Saturday Politics : The Obamacare Disaster

The open enrollment period for Obamacare is underway, and an architect of President Obama's health law said last week the plans offered need to be more affordable to increase participation rates. High-deductible plans are part of the problem. Dr. Emanuel -- brother of Obama chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, now mayor of Chicago -- is a former special advisor to President Obama on health policy. His comments followed the news that UnitedHealth Group, the nation's largest health insurer, said it may end its participation in Obamacare in 2017, citing "tempered" growth expectations for sign-ups for the plans. UnitedHealth Group recently projected $425 million losses on individual exchange plans for 2015 and 2016. Dr. Emanuel said some issues are specific to UnitedHealth : "They came in in the second year, and they might have gotten an adverse pool." According to Dr. Emanuel : "Affordability is absolutely critical across the board, because if we don't have affordable plans we are not going to get universal coverage. We've overplayed the high-deductible plans. People are feeling this is less and less insurance. And just more and more, 'I'm paying out of my pocket.'" Emanuel also cited soaring specialty drug costs : "They're affecting everyone. It's like 1% or 2% of the drug sales, but accounts for about 30, 40 or 50% of drug costs." ~~~~~ The government says penalties for not buying health insurance will rise substantially in 2016. Unless qualifying for an exemption, people will pay a penalty that's a percentage of taxable household income or per person, whichever is higher. In 2016, the percentage threshold goes up to 2.5% from 2% in 2015, with a maximum that's the average cost of a Bronze plan. The per-adult and per-child penalties more than double in 2016 to $695 and $347.50, respectively, with family maximums going from $975 to $2,085. ~~~~~ And, double-digit increases are coming in 2016 premiums for health insurance coverage -- from basic Bronze and Silver to top-flight Gold and Platinum policies. This is far above premium hikes between 2014 and 2015, according to a new analysis by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. : (1) monthly premiums for the lowest-price Silver plan median cost will rise by 11% in 2016, compared to a 7% increase between 2014 and 2015; (2) the median cost of the Bronze plans, one of the most popular offerings because of its relatively low premiums, will rise by 13% in 2016, compared to 7% this year; (3) high end Gold median premiums will jump 15% compared to 8% and Platinum will rise by 12% compared to 10% this year. ~~~~~ And, workers with employer-sponsored health insurance have seen costs more than double. Employees at mid-size and large companies paid $2,490 toward premiums and $2,208 in out-of-pocket costs (including copayments and deductibles) last year, for a total cost of about $4,700, according to a new report from Aon. In 2005, employees’ total healthcare costs were just $2,001. That is a 134% increase. ~~~~~Dear readers, it is most troubling that consumers will face soaring out-of-pocket costs for deductibles in 2016 – increases that often will negate the benefits of health care coverage and discourage its purchase. The Department of Health and Human Services insists there are plenty of plans available with low premiums -- yes, but afterward, sizeable out of pocket costs before Obamacare coverage actually kicks in. The New York Times recently published a survey showing that many of the newly insured are “feeling nearly as vulnerable as they were before they had coverage." More than half of Obamacare plans have a deductible of $3,000 or more, according to the NYT. Senate GOP Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said this week, “If you look at how it unfolded over the years, everything we predicted is coming true. Higher premiums, higher co-payments, higher deductibles, lost jobs.” Obamacare - Obama's disaster for insurers, doctors, hospitals, patients and taxpayers. Repeal and Replace is vital. But the GOP must explain how the 'Replace' will provide better, less costly healthcare for Americans.