Text 10846, 88 rader
Skriven 2013-10-21 13:43:32 av Janis Kracht (1:261/38)
  Kommentar till text 10810 av Mark Hofmann (1:261/1304)
Ärende: Re: Obama Scare Premiums
================================
Hi Mark!

>In Maryland, people that have no health insurance go to the ER for everything.
> That accounts for a fairly large percentage of people in the neighborhood,
> where it is located.  They never pay a dime.

It was the same in NYS before Obamacare..  Now hopefully more will be insured
now.

> Obamacare won't change this.  These same people pay no tax, no not sure how
>that fee will work.  Even if they paid for insurance, they would never pay the
> deductible.  Still leaving the tax payors holding the bag.

Yes, it has changed this.  I can give one example in NYState.. I don't know
what it's like in Maryland.. over here, if you have no income, you receive
Medicaid insurance. My son is in that position right now, being close to blind
and a cancer survivor. As far as I know he has no deductible, but I'd have to
check.  All I know is he hasn't had to pay anything at this point for the many
exams he's had to have since getting Medicaid.  He paid into the system before
he became ill, btw.

>> Seriously, that is how the small company we work for has dealt with the
>> cost of health insurance for quite a long time. The company is in Ohio..
>> we're in NY.

>Many small companies have the worst health benefits availible, since they don'
> have the money or the mass amount of employees to get a good discount.

Of course :)

>> Not over here.. those "mandates" have not affected the cost of our
>> insurance at all.

> I'm sure the insurance companies are not providing all the new mandates to
>policy holders out of the goodness of their heart.  They are getting the extra
> money somewhere.  Maybe they are getting revenue from the 32oz soda fine/law.
> :)

True, it has to come from somewhere.. the hope being the new young emplyees
who've picked up Obamacare, and I suppose the few taxes now incurred.

>> This makes no sense as far as being related to cost of insurance.. First
>> you're saying that premiums are being doubled (i.e. the cost will be
>> passed on to the insured).. Then you're saying that hosp. staff is being
>> cut supposedly because the hospital can afford to pay their employees
>> wages.. Come on :( :(

> Hospitals in Maryland are self-insured.  When an employee goes to the doctor,
>hospital, etc, the payment comes directly out of the hospital's budget.  Due t
>the massive increases in healthcare costs, they had to not only cut the budget
> for medical payments for employees, but they also laid-off around 5% of the
>staff (500 people) because the state rembersement has been at 1% for the past
>years in a row - not keeping up with inflation and the cost of doing business.

Again, this has nothing to do with Obamacare, does it..

> One thing that also scares me is the "re-admit penalty".  If a patient comes
>back to the hospital for the "same issue", the hospital won't get paid for the
> second stay.  They are not going to want to admit people back in and will do
> what they can to avoid this from happening.

You mean like encourage doctors to treat them effectively the first time? <g>

> Perfect example is the many drug users in that area.  They come back over and
>over and over again for the same thing.  Is it the hospital's fault that these
> people continue to use drugs and won't quit?

Of course not.. unless they have no social services coordinator who sees an
addict come in, who should be in some type program to help him overcome the
addiction..

>> Btw, we just took a look, and in the Baltimore Business Journal it's
>> reported that a 40 year old non-smoker can get a silver plan in MD for as
>> low as $208.00 a month.
>>
>> Geez, we're paying $610.00 a month :)

> Yes, I saw those plans.  $208/month with a $10,000 deducible.  Not exactly a
>bargain to me.  Especially when these peope are used to not paying anything an
> getting free healthcare in the ER.

And we have a $7500 deductible..

Take care,
Janis

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