Quote:

 

http://www.elizablog.com/king-v-burwell-and-the-us-health-care-consumer/

King v. Burwell and the U.S. Health Care Consumer

[...]

Over 6 million U.S. citizens in 34 states are at risk of losing tax credits.

[...]



[...]

kbp

Jun 5 2015, 02:32 PM

Quote:

 

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/eric-scheiner/nearly-half-us-cant-afford-unexpected-400-bill-forgo-medical-treatment

Nearly Half of U.S. Can’t Afford Unexpected $400 Bill – Forgo Medical Treatment




Nearly half of American households would not be able to afford a $400 emergency, according to a recent report from the Federal Reserve.

The Federal Reserve Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2014 says that 47 percent indicate that they would have great difficulty handling an unexpected $400 expense.

“Specifically, respondents indicate that they simply could not cover the expense (14 percent); would sell something (10 percent); or would rely on one or more means of borrowing to pay for at least part of the expense, including paying with a credit card that they pay off over time (18 percent), borrowing from friends or family (13 percent), or using a payday loan (2 percent),” the report says.

Even though it has been over 5 years since President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law, 47 percent of Americans responding to the Federal Reserve study claimed that they “avoided medical treatment because of the cost.”

[...]

For a single person, the 100% to 400% of Federal Poverty Level allowance tells us an annual income of $11,670 to $46,680 qualifies you for subsidies.

The minimum out-of-pocket for all is $2,050 per year.

Approximately 3.0% of our population, from the lower income levels that qualify for subsidies, is enrolled in Obamacare, while only 0.5% of our population enrolled is not getting the subsidies.

How many do you think can afford the out-of-pocket expense?

Quote:

 

https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/06/08/remarks-president-obama-press-conference-after-g7-summit

Remarks by President Obama in Press Conference after G7 Summit

Elmau Briefing Center
Krün, Germany

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good afternoon. Let me begin by once again thanking Chancellor Merkel and the people of Bavaria and Germany for their extraordinary hospitality here at the G7. My stay here has been extraordinary. I wish I could stay longer...

[...]

We agree that the best way to sustain the global economic recovery is by focusing on jobs and growth. That’s what I’m focused on in the United States. On Friday, we learned that our economy created another 280,000 jobs in May -- the strongest month of the year so far -- and more than 3 million new jobs over the past year, nearly the fastest pace in over a decade. We’ve now seen five straight years of private sector job growth -- 12.6 million new jobs created -- the longest streak on record. The unemployment rate is near its lowest level in seven years. Wages for American workers continue to rise. And since I took office, the United States has cut our deficit by two-thirds. So, in the global economy, America is a major source of strength.
[Had to throw in the standard 'me me me' BS.]

[...]

So with that, I will take some questions.

[...]

Nedra.
Q Thank you ... And separately, as a sports fan, can you give us your reaction to the FIFA bribery scandal? Thank you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: With respect to FIFA, I cannot comment on a pending case by our Attorney General....
[I tossed this paste in so we have it on the record!]

[...]

Okay. Christi Parsons.
Q Thank you, Mr. President. More than six million Americans may soon lose health insurance if the Supreme Court this month backs the latest challenge to the Affordable Care Act. A growing number of states are looking for assistance as they face the prospect that their residents may lose federal insurance subsidies and their insurance markets may collapse. Yet, your administration has given very little to no guidance on how states can prepare. What can you tell state leaders and advocates who worry that health care markets in half the country may be thrown into chaos?

THE PRESIDENT: What I can tell state leaders is, is that under well-established precedent, there is no reason why the existing exchanges should be overturned through a court case. It has been well documented that those who passed this legislation never intended for folks who were going through the federal exchange not to have their citizens get subsidies. That’s not just the opinion of me; that’s not just the opinion of Democrats; that’s the opinion of the Republicans who worked on the legislation. The record makes it clear.
[gibberish... all of it]

And under well-established statutory interpretation, approaches that have been repeatedly employed -- not just by liberal, Democratic judges, but by conservative judges like some on the current Supreme Court -- you interpret a statute based on what the intent and meaning and the overall structure of the statute provides for.
[When and if you're short of clear text]

And so this should be an easy case. Frankly, it probably shouldn’t even have been taken up. And since we’re going to get a ruling pretty quick, I think it’s important for us to go ahead and assume that the Supreme Court is going to do what most legal scholars who’ve looked at this would expect them to do.

But, look, I’ve said before and I will repeat again: If, in fact, you have a contorted reading of the statute that says federal-run exchanges don’t provide subsidies for folks who are participating in those exchanges, then that throws off how that exchange operates. It means that millions of people who are obtaining insurance currently with subsidies suddenly aren’t getting those subsidies; many of them can’t afford it; they pull out; and the assumptions that the insurance companies made when they priced their insurance suddenly gets thrown out the window. And it would be disruptive -- not just, by the way, for folks in the exchanges, but for those insurance markets in those states, generally.

So it’s a bad idea. It’s not something that should be done based on a twisted interpretation of four words in -- as we were reminded repeatedly -- a couple-thousand-page piece of legislation.

What’s more, the thing is working. I mean, part of what’s bizarre about this whole thing is we haven’t had a lot of conversation about the horrors of Obamacare because none of them come to pass. You got 16 million people who’ve gotten health insurance. The overwhelming majority of them are satisfied with the health insurance. It hasn’t had an adverse effect on people who already had health insurance. The only effect it’s had on people who already had health insurance is they now have an assurance that they won’t be prevented from getting health insurance if they’ve got a preexisting condition, and they get additional protections with the health insurance that they do have. [and dramatic premium increases, not $2500/year savings]

The costs have come in substantially lower than even our estimates about how much it would cost. Health care inflation overall has continued to be at some of the lowest levels in 50 years. None of the predictions about how this wouldn’t work have come to pass. [costs are lower than predicted because enrollment is lower]

And so I’m -- A, I’m optimistic that the Supreme Court will play it straight when it comes to the interpretation. And, B, I should mention that if it didn't, Congress could fix this whole thing with a one-sentence provision.

But I’m not going to go into a long speculation anticipating disaster.

Q But you’re a plan-ahead kind of guy. Why not have a plan B?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, you know, I want to just make sure that everybody understands that you have a model where all the pieces connect. And there are a whole bunch of scenarios not just in relation to health care, but all kinds of stuff that I do, where if somebody does something that doesn't make any sense, then it’s hard to fix. And this would be hard to fix. Fortunately, there’s no reason to have to do it. It doesn't need fixing. All right?

Thank you very much. Thank you to the people of Germany and Bavaria. You guys were wonderful hosts.

END

Quote:

 

http://khn.org/news/what-health-law-many-poor-people-still-unaware-of-obamacare-options/

What Health Law? Many Poor People Still Unaware Of Obamacare Options

Even in Kentucky, which championed the 2010 health care law by expanding Medicaid and running its own insurance marketplace, about half of poor people say they have heard little about the Affordable Care Act, according to a Harvard University study published Monday in Health Affairs.

[...]

Quote:

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/10/us/obama-speech-affordable-care-act-supreme-court.html
Before Supreme Court Weighs In, Obama Makes His Case For Health Law

Quote:

 

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-obama-healthcare-20150609-story.html
Obama Gives Sweeping Defense Of Healthcare Law As Supreme Court Ruling Looms

Quote:

 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/obama-to-defend-health-care-law-in-speech-1433864565
Obama Defends Health-Care Law In Speech

Quote:

 

http://www.npr.org/2015/06/09/413192456/obama-defends-health-care-law-as-supreme-court-ruling-nears
Obama Defends Health Care Law As Supreme Court Ruling Nears

Quote:

 

http://chicago.suntimes.com/washington-politics/7/71/675514/ahead-court-ruling-obama-says-health-law-now-us-reality
Ahead Of Court Ruling, Obama Says Health Law Now US Reality

Quote:

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/06/09/obama-health-care-law-supreme-court-catholic-health-association-speech/28726863/
Obama Defends Health Care Law Amid Supreme Court Case

Quote:

 

http://khn.org/news/obama-championing-the-health-law-says-it-shows-the-country-we-want-to-be/

Obama, Championing The Health Law, Says It Shows The Country ‘We Want To Be’

...the president said: “Behind every single story was a simple question – what kind of country do we want to be?”

...“There’s something just deeply cynical about the ceaseless, endless, partisan attempts to roll back progress,”

...“This isn’t about myths or rumors that folks try to sustain. There is a reality that people on the ground, day to day, are experiencing. Their lives are better.”
[According to the man mandating how they live their lives!]

Quote:

 

Obama Defends Health-Care Law In Speech

wingedwheel

Jun 11 2015, 05:49 AM

Bathhouse Barry probably has the goods on Roberts and knows the court is going to decide in his favor. He is just acting like Deion Sanders and high-stepping his way to the end zone with these latest statements.

Quote:

 

http://khn.org/news/some-insured-patients-still-skip-care-because-of-high-costs/

Some Insured Patients Still Skip Care Because Of High Costs

A key goal of the Affordable Care Act is to help people get health insurance who may have not been able to pay for it before. But the most popular plans – those with low monthly premiums – also have high deductibles and copays. And that can leave medical care still out of reach for some.

Renee Mitchell of Stone Mountain, Georgia is one of those people. She previously put off a medical procedure because of the expense. But as the threat of losing part of her vision became a real possibility, she sought an eye specialist at Emory University, who told her she needed surgery to correct an earlier cataract procedure gone wrong.

The eye surgery is not the scariest part, she said. Cost is: “further copays [and] more out-of-pocket expenses.”

Mitchell is generally pleased with her insurance — a silver-level Obamacare plan. It’s the most popular type of plan with consumers because of the benefits it provides for the money. But she still struggles to keep up with her part of the bills. She is not alone.

“One in four adults who were fully insured for the whole year still reported they went without some needed medical care because they couldn’t afford it,” said Lydia Mitts, a senior policy analyst with the health care advocacy group, Families USA.

Mitchell still owes more than $20,000 for several years of medical expenses, with more debt accruing in interest each month. “If not for having availability on my credit card, we’d probably be in the poorhouse,” Mitchell said.

If she undergoes that eye surgery, she said, she’ll owe another $4,000 – the deductible for the operation.

“It’s a very big burden,” Mitchell said.

A recent study released by Families USA shows that a lot of people with coverage like Mitchell’s feel a similar burden, and a poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds the same thing. The majority of people who buy insurance on state or federal exchanges pick silver-level plans, which often carry a lower monthly premium, but may still have a high annual deductible – $1,500 or more.

“Consumers are still struggling with unaffordable, out-of-pocket costs,” says Mitts.

Many people in that situation skip follow-up care and don’t fill prescriptions. Mitts said that only adds to long-term complications and costs.

But it doesn’t have to be that way, she said. Plans in some states, including Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida and Arizona, have recently done away with deductibles on some silver-level insurance plans. And for certain basic services, including doctors’ visits and generic prescriptions, other plans are requiring only a small copay.
[Doing away with deductibles is NOT something Obamacare pays for, it must result from higher premiums the tax credit subsidies does not cover.]

Still, while copays, deductibles and co-insurance weigh heavy on Renee Mitchell’s mind, they’re not her only insurance concern. Her monthly premium is also getting more expensive. This year, she said, it jumped by about $100 a month.

Mitchell wants to be clear, though: She’s not looking for a handout.

“People seem to think that we just want something for nothing,” she said. “I worked a lot of years. I took an early retirement to take care of my family. It’s not my fault, so to speak, that I’m here.”