Editor's notes: I wrote the following to a reader challenging the Right's criticism of ObamaCare. The program is, now, working wonderfully . . . so goes the nonsense coming from the Left. Here is my response with a promise of a more comprehensive article to come:
To Anonymous:
Referencing
the Daily Beast article cited in the comments, above:
The reader should know that it is as Left as anything used on this blog is Right.
Here is what I know about ObamaCare: First, is it a program that promises to be larger in scope and population than Medicare or Social Security and neither of those programs are solvent. The government has a proven record of malfeasance when it comes to the world of finance management. ObamaCare has not had time to go deeply in debt. It was set up to collect taxes for 4 full years before it began to spend money on payouts. More than this, the employer mandate has been postponed, which means ObamaCare will not be functioning at full throttle for another two to four years. Of course it will show a fairly stable circumstance. By 2030, we will see just how bad this program will be on the economy.
Every single major promise used to sell ObamaCare was and is a lie. No need to lie about a vibrant program.
The Daily Beast quotes "10 million" enrollees. The fact is the number is 8 million, with 4 million of these people enrolled into Medicare, which is NOT ObamaCare. In a NBC reports, approximately 700,000 folks are either illegals, have lied about their incomes, have been paid subsidies they must now pay back or have given bogus information as to their addresses and etc. In fact, the New York Times reported in April of 2014, " “The administration did not release two other crucial statistics that would help determine the success of the law: the number of people among the eight million who bought insurance for the first time and the number who paid for their premiums.”
Obama has postponed the employer mandate for two years now. And that involves 140 to 160 million policy holders. If ObamaCare was working as wonderfully as you claim, why haven't these people been forced into ObamaCare, as of this date? I mean it is working, right?
The promise was for a reduction of insurance premiums, a reduction of $2500 for a family of four. Did not happen. Why, if it is working as well as it should? My wife and I spent 10,000 dollars on health insurance, last year. No help from the government, here. None. At any rate - ObamaCare has signed up 4 million into the insurance program, another 4 million into Medicare and its total "private market" is just 16 million. The remaining 140/160 million are all on employer sponsored and doomed programs.
The reader should know that it is as Left as anything used on this blog is Right.
Here is what I know about ObamaCare: First, is it a program that promises to be larger in scope and population than Medicare or Social Security and neither of those programs are solvent. The government has a proven record of malfeasance when it comes to the world of finance management. ObamaCare has not had time to go deeply in debt. It was set up to collect taxes for 4 full years before it began to spend money on payouts. More than this, the employer mandate has been postponed, which means ObamaCare will not be functioning at full throttle for another two to four years. Of course it will show a fairly stable circumstance. By 2030, we will see just how bad this program will be on the economy.
Every single major promise used to sell ObamaCare was and is a lie. No need to lie about a vibrant program.
The Daily Beast quotes "10 million" enrollees. The fact is the number is 8 million, with 4 million of these people enrolled into Medicare, which is NOT ObamaCare. In a NBC reports, approximately 700,000 folks are either illegals, have lied about their incomes, have been paid subsidies they must now pay back or have given bogus information as to their addresses and etc. In fact, the New York Times reported in April of 2014, " “The administration did not release two other crucial statistics that would help determine the success of the law: the number of people among the eight million who bought insurance for the first time and the number who paid for their premiums.”
Obama has postponed the employer mandate for two years now. And that involves 140 to 160 million policy holders. If ObamaCare was working as wonderfully as you claim, why haven't these people been forced into ObamaCare, as of this date? I mean it is working, right?
The promise was for a reduction of insurance premiums, a reduction of $2500 for a family of four. Did not happen. Why, if it is working as well as it should? My wife and I spent 10,000 dollars on health insurance, last year. No help from the government, here. None. At any rate - ObamaCare has signed up 4 million into the insurance program, another 4 million into Medicare and its total "private market" is just 16 million. The remaining 140/160 million are all on employer sponsored and doomed programs.
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A great follow up article can be found here: http://humanevents.com/2014/04/21/the-truth-behind-obamacares-phony-8-million-signups/
I pay $1560 a year ($130./mo) for health insurance, and that includes long term disability insurance. My insurance is excellent and has not increased as much as it did during the Bush years. My taxes are less and my investments stronger than during the Bush years. America is going in the right direction under the leadership of President Obama.
ReplyDeleteShow some respect.
And yet, comments made in the main post, above, are dead on. "Has not increased as much . . ." are key words in your response. The promise was for lower premiums and that, by your own admission, did not happen. Again, there is not a single primary claim for ObamaCare that was true. Not one.
DeleteA competitive runner getting disability insurance?? Really ?? Geeeesh.
Not one prediction by the opposition has come true. ZERO!!
DeletePrediction: Obama is lying about premiums going down. Result: true.
DeleteObamaCare will not reach its enrollment goal of 8 million newly insured. True. No one claims the 8 million fantasy number is all "newly insured," no one.
The States exchanges will not work: True: only four are doing as good as expected . . . 4 of the 14. Maryland, Mass, Oregon are classic failures.
The rate of insurance premium growth has fallen due to the ACA. Health care price inflation is at its lowest rate in 50 years. Growth in premiums over the next nine years is likely to be lower than it was from the 1990s through most of the 2000s, it will average about 6% from 2015 to 2023. That's below the 7.2% increase in health care spending from 1990 through 2008.
DeleteWithout the ACA - YOU would be paying more today.
FACT.
Again, the Utopian promise was to reduce premiums, not slow the pase of rate increases !! Why don't we wait for the 2md rate hikes (since ObamaCare went into force) or the 3rd, 4th and 5th? YOUR projections into the next decade are hardly "fact." Lets not forget that that ObamaCare doubling and tripling cash deductibles at the fastest rate ever, is part of the reason premium growth has slowed. In 2010, the average or typical deductible was 1,200 dollars. Today it is $3,000 with many plans coming in at $6,000 to $12,000. The government has slowed the rise of premiums via forcing the patient to pay more in out-of-pocket dues. Slick. In 2007 and 2008, well before ObamaCare, premiums actually decreased. Increases in premiums, today, will increase every year as far as projections are made. And, again, the promise was to reduce the cost, not reduce the rise in cost.
Delete