Category Archives: Health Insurance

UnitedHealth Group pulling out of Obamacare exchanges?, Expects major losses on its business through Affordable Care Act, Other insurers sounding alarms about their exchange business, Many insurers have raised premiums to cover medical costs of enrollees

Posted on November 19, 2015 | 18 comments

UnitedHealth Group pulling out of Obamacare exchanges?, Expects major losses on its business through Affordable Care Act, Other insurers sounding alarms about their exchange business, Many insurers have raised premiums to cover medical costs of enrollees

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year. We will not wait 20 years from now to do it, or 10 years from now to do it. We will do it by the end of my first term as president.”…Barack Obama

“Dean Griffin liked the health insurance he purchased for himself and his wife three years ago and thought he’d be able to keep the plan even after the federal Affordable Care Act took effect.

But the 64-year-old recently received a letter notifying him the plan was being cancelled because it didn’t cover certain benefits required under the law.

The Griffins, who live near Philadelphia, pay $770 monthly for their soon-to-be-terminated health care plan with a $2,500 deductible. The cheapest plan they found on their state insurance exchange was a so-called bronze plan charging a $1,275 monthly premium with deductibles totalling $12,700. It covers only providers in Pennsylvania, so the couple, who live near Delaware, won’t be able to see doctors they’ve used for more than a decade.”…Times Colonist November 2, 2013

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

 

From Market Watch November 19, 2015.

“UnitedHealth Group Inc. said it expects major losses on its business through the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges and will consider withdrawing from them, in the most prominent signal so far of health insurers’ struggles with the health law’s marketplaces.

The disclosure by the biggest U.S. health insurer, which had just last month sounded optimistic notes about the segment’s prospects, will sharply boost worries about the sustainability of the law’s signature marketplaces, amid signs that many insurers’ losses on the business continue to mount.

UnitedHealth Group’s chief executive, Stephen J. Hemsley, said it made the move, which included a downgrade of its earnings projections for 2015, amid reduced growth expectations, the expected shutdowns of the majority of the health law’s nonprofit cooperative insurers, and signs that its own enrollees continue to increase their use of medical services, raising costs.
As a result, UnitedHealth said it is pulling back on marketing its exchange products, as open enrollment is currently under way for plans that will take effect in 2016. And the insurer said it is “evaluating the viability of the insurance exchange product segment and will determine during the first half of 2016 to what extent it can continue to serve the public exchange markets in 2017.” UnitedHealth had previously expanded its exchange offerings to 11 new states for 2016, and said in October it had around 550,000 people enrolled.

UnitedHealth said it was revising its 2015 earnings projection to $6 a share, from a previous range of $6.25 to $6.35. The move reflected “pressure” of $425 million, or 26 cents a share, tied to individual plans sold under the health law, it said. The $425 million includes $275 million related to the “advance recognition” of losses it expects to incur in 2016. UnitedHealth also said it expects its 2016 earnings to be between $7.10 and $7.30 per share in 2016; previously, the company said it thought next year’s earnings would be within the range of analysts’ projections, then around $7.09 to $7.55.

Chris Rigg, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group, wrote that it was likely “this is more of an industry issue,” and if the exchanges don’t stabilize, he would expect UnitedHealth to “exit this business line.”

UnitedHealth’s announcement comes as other insurers have been sounding alarms about their exchange business, but the big insurer went considerably farther than its peers in flagging the recent rapid deterioration of its performance and raising concerns about future viability. UnitedHealth also changed its own tone markedly from its Oct. 15 earnings call, when it said it expected “strikingly better” results on the exchanges in 2016, due partly to price increases that it said averaged in the double digits.

The impact of the insurance industry’s struggles is already clear in the products currently on offer in the marketplaces, many of which are aimed at stanching a flood of red ink. For these plans, which will take effect in 2016, many insurers have raised premiums in order to cover the medical costs of enrollees, which have run higher than many companies originally projected, fueling this year’s losses. Insurers have also shifted to offering more limited choices of health-care providers. The majority of the startup cooperative insurers created under the health law are slated to shut down.

Analysts say the danger is that higher rates might discourage enrollment, particularly by the younger, healthier consumers that the marketplaces need to draw in, since they are the ones that are most likely to feel they can go without insurance. That would have the effect of driving premiums even higher in the future, because insurers would need more rate increases to cover the costs of a smaller, sicker pool of enrollees. At its worst, this cycle can feed on itself, creating what the industry calls a “death spiral.””

Read more:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/unitedhealth-cuts-guidance-citing-obamacare-2015-11-19

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Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Lies, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare

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Obamacare costs skyrocket and low income people can’t afford, Huge deductibles hidden story emerges, Hospitals medical providers and public will pay for unpaid bills, Family spent half its annual income paying for obamacare

Posted on November 16, 2015 | 54 comments

Obamacare costs skyrocket and low income people can’t afford, Huge deductibles hidden story emerges, Hospitals medical providers and public will pay for unpaid bills, Family spent half its annual income paying for obamacare

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year. We will not wait 20 years from now to do it, or 10 years from now to do it. We will do it by the end of my first term as president.”…Barack Obama

“Dean Griffin liked the health insurance he purchased for himself and his wife three years ago and thought he’d be able to keep the plan even after the federal Affordable Care Act took effect.

But the 64-year-old recently received a letter notifying him the plan was being cancelled because it didn’t cover certain benefits required under the law.

The Griffins, who live near Philadelphia, pay $770 monthly for their soon-to-be-terminated health care plan with a $2,500 deductible. The cheapest plan they found on their state insurance exchange was a so-called bronze plan charging a $1,275 monthly premium with deductibles totalling $12,700. It covers only providers in Pennsylvania, so the couple, who live near Delaware, won’t be able to see doctors they’ve used for more than a decade.”…Times Colonist November 2, 2013

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

Citizen Wells has been warning you for years that aside from the catastrophic effect of Obamacare on premiums our healthcare system and jobs, the hidden story was rising deductibles that lower income people will not be able to pay and the burden this will place on the entire country.

From Citizen Wells October 17, 2013.

Obamacare is increasing healthcare premiums in 45 states.

A 27 year old in Virginia will see an increase of over 252 percent.

And one of the biggest under reported Obama scandals is the skyrocketing deductibles under Obamacare.

https://citizenwells.com/2013/10/17/obamacare-increases-premiums-in-45-states-deductibles-skyrocket-27-year-old-in-va-up-252-percent-obama-lied-about-keeping-your-insurance-and-reducing-costs/

From Zero Hedge November 15, 2015.

“Meet The Family That Just Spent Half Its Annual Income Paying For Obamacare”

“Well, since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, also known as the Obamacare tax, we have watched in horror as shocker after shocker are revealed.

Some examples:

Now we can add one more thing that “was in it”: soaring deductibles, which give the fake impression of contained, low all-in costs… until one actually needs expensive medial help (and these days there is no other kind).

The latest expose against Obamacare comes not from its usual nemesis, but the hard-left NYT, suggesting that even the ideological supporters of Obama’s “crowning achievement” are losing faith. To wit:

Obama administration officials, urging people to sign up for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, have trumpeted the low premiums available on the law’s new marketplaces.

 

But for many consumers, the sticker shock is coming not on the front end, when they purchase the plans, but on the back end when they get sick: sky-high deductibles that are leaving some newly insured feeling nearly as vulnerable as they were before they had coverage.

 

“The deductible, $3,000 a year, makes it impossible to actually go to the doctor,” said David R. Reines, 60, of Jefferson Township, N.J., a former hardware salesman with chronic knee pain. “We have insurance, but can’t afford to use it.”

 

In many states, more than half the plans offered for sale through HealthCare.gov, the federal online marketplace, have a deductible of $3,000 or more, a New York Times review has found. Those deductibles are causing concern among Democrats — and some Republican detractors of the health law, who once pushed high-deductible health plans in the belief that consumers would be more cost-conscious if they had more of a financial stake or skin in the game.

 

“We could not afford the deductible,” said Kevin Fanning, 59, who lives in North Texas, near Wichita Falls. “Basically I was paying for insurance I could not afford to use.” He dropped his policy.

In other words, Obamacare’s “affordable care” is affordable, as long as one doesn’t actually have to use it!”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-11-15/meet-family-just-spent-half-its-annual-income-paying-obamacare

 

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Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Economy, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Lies, Medicine, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare

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Obamacare nightmare unaffordable, Higher premiums and deductibles, Job losses part time jobs, School closes, MIT economist Jonathan Gruber lack of transparency and stupidity of American voter allowed Obamacare to be passed

Posted on October 27, 2015 | 26 comments

Obamacare nightmare unaffordable, Higher premiums and deductibles, Job losses part time jobs, School closes, MIT economist Jonathan Gruber lack of transparency and stupidity of American voter allowed Obamacare to be passed

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year.”…Barack Obama

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico has requested rate increases averaging 51 percent for its 33,000 members. The proposal elicited tart online comments from consumers.”

““Our enrollees generated 24 percent more claims than we thought they would when we set our 2014 rates,” said Nathan T. Johns, the chief financial officer of Arches Health Plan, which covers about one-fourth of the people who bought insurance through the federal exchange in Utah. As a result, the company said, it collected premiums of $39.7 million and had claims of $56.3 million in 2014. It has requested rate increases averaging 45 percent for 2016.”…NY Times July 3, 2015

“Nearly half of U.S. companies are reluctant to hire full-time employees because of the ACA. One in five firms indicates they are likely to hire fewer employees, and another one in 10 may lay off current employees in response to the law.

Other firms will shift toward part-time workers. More than 40 percent of CFOs say their companies will consider switching some jobs to less than 30 hours per week or targeting part-time workers for future employment.”…Duke University Fuqua School of Business December 11, 2013

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

 

Obamacare sticker shock.

Well there should have been.

First clues?

The biggest liar ever to occupy the White House was pushing it and the IRS is involved.

For 2016 there will be a penalty up to $ 695 per uninsured household member.

But that may be the good news.

In June of 2015 MIT economist Jonathan Gruber, a paid Obama consultant, explained out Obamacare was passed.

“lack of transparency”
“the stupidity of the American voter”

Obamacare reality shock.

Citizen Wells has been reporting about the rising premiums and impact on jobs from Obama care.

From Citizen Wells August 8, 2015.

“Blue Cross now seeking 34.6% rate hike in NC for ACA plans

Insurer is scrapping June request for 25.7% increase

Blames Affordable Care Act for driving up costs”

https://citizenwells.com/2015/08/08/nc-blue-cross-raises-obamacare-premiums-34-6-percent-obama-lies-healthcare-dies-affordable-care-act-driving-up-costs-replaces-june-request-of-25-7-aca-customers-use-expensive-services-for-chronic/

From Citizen Wells March 10, 2015.

“‘Over the last six months, of the net job creation, 97 percent of that is part-time work,’ said Keith Hall, a senior researcher at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center. ‘That is really remarkable.’”Hall is no ordinary academic. He ran the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the agency that puts out the monthly jobs report, from 2008 to 2012. Over the past six months, he said, the Household Survey shows 963,000 more people reporting that they were employed, and 936,000 of them reported they’re in part-time jobs.” ‘That is a really high number for a six-month period,’ Hall said. ‘I’m not sure that has ever happened over six months before.’ “”
“How, then, to explain what’s happened since January? Back to the McClatchy article and Hall, the former BLS chief:

“Hall speculated that the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, shorthanded as Obamacare, might be resulting in employers shifting workers to part-time status to avoid coming health care obligations.”

5.2 million full time employments lost Obama’s first year, Part time jobs created, Job myths lies exposed, Media lies, Whitehouse lies, Obamacare created more full times jobs?…let the drug testing begin, Gallup CEO Jim Clifton right

From Zero Hedge October 26, 2015.

“What was supposed to be affordable remains painfully unaffordable for the lowest rung of the employment pyramid.

Here is the actual math as experienced by both the abovementioned Mr. Sewell of Golden Corral restaurants, and his mostly minimum-wage employees.

He employs 1,800 people at the 26 Golden Corral franchises he owns in six Southern and Midwestern states, and previously offered insurance only to his salaried management staff. In January, when the employer mandate took effect, he made the same insurance plan, with a bigger employer contribution, available to all employees working an average of 30 or more hours a week.

Running the math on his plan — a typical one for the restaurant industry — illustrates why a number of low-wage workers are falling through gaps in the Affordable Care Act.

The annual premium for individual coverage through the Golden Corral Blue Cross Blue Shield plan is $4,800. Mr. Sewell pays 65 percent for service workers, leaving them with a monthly cost of $140.

The health care law defines affordable employer-sponsored insurance as that priced at 9.5 percent or less of an employee’s annual household income for individual coverage. (Because employers do not know how much money their workers’ relatives make, there are several “safe harbors” they can use for compliance, including basing their calculation on only their own employees’ wages.) Mr. Sewell’s insurance meets the test, but $65 per biweekly paycheck is more than most of his workers are willing — or able — to pay for insurance that still carries steep out-of-pocket costs, including a $2,500 deductible.

And this is where Obamacare’s employee mandate fails for a vast majority of US workers.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-10-26/latest-obamacare-fiasco-most-low-income-workers-cant-afford-affordable-care-act

From the Times Free Press October 14, 2015.

“Tennessee county closes schools, cites Obamacare as reason

Classes in a small, financially struggling school district in northern Tennessee have been canceled until officials can find a way to generate more revenue.

Clay County Director of Schools Jerry Strong said the school board made the decision Thursday night after struggling with budget concerns for three years. He said the district doesn’t have enough money to pay for partially unfunded government mandates.

“Clay County’s inability to generate the revenue to offset the mandates is what’s caused this to come to a head,” he said. “The straw that broke the camel’s back was really the Affordable Care Act for us and it has made it very difficult for us to have our employees properly covered and meet the mandates of the law.”

Read more:

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2015/oct/14/tennessee-county-closes-schools-cites-obamacare-reason/330504/

From the Washington Post July 3, 2014.

“We are seeing more part-time jobs because employers can’t afford to pay the Obamacare premiums for employees who work more than 30 hours a week. How many Americans will leave the workforce for good? How much lower will the labor force participation rate drop? In other words, how much more dependency will the Obama presidency create?”

Read more:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2014/07/03/the-insiders-this-months-jobs-headlines-dont-tell-the-true-story/

From Zero Hedge June 26, 2015.

“America’s Obamacare Nightmare Is Just Beginning”

“So, the debate will intensify over the primary issue: costs. In every state, the fundamental components of state health-care costs—the demographics, the underlying costs of care delivery and the competitiveness of the markets—are juiced up by expensive federal benefit mandates and individual and group insurance rules and regulations. These all drive costs skyward. As my Heritage colleagues have demonstrated, this regulatory regime forces young people to pay up to 44 percent more in premiums. Washington’s subsidies simply try to hide the true costs of the law; they don’t control them.

The law remains unworkable. The complicated insurance subsidy program itself has been a mess. H&R Block reported that about two thirds of subsidy recipients had to repay money back to the government because they got bigger than allowable subsidies. With the individual mandate, the administration has been granting lots of exemptions to insulate most of the uninsured from any penalty. That’s rather predictable; after all, even candidate Barack Obama argued that an individual mandate was unfair and unenforceable.

As for the employer mandate—another fractured cornerstone of Obamacare—the administration has delayed it for one year. Even liberal supporters now want to repeal it, fearing damage to the labor markets.

And what about those big “savings” from the Medicare payment reductions? They were earmarked to help cover the costs of the insurance subsidies. Yet the Medicare Actuary and the CBO have both routinely dismissed the massive Medicare payment cuts as either unrealistic or unsustainable.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-06-26/guest-post-americas-obamacare-nightmare-just-beginning

If I were the new president, the first thing I would do is immediately disconnect the IRS from our healthcare system and then begin methodically to dismantle Obamacare concurrently with providing basic healthcare services for lower income Americans.

Of course not requiring employers to provide health care combined with a real job creating environment would go a long way to fixing our jobs and economy crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

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Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Economy, Employment, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Jobs, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, Obama taxes, ObamaCare, Unemployment

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NPR Doctors To Get 70000 New Medical Codes, Morning Edition September 29, 2015, Federal government edict, Billing system that’s sure to cause headaches, Crashed in a spacecraft? That’s V95.41XA

Posted on September 29, 2015 | 28 comments

NPR Doctors To Get 70000 New Medical Codes, Morning Edition September 29, 2015, Federal government edict, Billing system that’s sure to cause headaches, Crashed in a spacecraft? That’s V95.41XA

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year.”…Barack Obama

“since 2008, average family premiums have climbed a total of $4,865.”… Investors Business Daily

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

I first heard of this last week from a physical therapist.

From NPR September 29, 2015.

“Doctors To Get 70,000 New Medical Codes

Doctors are getting a billing system that’s sure to cause headaches.

Introduced by the federal government, 70,000 new medical codes will describe diagnoses in detail.

Like this:

Crashed in a spacecraft? That’s V95.41XA.

Walked into a lamppost? Twice? That’s W220.2XD.

Others include, “Problems in relationship with in-laws…”

“Other contact with a squirrel …””

Read more:

http://www.npr.org/2015/09/29/444398839/doctors-to-get-70-000-new-medical-codes

Listen to Morning Edition:

http://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/

 

28 Comments

Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Doctors, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Medicine, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare, The Case Against Barack Obama

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NC Blue Cross raises Obamacare premiums 34.6 percent, Obama lies healthcare dies, Affordable Care Act driving up costs, Replaces June request of 25.7%, ACA customers use expensive services for chronic conditions and visit emergency department in high numbers

Posted on August 8, 2015 | 21 comments

NC Blue Cross raises Obamacare premiums 34.6 percent, Obama lies healthcare dies, Affordable Care Act driving up costs, Replaces June request of 25.7%, ACA customers use expensive services for chronic conditions and visit emergency department in high numbers

“Contrary to industry expectations, ACA (Affordable Care Act) customers continue to be unhealthy and use more health care services than expected. BCBSNC’s (Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina) data shows that ACA customers use expensive services for chronic conditions and visit the emergency department in high numbers.”…BlueCross BlueShield of NC August 6, 2015

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year.”…Barack Obama

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico has requested rate increases averaging 51 percent for its 33,000 members. The proposal elicited tart online comments from consumers.”

““Our enrollees generated 24 percent more claims than we thought they would when we set our 2014 rates,” said Nathan T. Johns, the chief financial officer of Arches Health Plan, which covers about one-fourth of the people who bought insurance through the federal exchange in Utah. As a result, the company said, it collected premiums of $39.7 million and had claims of $56.3 million in 2014. It has requested rate increases averaging 45 percent for 2016.”…NY Times July 3, 2015

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

Wasn’t Obamacare supposed to keep the costs of healthcare down?

Wasn’t Obamacare supposed to encourage preventive measures and reduce emergency room visits?

Who is going to pay for those high deductibles that many patients cannot afford?

Obama lies healthcare dies.

From the News Observer August 6, 2015.

“Blue Cross now seeking 34.6% rate hike in NC for ACA plans

Insurer is scrapping June request for 25.7% increase

Blames Affordable Care Act for driving up costs

Says most on ACA plans are chronically ill people who run up medical costs

Insurer also eliminating broad network plans in Triangle and Charlotte”

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Carolina’s largest health insurer, is scrapping its June request for a 25.7 percent rate increase in favor of a larger rate hike: 34.6 percent.

In announcing the change Thursday, the Chapel Hill organization blamed the Affordable Care Act for driving up costs by extending health insurance to many chronically ill people. As the state’s dominant health insurer and the only ACA insurer in several dozen counties, Blue Cross is seen as a barometer of North Carolina’s health insurance market for pricing and access.

The company’s request, which requires approval from state and federal regulators, would affect about 380,000 people Blue Cross covers in North Carolina on individual policies under the Affordable Care Act. It does not apply to the majority of the 3.9 million Blue Cross covers in the state under employer plans, state plans and other policies.

Blue Cross continues to see a large number of chronically ill people who require expensive medical care this year, the second year of ACA enrollments, said Patrick Getzen, the insurer’s chief actuary. The ACA made it illegal for health insurers to turn down people with pre-existing conditions and charge older customers exorbitant rates, common practices in the past that helped insurers control their expenses.

The architects of the health insurance law anticipated an influx of older, sicker customers, but expected that the cost of treating them would be offset by attracting younger and healthier customers. That hasn’t worked out for Blue Cross so far, despite the company’s marketing campaign to attract “young invincibles” and federal penalties for those who fail to obtain health insurance.

Getzen said that in 2014 the company’s health care costs in North Carolina exceeded revenue by $123 million, even after receiving $343 million in reinsurance and other financial assistance from the federal government to offset ACA expenses. Getzen said the financial picture was expected to improve this year, but he said that expenses keep rising.”

“For example, a 40-year-old non-smoker living in Raleigh who has a Blue Value Silver plan with a $2,500 deductible pays about $315 a month today. With the adjusted proposed increase, this customer will pay about $418 for the same plan in 2016, an increase of 32.7 percent.”

Read more:

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article30244941.html

“Muslims may appear very sincere; in fact, they are sincere, when they lie for their own protection or in the cause of Islam. They have permission to lie. Yes, Christians have also lied but never are they given permission to lie. However, a Muslim has no guilt since the Koran and Hadith permit his deception.”…Don Boys, Ph.D.

 

 

 

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Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Insurance, Lies, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare

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Obamacare increases skyrocket for 2016, Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico requested rate increases averaging 51 percent, 54 percent in Minnesota, Shock waves set off by Affordable Care Act, Obama lies your healthcare dies

Posted on July 7, 2015 | 49 comments

Obamacare increases skyrocket for 2016, Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico requested rate increases averaging 51 percent, 54 percent in Minnesota, Shock waves set off by Affordable Care Act, Obama lies your healthcare dies

“One of the CBO’s most intriguing estimates is that by 2017 there will be 2 million fewer full-time jobs on the market than there would have been without Obamacare, and that figure could climb to 2.5 million by 2024.”…Market Watch February 4, 2014

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year.”…Barack Obama

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

From the NY Times July 3, 2015.

“Health Insurance Companies Seek Big Rate Increases for 2016”

“Health insurance companies around the country are seeking rate increases of 20 percent to 40 percent or more, saying their new customers under the Affordable Care Act turned out to be sicker than expected. Federal officials say they are determined to see that the requests are scaled back.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans — market leaders in many states — are seeking rate increases that average 23 percent in Illinois, 25 percent in North Carolina, 31 percent in Oklahoma, 36 percent in Tennessee and 54 percent in Minnesota, according to documents posted online by the federal government and state insurance commissioners and interviews with insurance executives.

The Oregon insurance commissioner, Laura N. Cali, has just approved 2016 rate increases for companies that cover more than 220,000 people. Moda Health Plan, which has the largest enrollment in the state, received a 25 percent increase, and the second-largest plan, LifeWise, received a 33 percent increase.

Jesse Ellis O’Brien, a health advocate at the Oregon State Public Interest Research Group, said: “Rate increases will be bigger in 2016 than they have been for years and years and will have a profound effect on consumers here. Some may start wondering if insurance is affordable or if it’s worth the money.””

“The rate requests, from some of the more popular health plans, suggest that insurance markets are still adjusting to shock waves set off by the Affordable Care Act.”

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico has requested rate increases averaging 51 percent for its 33,000 members. The proposal elicited tart online comments from consumers.”

““Our enrollees generated 24 percent more claims than we thought they would when we set our 2014 rates,” said Nathan T. Johns, the chief financial officer of Arches Health Plan, which covers about one-fourth of the people who bought insurance through the federal exchange in Utah. As a result, the company said, it collected premiums of $39.7 million and had claims of $56.3 million in 2014. It has requested rate increases averaging 45 percent for 2016.”

Read more:

 

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Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC requests 25.7 percent rate increase for Obamacare plans in 2016, Higher premiums would help offset growing cost of medical services, 2015 rates increased 13.5 percent

Posted on June 2, 2015 | 49 comments

Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC requests 25.7 percent rate increase for Obamacare plans in 2016, Higher premiums would help offset growing cost of medical services, 2015 rates increased 13.5 percent

“If you’ve got health insurance we’re going to work with you to lower your premiums by $2,500 per family per year.”…Barack Obama

“Nearly half of U.S. companies are reluctant to hire full-time employees because of the ACA. One in five firms indicates they are likely to hire fewer employees, and another one in 10 may lay off current employees in response to the law.

Other firms will shift toward part-time workers. More than 40 percent of CFOs say their companies will consider switching some jobs to less than 30 hours per week or targeting part-time workers for future employment.”…Duke University Fuqua School of Business December 11, 2013

“We are being lied to on a scale unimaginable by George Orwell.”…Citizen Wells

 

 

From WRAL June 1, 2015.

“Insurers seek sizable rate increases on Affordable Care Act health plans”

“Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina has asked state regulators for a 25.7 percent average rate increase on individual insurance plans purchased under the Affordable Care Act for 2016.

The request, which still needs to be approved by the North Carolina Department of Insurance, doesn’t include employer-sponsored health plans or to any existing coverage grandfathered in under the federal health care law.

Two other insurers, Coventry Health Care of the Carolinas and United Healthcare, also offer plans through the HealthCare.gov marketplace to North Carolina residents. Coventry, which is merging with Aetna, has asked for an average 18 percent increase, while United submitted a request for an average 12.5 percent increase.”

“Higher premiums would help offset the growing cost of medical services, he said, noting the Blue Cross could revise its request in the next month or so and seek an even larger increase. The company based its current request on 2014 data and wants to collect more information on 2015 costs before deciding on amending its filings with state regulators.

The Affordable Care Act requires that insurers spend at least 80 cents of every premium dollar directly on health care. Blue Cross officials have said the company spends 86 cents of every dollar on care.

Rates for Blue Cross plans on HealthCare.gov increase by an average of 13.5 percent this year.

Getzen also noted that 15 to 20 percent of customers with HealthCare.gov plans canceled their coverage after paying initial premiums and consuming costly medical services.”

Read more:

http://www.wral.com/insurers-seeking-sizable-rate-increases-on-affordable-care-act-health-plans/14682626/

 

49 Comments

Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Economy, Employment, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare, The Case Against Barack Obama

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Q4 GDP boosted by Obamacare spending, Obama lies economy dies, Market Watch orwellian version vs Zero Hedge reality, Healthcare largest expenditure, Economy in ruins as food stamp usage soars for labor force dropouts

Posted on January 30, 2015 | 48 comments

Q4 GDP boosted by Obamacare spending, Obama lies economy dies, Market Watch orwellian version vs Zero Hedge reality, Healthcare largest expenditure, Economy in ruins as food stamp usage soars for labor force dropouts

“two-thirds of the “boost” to final Q3 personal consumption came from, drumroll, the same Obamacare which initially was supposed to boost Q1 GDP until the “polar vortex” crashed the number so badly, the BEA decided to pull it completely and leave this “growth dry powder” for another quarter. That quarter was Q3.”…Zero Hedge December 23, 2014

“One of the CBO’s most intriguing estimates is that by 2017 there will be 2 million fewer full-time jobs on the market than there would have been without Obamacare, and that figure could climb to 2.5 million by 2024.”…Market Watch February 4, 2014

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

 

 

The fourth quarter GDP was lower than forecast at 2.6 percent.

It would have been lower without the higher costs of healthcare brought on by Obama and Obamacare.

Here is the Orwellian spin from Market Watch.

“The U.S. economy slowed a bit more than expected in the fourth quarter after expanding at the fastest pace in eleven years during the fall, according to data released Friday.

Gross domestic product — the value of all goods and services produced by the U.S. — grew at a 2.6% annual clip in the fourth quarter, the government said Friday. That’s below the 5.0% pace recorded in the July-September period.

Economists polled by MarketWatch forecast GDP would grow by a seasonally adjusted 3.2% in the October-to-December period.”

“Consumer spending was a major positive in the fourth quarter, expanding 4.3%, the fastest pace since before the financial crisis.”

Read more:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/economy-downshifts-to-26-rate-in-the-fourth-quarter-2015-01-30

“Consumer spending was a major positive”????

And talk about Orwellian.

From Market Watch January 30, 2015.

“White House says economy grew 3.9% using a different measure of growth”

“On the surface this gives the appearance that the economy hit a sizable soft patch.Read full MarketWatch report.

But White House chief economist Jason Furman noted that all of the swings in the fourth quarter came from two notoriously volatile sectors—net exports and government spending.

In a blog post, Furman noted that the economy increased at a 3.9% rate in the October to December period, applying an alternative measure of GDP that strips out these volatile sectors. That figure is only a tad slower than the 4.1% rate in the third quarter.”

Read more:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/white-house-says-q4-gdp-was-pretty-steady-at-39-rate-2015-01-30?link=MW_home_latest_news

(Refer to the numerous “1984” quotes on this site for the proper decoder ring settings)

Now for the reality from Zero Hedge January 30, 2015.

“Thanks Obamacare: This Is What Americans Spent The Most Money On In Q4”

2014Q4 spending GDPobamacare

“If readers need clarification on what was the primary source of spending-based “growth” for the US economy in the fourth quarter, the same source that bumped up final Q3 GDP from 3.9% to 5.0%, please ping us: we will gladly explain the chart below. And just in case it is still unclear what Americans are spending their “gas sasvings” on, here it is one more time.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-01-30/thanks-obamacare-what-americans-spent-most-money-q4

From Zero Hedge December 10, 2014.

“The spin continues:

“It’s a fair bet that most of the reduced energy costs are going to show up as added spending by consumers somewhere,” said James Hamilton, an economics professor at the University of California, San Diego.

Here’s the thing, Professor Hamilton is spot on. The only problem is what this added spending will be used on. Sadly, it is neither trinkets, nor gadgets, nor BigMacs, nor even surging cell phone and home internet bills. Unfortunately for the proponents of the “oil crash is unquestionably bullish for America” (as an aside, the falacy of a statement is directly proportional to how “unquestionable” it is), where the bulk of “savings” for those Americans who have to spend on gas (primarily those Americans who commute to work, i.e. the middle class) is… on Obamacare.

Here is confirmation that in a centrally-planned economy, it is the unintended consequences that always prevail in the end:

Example 1:

Iowans are feeling the heat from Obamacare’s rising premiums, especially Wellmark customers with Blue Cross Blue Shield.

 

As of January 1, 2015, Blue Cross Blue Shield customers will experience a 14.5 percent increase in premiums, while Wellmark Health plans will see a 11.9 percent increase.

Example 2:

Hundreds of thousands of consumers nationwide who bought insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act will face a choice this fall: swallow higher premiums to stay in their plan, or save money by switching. That is the picture emerging from proposed 2015 insurance rates in the 10 states that have completed their filings, which stretch from Rhode Island to Washington state.

 

In all but one of them, the largest health insurer in the state is proposing to increase premiums between 8.5% and 22.8% for next year, according to a Wall Street Journal review of the filings. That percentage represents the average rate increases for all individual health plans offered by that carrier

Example 3:

Aetna has said it is likely to seek rate increases of more than 10% for individual marketplace plans in 2015, according to a note from Citigroup analyst Carl McDonald. An Aetna spokeswoman said that with health-law fees, generally increasing health-care cost trends and other factors, “that level of increase would not be out of the realm of possibility,” but it was too soon to say what it would request.”

Example 4:

Americans increasingly have to dig into their own pockets to pay for medical care, a shift that is helping to curb the growth in health spending by employers and the government.

 

The trend is being accelerated by the Affordable Care Act because many private plans sold by the law’s health exchanges come with hefty out-of-pocket costs, which prompt some people to delay or put off seeking care. For the exchanges’ 2015 policies, which went on sale last month, “bronze-level” plans have an average deductible of $5,181 for individuals, up from $5,081 in 2014, according to a November report from HealthPocket, which publishes health insurance market analyses. Bronze plans generally cover 60% of consumers’ medical expenses.

And that ignores the fact that the average deductible for workers who get employer health coverage has shot up 47% to $1,217 from $826, and that one in three Americans said they or a family member delayed medical care because of costs in 2014.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-10/what-americans-will-spend-their-whopping-380-low-gas-price-savings

 

 

 

 

48 Comments

Posted in 1984, Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Economy, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare, The Case Against Barack Obama

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High Obamacare deductibles causing high consumer debt and impacting credit reports, 52 percent of all debt on credit reports from medical expenses, 3 in 5 Americans don’t have savings to cover unexpected bills

Posted on January 8, 2015 | 3 comments

High Obamacare deductibles causing high consumer debt and impacting credit reports, 52 percent of all debt on credit reports from medical expenses, 3 in 5 Americans don’t have savings to cover unexpected bills

“The cost of health insurance will climb from a range of $61 to $77 monthly to a range of $118 to $133 monthly, according to a memo sent from UNC President Tom Ross to the UNC Board of Governors. On an annual basis, most students will pay about $500 to $700 more in 2012-13, depending on the campus.”

“Mallette said the insurance increases are due to the health care usage of UNC system students during the past couple of years, plus federal regulations on preventive care and pharmacy services issued in March. The process is complicated, he said, by the new provisions of the Affordable Care Act.”…Charlotte Observer May 1, 2012

“One of the CBO’s most intriguing estimates is that by 2017 there will be 2 million fewer full-time jobs on the market than there would have been without Obamacare, and that figure could climb to 2.5 million by 2024.”…Market Watch February 4, 2014

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

 

 

You have probably heard or read about the lying POC Obama bragging about the job he has done.

You are constantly bombarded by the Orwellian mainstream media about how much the economy has improved.

Yet most of you know, through your own personal experiences,  finances or by the fate of those you know, that what you are being fed is a huge lie.

Reported at Citizen Wells on January 5, 2015.

“Millions of Americans have already been shocked by premium increases as large as 100 percent. Average increases in some states are 45 percent.

What you probably are not being told about is the hidden problem of high deductibles and the impact on the US economy. More people with higher deductibles will not be able to pay them and the hospitals and healthcare providers will have to absorb the costs and ultimately pass them on to the American public.

I was discussing this problem recently with a friend who owns a Tax/accounting business. He told me that recently he was at a seminar and heard a hospital administrator explain this very topic.

Do not be fooled by the Orwellian Obama controlled mainstream media as they attempt to cover for Obamacare and the economy.”

Read more:

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2015/01/05/obamacare-surprises-and-clobbers-millions-of-americans-subsidy-refunds-to-irs-premiums-skyrocket-high-deductibles-unpaid-cost-to-hospitals-and-taxpayers-obamacare-increases-health-care-spending/

From the Charlotte Observer January 7, 2015.

“As Americans pay more out-of-pocket medical costs, Charlotte-area hospitals have begun offering multiyear no-interest payment plans to help patients with their bills.

The changes come at a time when health care reform has increased the number of Americans with insurance. But even those with insurance are spending more for their own care thanks to the rise in high-deductible plans. These plans have lower premiums but require consumers to pay more before reimbursement kicks in.”

“The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently reported that 52 percent of all debt on credit reports is from medical expenses.

While the Affordable Care Act sets a limit on how much anyone buying insurance through the marketplace must pay in deductibles, co-pays and coinsurance, even that amount would strain many budgets. For 2015, it’s $6,600 for an individual plan and $13,200 for a family plan.”

“Hospital officials said the first year of the Affordable Care Act showed that a subsidized policy with high out-of-pocket costs isn’t always much better than no insurance – for patients or hospitals. Low-income people often chose the high-deductible plans with the lowest premium, then avoided or delayed care because they couldn’t cover the deductible.

In the past year, Stephen Burr, senior vice president of patient financial services for Carolinas HealthCare, said the system’s financial counselors noticed that more people are “really having trouble paying their bills.”

Charity care for uninsured patients rose from $224 million in 2012 to $324 million in 2013 at Carolinas HealthCare, Burr said. Bad debt – the amount left unpaid by patients who don’t qualify for charity care – rose from $243 million in 2012 to $290 million for 2013.

“Affordable coverage usually comes with high deductibles, and patients are now responsible for more of the costs,” Burr said. “The ones that have that insurance (may not have been) fully aware of just how much they’re on the hook to pay for.””

Read more:

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2015/01/07/5431741/charlotte-hospitals-offer-interest.html#.VK7mAyvF-nY

From Zero Hedge January 7, 2015.

“3 In 5 Americans Don’t Have Savings To Cover Unexpected Bills”

“While various CNBC anchors may be willing to say that the US is “growing gangbusters” yet again confusing the liquidity-oozing equity markets with the economy, there are a couple hundred million Americans who would bet to differ (which incidentally may also explain why the Comcast channel no longer wishes to have its viewership calculated by Nielsen): the reason is that according to the latest Bankrate survey released today, more than three in five Americans don’t have money in their savings accounts to cover any unexpected bills such as a $500 car repair or a $1,000 emergency room visit.

In fact, only 38% of respondents said they have enough funds in their bank accounts to cover even the most mundane of spending emergencies.. Most others would need to take on debt or cut back elsewhere.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-01-07/3-5-americans-dont-have-savings-cover-unexpected-bills

 

Thanks to commenter oldsoldier79.

 

 

 

 

3 Comments

Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Health Insurance, Healthcare bill, Hospitals, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare, The Case Against Barack Obama

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Obamacare surprises and clobbers millions of Americans, Subsidy refunds to IRS, Premiums skyrocket, High deductibles unpaid cost to hospitals and taxpayers, Obamacare increases health care spending

Posted on January 5, 2015 | 107 comments

Obamacare surprises and clobbers millions of Americans, Subsidy refunds to IRS, Premiums skyrocket, High deductibles unpaid cost to hospitals and taxpayers, Obamacare increases health care spending

“The cost of health insurance will climb from a range of $61 to $77 monthly to a range of $118 to $133 monthly, according to a memo sent from UNC President Tom Ross to the UNC Board of Governors. On an annual basis, most students will pay about $500 to $700 more in 2012-13, depending on the campus.”

“Mallette said the insurance increases are due to the health care usage of UNC system students during the past couple of years, plus federal regulations on preventive care and pharmacy services issued in March. The process is complicated, he said, by the new provisions of the Affordable Care Act.”…Charlotte Observer May 1, 2012

“If you like your plan, you can keep it.”…Barack Obama

“millions of Americans are getting or are about to get cancellation letters for their health insurance under Obamacare, say experts, and the Obama administration has known that for at least three years.”…NBC News October 29, 2013

 

 

The Washington Examiner article below warns of surprises to as many as 3.4 million tax filers of Obamacare subsidies that could impact their tax refunds.

That may be the good news.

Millions of Americans have already been shocked by premium increases as large as 100 percent. Average increases in some states are 45 percent.

What you probably are not being told about is the hidden problem of high deductibles and the impact on the US economy. More people with higher deductibles will not be able to pay them and the hospitals and healthcare providers will have to absorb the costs and ultimately pass them on to the American public.

I was discussing this problem recently with a friend who owns a Tax/accounting business. He told me that recently he was at a seminar and heard a hospital administrator explain this very topic.

Do not be fooled by the Orwellian Obama controlled mainstream media as they attempt to cover for Obamacare and the economy.

From Zero Hedge December 23, 2014.

“Fast forward to today when as every pundit is happy to report, the final estimate of Q3 GDP indeed rose by 5% (no really, just as we predicted), with a surge in personal consumption being the main driver of US growth in the June-September quarter. As noted before, between the second revision of the Q3 GDP number and its final print, Personal Consumption increased from 2.2% to 3.2% Q/Q,  and ended up contributing 2.21% of the final 4.96% GDP amount, up from 1.51%.

So what did Americans supposedly spend so much more on compared to the previous revision released one month ago? Was it cars? Furnishings? Housing and Utilities? Recreational Goods and RVs? Or maybe nondurable goods and financial services?

Actually no. The answer, just as we predicted precisely 6 months ago is… well, just see for yourselves.

In short, two-thirds of the “boost” to final Q3 personal consumption came from, drumroll, the same Obamacare which initially was supposed to boost Q1 GDP until the “polar vortex” crashed the number so badly, the BEA decided to pull it completely and leave this “growth dry powder” for another quarter. That quarter was Q3.”

Read more:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-23/here-reason-surge-q3-gdp

From The Washington Examiner January 2, 2015.

“Half of Obamacare subsidy recipients may owe refunds to the IRS”

“As many as 3.4 million people who received Obamacare subsidies may owe refunds to the federal government, according to an estimate by a tax preparation firm.

H&R Block is estimating that as many as half of the 6.8 million people who received insurance premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act benefited from subsidies that were too large, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

“The ACA is going to result in more confusion for existing clients, and many taxpayers may well be very disappointed by getting less money and possibly even owing money,” the president of a tax preparation and education school told the Journal.

While the Affordable Care Act fines those who don’t have health insurance, it also provides subsidies for people making up to four times the federal poverty line ($46,680).

But the subsidies are based on past tax returns, so many people may be receiving too much, according to Vanderbilt University assistant professor John Graves, who projects the average subsidy is $208 too high, the Journal reports.

Tax preparers, who frequently advertise their ability to deliver big refunds, have been working feverishly to avoid customer anger stemming from lower-than-expected refunds due to insurance premiums. They also are trying to make sure customers understand the potential fines for not having insurance.”

“Eighty-five percent of our customers get a refund,” said Kathy Pickering, who directs the H&R Block Tax Institute, according to the Washington Post. “That refund could be offset by the penalty. And if that happens, they’re going to be understandably angry.”

Read more:

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/half-who-got-obamacare-credit-may-owe-the-irs/article/2558106

 

 

107 Comments

Posted in Barack Obama, Citizen News, Citizens for the truth about Obama, CitizenWells, Economy, Health Insurance, Hospitals, Obama, Obama administration, Obama lies, Obama Nation, Obama records, ObamaCare, The Case Against Barack Obama

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