Issues That Matter

Health Care

Obama made healthcare reform one of the main campaign trail pledges promising he would have a healthcare reform bill pushed through Congress before his first year as President that would make you better off than before.  Here is the reality about the Obamacare bill.

• Myth
  Obama said “No matter how we reform healthcare, we will keep this promise to the American people, if you like your doctor, you will get to keep your doctor.” If you like your healthcare plan, you will be able to keep your healthcare plan. No one will take it away no matter what.”
  
  Reality
  160 million Americans with job-based coverage will not, in fact, be able to keep what they currently have.
• Myth
  Obama says this will not hurt Seniors
  
  Reality
  Among those 160 million that will lose their coverage, 10 million Seniors will loose their plans. Take the AARP MedicareRX Saver plan for example.  It offers lower premiums in exchange for limited coverage.  Those currently covered will be switched to the Preferred Plan, which costs 15% more.  Obamacare will discontinue 10 million plans [for Seniors] and seven of the top 10 national plans raising their premiums and cut their benefits. Harvard Pilgrim Health Care notified its customers its dropping Medicare Advantage health insurance program at the end of the year.  This will force 22,000 senior citizens in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine off their coverage.
• Myth
  Obama says healthcare reform will make healthcare more affordable
  
  Reality
  Thirty companies and organizations including Jack in the Box Inc., McDonald’s, the United Federation of Teachers, and Bank of America are in danger dropping their healthcare coverage. The Department of Health and Human Services said it granted waivers in late September so workers with minimum plans would keep coverage without major premium increases. The agency provided the list of exemptions.
• Myth
  Under healthcare reform bill, you will not see a rise in your healthcare premiums.
  
  Reality
  Premiums have already gone up 20-100% already under Obamacare. Regence Blue Shield already sent letters saying rates are going up.  Ralph Nilssen is one of the insured that is being slapped with a premium that will now tripled from $532 to $1596.  The Obama administration also allowed companies to charge higher premiums for coverage of children with serious medical problems, if state law allowed it.  This is because insurance companies have stopped creating plans for children because they are unsure of what the new healthcare laws even are. Federal workers will see their rates go up 7.2% on average.
• Myth
  No cuts will be made to Medicare
  
  Reality
  $575 Billion in cuts will be made to Medicare
• Myth
  Healthcare won’t hurt small business
  
  Reality
  80% of small-businesses will be forced to drop their coverage because of costs.
• Myth
  Healthcare finance has already been figured out and paid for. “Our proposal is paid for. This plan does not expand the deficit. That’s why we pay for what we do.” –President Obama
  
  Reality
  They are going to pay for the plan by taxing Americans.  Here is how: Obama make this healthcare finance sound great by saying employers will spend less money on healthcare and be able to give workers higher wages.  But what that actually does is push workers into a higher tax bracket and taxes them higher on their income tax. The new thresholds will be $10,200 for singles, up from $8,500 in the Senate bill; and to $27,500 for families, up from $23,000 in the Senate bill. The thresholds would be higher still for retirees and employees in high-risk professions ($11,850 for individuals and $30,950 for families). Taxes on investments, so a family of four with earned income of $350,000 and investment income of $50,000 would pay additional taxes of about $2,800 a year, while a family of two earning $240,000 would pay no additional tax. Medicare tax would increase up to almost 10%.