America First=Seccession

[HarleyDog]

(02-22-2023, 04:21 PM)Dill Wrote: Yo H-Dog!

1. I'm sure that you know all kinds of things about the ACA and its effects that I do not, if you are working with "benefits" etc. My son, moving between handyman jobs for several years, was able to have insurance thanks to the ACA. That's my closest experience to it on the receiving end. If you can explain, using specifics, how it causes you and your company problems, I would be very interested in hearing what you have to say, not in "refuting" it, though I might have questions. Another question--is it possible the rise in insurance rates has more to do with nature of American insurance, capitalism and free market ideology than Obama/Dems? The insurance was ALWAYS going to go up in cost, right? With the ACA more are able to afford it and insurance companies can't punish you for illness by refusing coverage.

2. I bring Fox in because their job is to disrupt sober, careful analysis of policy, turning everything back to Dems as primary cause, dumping disinformation on voters, etc.  Remember Nixon instituted HMOs to help cut health care casts back in '73(?). And they were serving people well as non-profits--until the Reagan era when they were converted to for-profit, sold, and used to "harvest" profits for investors. Obama would have preferred something like a non profit insurance solution, but that could only be possible if the Republican base were on board. So Obama had to take what he could. If that still brings in the flaws of "free-market" insurance, It is not really clear analysis to see him as "cause." 

Just an example of 1 employee who had previous health issues when we had ACA backed healthcare plan. His premiums were (IIRC) $305wk ($238 out-of-pocket). His wife didn't work and he carried her on our health plan. He grossed about $1100wk. This was on a $6500 deductible plan. Eventually, I was able to find another plan with Anthem which shared the premiums between the workforce and everyone paid the same. After 1yr, our premiums rose 49%. This now made this plan unaffordable as well. 

I remember when I was a kid, my dad paid $1 a week for insurance on the family (General Motors). Of course, GM covered most of the premiums but it was affordable and if a spouse carried insurance you had secondary insurance and didn't have to worry about a bill. Not sure why I even brought that up because those are good ole days gone. 

Anyway, Here's what sucks. The owners and I got together and found a way to pay 100% of the premiums for all our employees who have coverage. In August, when renewal comes, if they raise the rates another 49%, that will hurt big time and may eventually cause us to stop providing it and just give employees so much per month to go find their own healthcare plan, which they won't be able to afford.