED on insurance companies REQUIRES them to insure people with pre-existing conditions.
This means a huge drain on the insurance pool due to all these costly patients.
Who pays for it? The other insured individuals via huge rate increases. Since Obummer’s FASCIST health care system was passed by Congress my individual health insurance policy premium has almost tripled.
We are FORCED TO SUBSIDIZE those with pre-existing conditions and low-income people.
This is SOCIOECONOMIC FASCISM and is counter to the 13th Amendment: “Neither slavery nor INVOLUNTARY SERVITUDE shall exist in these United States except for crime or punishment.”
Everybody wants to play emotional politics with this issue when it boils down to this.
Too many ‘freeloaders’ as Mitt Romney said in a speech when he ran for president-probably linked a bit to open immigration.
The healthcare industry needed a bailout and Romney obliged as governor of MA with “Romneycare” and Obama obliged nationally with “Obamacare”.
The ‘bailout’ comes from mandatory health insurance coverage, higher copays for insured people, expansion of the Medicaid program for the poor.
We the people are paying for Obamacare so the healthcare industry can be bailed out-that’s the bottom line.
Republicans rail against Obamacare but their mantra has always been ‘repeal and replace’ which means changing the title and a few items around the edges, but keeping the same frame.
This is a bailout for big insurance and big healthcare, whose stocks have outperformed others since Obamacare.
The Republicans will not get rid of Obamacare since they are bought by the industry, too.
There are options mere words can't describe.
This past fall, I received about 19 different solicitations by mail from a health insurance company called ‘Prominence’. I live near Carson City, Nevada.
This morning, this new health insurance company announced they will no take any claims from the 2 largest Carson City medial facilities.
How’s that for a fast shuffle???
Indeed
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