How Obamacare has changed my life — for better and for worse

[Lazie]

How Obamacare has changed my life — for better and for worse


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-ob...150209891.html


I guess some won't realize they need insurance until they have a medical emergency. Dude said "paying nearly $300 month for something he does not need is ridiculous."

Another said, "But we hired a lot of young professionals who were 27 or 28 years old and they would opt out of medical insurance because they said they didn’t need it. "

[Jangle]

These 5 Countries Provide The Best Health Care In The World


Posted: 02/20/2014 6:56 am EST Updated: 02/20/2014 5:59 pm EST
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InternationalLiving.com’s annual Global Retirement Index reports that France, Uruguay and Malaysia provide the best and most affordable health care in the world.
The Health Care category in the Index considers the cost of care and the quality. Also considered are the number of people per doctor, the number of hospital beds per 1,000 people, the percentage of the population with access to safe water, the infant mortality rate, life expectancy, and public-health expenditure as a percentage of a country’s GDP.
France comes in first in this category as the best country in the world for health care.

• 11. France
  
  According to the World Health Organization, France has the number one health care system in the world. The country also comes first in the health care category of the InternationalLiving.com annual Global Retirement Index 2014. Despite their meat-and cream-rich diet augmented by alcohol and cigarettes, the French have been living much longer in recent years. Life expectancy now averages 85 years for women and 78 for men. Photo: Steenie Harvey, InternationalLiving.com
• 22. Uruguay
  
  Uruguay has a variety of health care options available that include a public health care system for people who cannot afford to pay for private health care, a number of private health insurance options, and the most popular option, a hospital plan called a “mutualista.” Therefore Uruguay comes in second in the health care category of the InternationalLiving.com annual Global Retirement Index 2014. InternationalLiving.com’s Uruguay correspondent, David Hammond, who has lived in the country for seven years, says: “My personal experience with health care in Uruguay has been positive. The cost is a fraction of what I paid for private coverage in the U.S.” Photo: InternationalLiving.com
• 33. Malaysia
  
  Malaysia has gained fame as a medical-tourism destination because its health care is among the world’s best—and cheapest. Medical expertise here is equal to or better than that in most Western countries. Malaysia comes in third in the health care category of the InternationalLiving.com annual Global Retirement Index 2014. Despite the low cost of health care in Malaysia, many expats do get private health insurance. There is a plethora of national insurers, with no one company being preferred—expats tend to shop around and look for the cheapest offer. Photo: InternationalLiving.com
• 44. Costa Rica
  
  Costa Rica’s excellent and affordable health care is largely the result of government investment in the health sector, plus an atmosphere of political stability. Costa Rica comes in fourth in the health care category of the InternationalLiving.com annual Global Retirement Index 2014. By almost any standard, Costa Rica has some of the best health care in Latin America. Not only that, but the country’s public and private health systems are constantly being upgraded—new hospitals, new equipment, and improvements in staff training. Photo: Suzan Haskins, InternationalLiving.com
• 55. Mexico
  
  Given the galloping rise in health care costs in the U.S. and elsewhere, Mexico’s affordable and top-notch health care is a huge benefit to living there. Pretty much across the board, health care in Mexico costs a quarter to a half of what you would pay in the U.S. Mexico comes in fifth in the health care category of the InternationalLiving.com annual Global Retirement Index 2014. Medical insurance with Mexico’s national health care service costs less than $300 a year; private insurance will cost more, depending on age and pre-existing conditions—but still a fraction of what you’d pay in the U.S. for similar coverage. Photo: Glynna Prentice, InternationalLiving.com

[Jangle]

http://www.upworthy.com/watch-15-mag...ulting-america

[Lazie]

http://www.upworthy.com/watch-15-mag...ulting-america

LOL!!! Speechless!

[HL]

I purchased some AHC recently....

Was not as painful as some try to make it....

[Islandman]

The White House just announced that signups have past the 6 million mark which is very good news for the president and the ACA. However two very critical court cases are being decided in the next few months which could still endanger the law.

One is the Hobby Lobby case in the Supreme Court, regarding refusing to cover birth control in their company insurance plan on religious grounds. This one would open a can of worms if Hobby lobby won the case but I don't think they will.

The more critical of the two is the Federal Appeals court in DC that is deciding if the federal govt can legally give health insurance subsidies to people in the 36 states which have refused to setup state-run exchanges. The law was not written correctly to deal with this and so there does appear to be an interpretation issue which is being exploited.

Lets hope the judges rule in favor of the federal govt in both cases. At some point people need to just accept the law, flawed though it may be, and work to making it better.

[Karl]

What is wrong with this answer?

Darryle Royal, 30
Phoenix, Ariz.

“I can’t afford affordable health care coverage.”

I used to work for a mortgage lender and I received health benefits through my company, but since I left to go back to school I’ve been mainly making my living in the service industry and I haven't had insurance. I've paid out of pocket to visit the dentist but I put off a procedure I need because it's over $500. I'm generally a pretty healthy person, so I don't really ever have a need to go to the doctor, but I haven't had a well-woman exam in years, which I need to do ASAP. I don’t have the funds to pay out of pocket.

I didn't end up enrolling because I was frustrated by the quotes I received. I don't make very much money, primarily being a student and server, so I was sure there would be options available that were affordable. That was the whole point and what the plan's name was based on — affordability.

Was there nothing for you? ...or the affordable plans were not not plans you wanted?

btw - Did you ask a navigator for assistance with finding a plan? I did not hear you make mention of same.

I did qualify for some tax-based subsidies, about $60 a month. But in order to get a plan worth having (meaning I'm not paying out of pocket to meet some gargantuan deductible), I would have been paying over $300 a month to begin with and that amount of savings wasn't much of a help.

I know it's irresponsible to not have health insurance, and it's been on my list to budget for forever since I stopped working for companies that provided it for me. Aside from having the convenience of health insurance for routine checkups or procedures, it makes me very nervous not having any major medical coverage, in case something serious or catastrophic should happen. I'm well aware of the plethora of stories out there about people who were financially ruined by one medical issue.

I've heard of some people having success stories, but personally I'm extremely disappointed. Considering all the havoc and big to-do that's been made about people losing their existing coverage, and people not being able to keep the programs they want, I expected there to be more of a benefit to this new act.

Check with a Navigator.
...and remember no one pays - ('owes' may have been a better used word) - what you call a gargantuan deductible unless the medical bills are super super gargantuan.

Sorry she is just going to school...

[Karl]

The third testimony is hilarious...

Obamacare caused this guy to get out of his line of business it is too costly. Oooh yes, he did say it was not the only reason...but then he went on to say for the next 2 years he has not got to enroll in Obamacare...or provide Health Insurance for his workers...but the cost is unacceptable



I think something is not right here

[Karl]

The White House just announced that signups have past the 6 million mark which is very good news for the president and the ACA.

Only the President?

However two very critical court cases are being decided in the next few months which could still endanger the law.

One is the Hobby Lobby case in the Supreme Court, regarding refusing to cover birth control in their company insurance plan on religious grounds. This one would open a can of worms if Hobby lobby won the case but I don't think they will.

I would be shocked if HOBBY LOBBY prevails. Sure some Justices shall tie selves in knots trying to justify their ruling for HOBBY LOBBY...but hey it is OBAMACARE

The more critical of the two is the Federal Appeals court in DC that is deciding if the federal govt can legally give health insurance subsidies to people in the 36 states which have refused to setup state-run exchanges. The law was not written correctly to deal with this and so there does appear to be an interpretation issue which is being exploited.

Lets hope the judges rule in favor of the federal govt in both cases. At some point people need to just accept the law, flawed though it may be, and work to making it better.

Why would the Federal Govt not be able to give subsidies to citizens in any State? ...is it not already doing so in many, many different areas/gazillion of areas to gazillion of citizens?

[Islandman]

The law was written in a way that assumed that the states would run the exchanges and the subsidies would be for the state exchanges, but since so many states have refused to setup exchanges the federal govt has had to setup federal run exchanges and the law did not explicitly cover subsidies for that situation.

It is a very critical case for the ACA, some say losing the case would make the law unsustainable.

Google Halbig vs Sebelius