Motley Fool healthcare article

[Moxie]

I thought this was a pretty good article about healthcare. I'm pretty sure it is going to get worse before it gets better.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/www.fool.com/amp/investing/2016/07/31/are-we-witnessing-an-obamacare-exodus.aspx?client=safari

Edited August 1, 2016 by Moxie

[Azalea]

Thanks for posting. More confirmation that healthcare shouldn't be for profit. 

[Annie G]

I received a 404 error when I clicked the link, but at least it came with an amusing haiku. 

 

Wayward electrons

circling lonely roundabouts;

Can't get their job done

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest]

Thanks for posting. More confirmation that healthcare shouldn't be for profit.

Amen!!

[SparklyUnicorn]

Another issue is what in hell is with the cost of everything medical?  It's gotten way out of line with sanity.  When a routine pap smear costs $1000 at the lab, something is really bleeping messed up. 

[Katy]

I'm not sure that the idea to model the system after the privatized French one wasn't an okay one; the problem is you can't go half way.  Their system works because of price controls.  Getting price controls past congress is unlikely unless & until the Supreme Court rules that redistricting to manipulate elections rather than based on something else (geography, population, etc).

[scholastica]

Part of the problem is allowing the insurance companies to tease out the business from the exchange vs. the employer sponsored group plans. Then they can say this isn't profitable and pull out. All the business in each state should be considered in the aggregate. If insurers offer employer sponsored plans, they should also be required to offer individual and exchange plans. UHC's group business is profitable in my state, yet they are still pulling out of the exchange here. They will still be allowed to offer group plans here. Not cool and the fault of our legislators and insurance commission.

[SparklyUnicorn]

On the plus side, I have personally known people who have benefited from these changes greatly.  In states that have expanded medicaid that has probably been one of the most helpful changes for those prior who could not afford any kind of insurance, but weren't quite poor enough (due to being minimally employed, etc.).  To give you an example of how stupid that was, a family member was on disability.  The type you earn through being employed long enough.  The person was making about $1000 a month (high cost of living state).  That was too much money to get any sort of assistance with medical, medications, etc.  Which is stupid if you are DISABLED!  You probably need some medical care!!  Now this is no longer an issue.  

[idnib]

I'm not sure that the idea to model the system after the privatized French one wasn't an okay one; the problem is you can't go half way.  Their system works because of price controls.  Getting price controls past congress is unlikely unless & until the Supreme Court rules that redistricting to manipulate elections rather than based on something else (geography, population, etc).

 

 

California will be voting on a ballot initiative in November. Perhaps things will begin at a state level like other things and eventually become federal. Not sure if it will pass and if it does, whether it will be challenged in court.

[Guest]

 

California will be voting on a ballot initiative in November. Perhaps things will begin at a state level like other things and eventually become federal. Not sure if it will pass and if it does, whether it will be challenged in court.[/quote

Doesn't Colorado have something similar coming up?

[MaeFlowers]

I read the other night that insurers just put in their requests for premium increases for next year. The average was 22% while some states requested as much as 53% (IIRC, that was Tenn.). How is that going to be sustainable?

[Excelsior! Academy]

I have watched obamacare negatively effect family members.  Our niece with a rare form of cystic fibrosis lives in Tennessee.  She goes in a couple of times a year to get her system cleaned out.  This requires a hospital stay and extensive antibiotics.  The last time she had this procedure done, her doctor came in crying and told her due to Obamacare he was not able to administer her antibiotics.  If she went home and had an emergency she could come back and get them.  His partner was retiring because he could no longer help the kids the way he needed to.

[Guest]

I have watched obamacare negatively effect family members. Our niece with a rare form of cystic fibrosis lives in Tennessee. She goes in a couple of times a year to get her system cleaned out. This requires a hospital stay and extensive antibiotics. The last time she had this procedure done, her doctor came in crying and told her due to Obamacare he was not able to administer her antibiotics. If she went home and had an emergency she could come back and get them. His partner was retiring because he could no longer help the kids the way he needed to.

Really?? Obamacare doesn't allow antibiotics?? Hmmm.

[Zinnia]

We have employer sponsored insurance.  It's never been wonderful insurance, but it was always right in the middle of average.  With the Obamacare rules, the company decided to use that as an excuse to raise premiums and lower out benefits.  We feel stuck because we don't qualify for subsidies because the company *does* offer insurance.

 

We pay about $700 a month for a high deductible with a high out of pocket.  It definitely is cheaper than on the exchange as an employee perk, but it's still a lot.  Our out of pocket is $12,000 a year.  If we had to pay that many years in a row, it would be very difficult on us, and I'm not sure we could do it.  

 

That seems to be the kicker of Obamacare--more people have insurance, but the out of pocket costs to go along with the large premiums make it hard to really "afford" healthcare.

[Excelsior! Academy]

Really?? Obamacare doesn't allow antibiotics?? Hmmm.

 

It is a specific type of intravenous antibiotics that needs to be changed out round the clock for several days.. As you can imagine a normal 10 day supply of amoxicillin pills wouldn't cut it.  I don't know the name.  

[Frances]

Thanks for posting. More confirmation that healthcare shouldn't be for profit.

Exactly. And while many insurers are hurting, many hospitals are making record profits and providing much less charity care because more people are insured.

[Frances]

I have watched obamacare negatively effect family members. Our niece with a rare form of cystic fibrosis lives in Tennessee. She goes in a couple of times a year to get her system cleaned out. This requires a hospital stay and extensive antibiotics. The last time she had this procedure done, her doctor came in crying and told her due to Obamacare he was not able to administer her antibiotics. If she went home and had an emergency she could come back and get them. His partner was retiring because he could no longer help the kids the way he needed to.

I asked my hospital husband pharmacist about this. It is very likely not due directly to Obamacare. The ACA primarily requires certain things to be covered by insurers and mandates coverage for everyone. But in response to falling profits, many insurance companies have stopped covering some things and required higher co-pays and deductibles. So it's more likely directly caused by the insurer and an indirect effect of Obamacare.

[Katy]

FTR, I lean libertarian.  But I see an inherent conflict of interest in corporations (whose first legal obligation is to stockholders) earning money from insurance and health care.  You can't do what's right for people if the only legal option is to raise the price of everything to maximize profits.  That's the real problem, the conflict of interest, not the "evil" insurance companies or politicians of any variety.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

It is a specific type of intravenous antibiotics that needs to be changed out round the clock for several days.. As you can imagine a normal 10 day supply of amoxicillin pills wouldn't cut it.  I don't know the name.  

This is not because of Obamacare IMHO. It is a result of an insurance company decision to limit coverage which happened all too often before Obamacare. Also, before Obamcare, this child likely would have been eventually uninsurable or have been dropped by insurance companies for being too sick. Now with Obamacare that cannot happen anymore.

[Haiku]

The last time she had this procedure done, her doctor came in crying and told her due to Obamacare he was not able to administer her antibiotics.

Obamacare does not deny certain treatments. That's the choice of the health insurance company, and this happened all the time even before Obamacare. The companies just didn't have a convenient political whipping boy to blame it on.

[Serenade]

We have employer sponsored insurance.  It's never been wonderful insurance, but it was always right in the middle of average.  With the Obamacare rules, the company decided to use that as an excuse to raise premiums and lower out benefits.  We feel stuck because we don't qualify for subsidies because the company *does* offer insurance.

When my husband was working for a company, we had a similar situation. And the company had the gall to tell the employees at an all employee meeting that if they didn't like the company insurance, they could sign up for Obamacare.

 

 

We pay about $700 a month for a high deductible with a high out of pocket.  It definitely is cheaper than on the exchange as an employee perk, but it's still a lot.  Our out of pocket is $12,000 a year.  If we had to pay that many years in a row, it would be very difficult on us, and I'm not sure we could do it.  

 

That seems to be the kicker of Obamacare--more people have insurance, but the out of pocket costs to go along with the large premiums make it hard to really "afford" healthcare.

This is us. We have Obamacare and pay an arm and a leg for it, but we can't use it. Every medical test is now out of pocket until we reach a very high deductible. Well, guess what? Today doctors don't diagnose much without an expensive lab test. Hardly anything is done by observation as was done even just a few years back. We're seriously thinking about ditching the Obamacare and just paying the fine instead.

[Excelsior! Academy]

I asked my hospital husband pharmacist about this. It is very likely not due directly to Obamacare. The ACA primarily requires certain things to be covered by insurers and mandates coverage for everyone. But in response to falling profits, many insurance companies have stopped covering some things and required higher co-pays and deductibles. So it's more likely directly caused by the insurer and an indirect effect of Obamacare.

 

 

This is not because of Obamacare IMHO. It is a result of an insurance company decision to limit coverage which happened all too often before Obamacare. Also, before Obamcare, this child likely would have been eventually uninsurable or have been dropped by insurance companies for being too sick. Now with Obamacare that cannot happen anymore.

 

She definitely would have been dropped and/or uninsurable.  I am not sure how they had their insurance up until now.  Her form of cystic fibrosis lies in her stomach.  She had very greenish-blue diapers when she was a baby.  That was what tipped them off that something wasn't right.  Fortunately some of the best Cystic Fibrosis doctors in the US are in Tennessee.

 

Obamacare does not deny certain treatments. That's the choice of the health insurance company, and this happened all the time even before Obamacare. The companies just didn't have a convenient political whipping boy to blame it on.

 

These responses are very interesting, especially the bolded.  I will certainly pass them along to SIL.  I didn't have internet this morning and couldn't post as such.  SIL ended up being able to get antibiotics sent to her house to the tune of $$$$.  I am not sure of all the details, but it was a mess and a half!

[idnib]

Doesn't Colorado have something similar coming up?

 

I've been following CA closely because I live here. I think CO has a more general universal healthcare ballot initiative, but if there's one specifically about prescription drug prices, I haven't heard anything.