As expected under Obamacare: Insurance Exchange Premiums Through The Roof

[RallyMo]

Way higher than what's currently in place. Another point for the "told you so" crowd. Yikes:

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2013/05/24/unexpected-health-insurance-rate-shock-california-obamacare-insurance-exchange-announces-premium-rates/

 

[mtangelsfan]

Obama's presidency is not going well right now.

[Spirit]

Upon reviewing the data, I was indeed shocked by the proposed premium rates—but not in the way you might expect.  The jolt that I was experiencing was not the result of the predicted out-of-control premium costs but the shock of rates far lower than what I expected—even at the lowest end of the age scale.

 

 

He never actually says what the rates are vs. what he thought they'd be. 

[halobob]

This article is for obamacare no?  You guys make it seem like its bashing obamacare.  Am I missing something here?

[fan_since79]

Okay, some perspective (and I'm far from being an Obama supporter). There will be a government subsidy/tax credit, on a sliding income scale, that will help cushion the shock of the premium hikes.

Of course, if one passes a certain income threshold, the subsidy will disappear. But for those of low and moderate incomes, the tax credit will provide substantial help. 

 

The benefits under these different plans (they're called Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze) seem to be pretty good, compared to many current insurance plans. In my own case, the "Silver" plan would end up costing me pretty much what I pay Blue Cross now, but with much better benefits. A $2,000 deductible compared to the $6,800 one I have to meet now before any benefits kick in. Plus $45/visit to a doctor, with no yearly limits on number of visits (I only have two/year now without the deductible).

[Vegas Halo Fan]

Way higher than what's currently in place. Another point for the "told you so" crowd. Yikes:

 

I don't know about the rest of you, but if Nevada got the same prices, I would see a substantial reduction in monthly premiums for far more coverage.

[Spirit]

This article is for obamacare no?  You guys make it seem like its bashing obamacare.  Am I missing something here?

 

Yes.

 

I believe Rally set this up as a deke. 

[Futch Winkleman]

Rally is shifty like that.

[RallyMo]

Yes.

 

I believe Rally set this up as a dikembe mutombo. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_0fyUYB3cA

[mp170.6]

The author of that piece is a liberal named Rick Ungar who spends most of his time defending against Obama criticism. 

[RallyMo]

The author of that piece is a liberal named Rick Ungar who spends most of his time defending against Obama criticism. 

 

Good argument. Let's lock the thread up. Those premiums are obviously fake.

[mp170.6]

Good argument. Let's lock the thread up. Those premiums are obviously fake.

 

The author is writing about expected prices.  It remains to be seen what they really charge, or how good/bad the coverage ends up being.  It also remains to be seen if your doctors will even accept insurance anymore. 

 

There's a growing trend of doctors abandoning all insurance and going to cash only. 

[nate]

I actually administer the rates for the exchanges and they are much higher than the cost of a regular individual plan you can get now.  In fact current individual subscribers are being offered the chance to stay on their current plan until their anniversary date or to switch to a ACA plan 1/1, almost all are staying on their current plan because the ACA plans are about 40% more expensive.

[Vegas Halo Fan]

There's a growing trend of doctors abandoning all insurance and going to cash only. 

 

If they want empty waiting rooms, that's a good approach.

[mp170.6]

If they want empty waiting rooms, that's a good approach.

 

The opposite has been happening. 

 

They are able to charge lower prices because they aren't dealing with insurance companies for hours on end, and they don't need extra office employees to handle insurance claims.  They also have more time to spend with patients. 

[HaloMagic]

http://www.coveredca.com/calculating_the_cost.html

[mp170.6]

http://www.coveredca.com/calculating_the_cost.html

 

From the link you posted:

 

Your health insurance cost estimate is based on the information you provide. This estimate will give you an idea of how much insurance will cost. Insurance rates for 2014 have not yet been finalized so keep in mind that, once you are ready to purchase a health plan, the actual cost will likely change from this estimate.

[HaloMagic]

Yep, that's how estimates work. Just thought I'd link to the actual programs website.

[TobiasFunke]

MP, you're quite the glass half full kind of guy aren't you?

[nate]

I work for a major health insurance company and I am the project manager for implementing the IT changes for individual exchanges...  The rates are much higher.  They aren't "determined" yet but all of the companies have already filed them with the State DOI's and it will only be a matter of time before they are approved.

 

Unless you are in really poor health or at risk of really poor health, then it is probably a bit cheaper since there is no more underwriting based on medical history.

[Spirit]

I actually administer the rates for the exchanges and they are much higher than the cost of a regular individual plan you can get now.  In fact current individual subscribers are being offered the chance to stay on their current plan until their anniversary date or to switch to a ACA plan 1/1, almost all are staying on their current plan because the ACA plans are about 40% more expensive.

 

I'm sorry Nate, but that does not fit the talking points.  Please restate your position to match the article. 

 

Thanks

[RallyMo]

I actually administer the rates for the exchanges and they are much higher than the cost of a regular individual plan you can get now.  In fact current individual subscribers are being offered the chance to stay on their current plan until their anniversary date or to switch to a ACA plan 1/1, almost all are staying on their current plan because the ACA plans are about 40% more expensive.

 

That's interesting, and a bummer, 'cause obviously it would be best if this actually worked out.

 

What is it that this article and stuff like the following links aren't sharing with us?

 

http://www.coveredca.com/news/PDFs/SilverPlanRatesChart.pdf

http://www.coveredca.com/news/PDFs/CC_Health_Plans_Booklet.pdf

 

I think it's important that as much information as possible is available, so what are they not telling us here?

 

Are you talking about fully comparable plans? If so, that's a double bummer.

[Spirit]

Lolz ... you're giving us links to government booklets and spreadsheet and asking us what is it that they (the government) isn't telling us?

 

OMG ... you're adorable!

 

 

xxxoooxxxooo

[Bruce Nye]

For those of you that don't know, Rally is a Cal- Berkeley grad.  And if you can imagine a large group of people standing together, look to the far left.  That's where Rally would be standing.

[RallyMo]

Lolz ... you're giving us links to government booklets and spreadsheet and asking us what is it that they (the government) isn't telling us?

 

OMG ... you're adorable!

 

 

xxxoooxxxooo

 

I think you're a bit overboard there, but alright...

 

I'm giving nate a link to that. It's the only information we have here at the time and since we're having this discussion I figured I might as well ask. He can read it if he wants to and you can act like you did if you want to. That's your choice. I'm not being an asshole and I'm not asking you anything at all. I know better than to do that.

 

I'm genuinely more or less asking where those rates differ from what he's seeing and if he's allowed to talk about it I'm sure he'll have no problem doing so. Isn't it possible that the rates he sees in his company database are at the high end of those available in the exchange and that they aren't reflective of those at the cheaper end of the spectrum? I have n

 

I'm not expecting any kind of deep reaching response honestly but since one can more or less look over that stuff in 5 minutes and get a general idea of what's being said, I figure Nate can do it and that I'm not entirely nutso or "adorable" for asking, especially since he wanted to join the conversation. This is especially the case since we are, after all, a group that has no problem spending 15 minutes looking at completely meaningless stats on Baseball Reference.