Richard Davis is a blogger in Chicago who writes on a site called Chicago Now. He has not been a proponent of Obamacare and in post published today he explains why:
The letter came regular Post Office from Blue Cross, telling me that
as of December 31, 2013, the policy I have had for most of a decade
would be eliminated and that I would have to choose another plan, which
they were offering. I was dreading this letter.[…]
The Bronze Policy offered by Blue Cross, identical to the state
policy on the exchange doubles my deductible of $6000 and offers me a
co-pay of 60/40 to another $6000 dollars, where the old policy was 80/20
on half. I also lose my dental coverage. For this I have to pay about
$50 a month more. And I cannot go to my regular doctor.
Richard starts the post with video of President Obama saying “you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan.” He concludes by asking “Do you know why President Obama lied?”
Lest you think Richard’s situation is unusual, yesterday Market Watch pointed out that you can go to online insurance retailer eHealth right now and see what will happen to premiums once Obamacare fully kicks in next year.
Take a married, mid-50s male living in northern Los Angeles County.
To cover that person and his wife immediately, eHealth offers policies
ranging from $493 a month, with a $40 copay for the first two office
visits and deductibles of $3,300 for an individual and $6,600 for a
family from Anthem Blue Cross.[…]
That all changes if you’re buying a policy that starts covering in
2014. Blue Shield of California offers the cheapest plan at $900 a month
with deductibles of $4,500 for individuals and $9,000 for families. The
Blue Shield policy also covers only 60% of costs.
Market Watch does point out that these prices are pre-subsidy so some shoppers will get a discount off these rates. Also the $493 policy limits pre-existing conditions while the other policy does not. So if you’re sick or fall below the poverty line the rate shock won’t be as bad. If you’re neither one of those things then you’re going to be paying a lot more for a lot less starting next year.
Was all of this made clear to people in 2009-2010 when Democrats spent a year passing the bill? Not exactly?
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