Affordable Care Act Anecdotes - if you have 'em post 'em

[101A]

My sister and her husband own a small landscaping business North of Georgetown. They are doing OK - employee 6 - 10 workers depending on the season. Currently they have a group plan in which their family, and one of the employees are covered. They pay for their family; the employee pays for himself.

My sister called me yesterday when her renewal (12/1) came in with a $100 monthly increase. I told her to log in to healthcare.gov, and I would talk with her about her options/make recommendations. She got logged on, and after a little while came up with a list of options for her and her family. The bad news is that the premium for a similar plan to what she has now is ~$220 higher than what she was offered on renewal. The good news? The premium will be subsidized in full by The Federal Government. Her employee with coverage will also be covered, but his cost will be about $55/month for his plan - a saving of about $200 out of his pocket, on premium $75 more than the renewal offer they had.

So in short; my sister's family just got an $800/mo. raise, their employee $200 - AND the insurance companies get to make an additional $500!

Is this what they mean by "affordable"?

[AntiChrist]

The govt is picking up the tab, i.e. with OPM.

[Wild Cobra]

Yep.

I want to know what happens to all these people's healthcare plans when we run out of "other people's money?"

[Th'Pusher]

My sister and her husband own a small landscaping business North of Georgetown. They are doing OK - employee 6 - 10 workers depending on the season. Currently they have a group plan in which their family, and one of the employees are covered. They pay for their family; the employee pays for himself.

My sister called me yesterday when her renewal (12/1) came in with a $100 monthly increase. I told her to log in to healthcare.gov, and I would talk with her about her options/make recommendations. She got logged on, and after a little while came up with a list of options for her and her family. The bad news is that the premium for a similar plan to what she has now is ~$220 higher than what she was offered on renewal. The good news? The premium will be subsidized in full by The Federal Government. Her employee with coverage will also be covered, but his cost will be about $55/month for his plan - a saving of about $200 out of his pocket, on premium $75 more than the renewal offer they had.

So in short; my sister's family just got an $800/mo. raise, their employee $200 - AND the insurance companies get to make an additional $500!

Is this what they mean by "affordable"?

good! Hopefully they'll spend their new found money and drive some much needed demand in the economy.

[ElNono]

My sister and her husband own a small landscaping business North of Georgetown. They are doing OK - employee 6 - 10 workers depending on the season. Currently they have a group plan in which their family, and one of the employees are covered. They pay for their family; the employee pays for himself.

My sister called me yesterday when her renewal (12/1) came in with a $100 monthly increase. I told her to log in to healthcare.gov, and I would talk with her about her options/make recommendations. She got logged on, and after a little while came up with a list of options for her and her family. The bad news is that the premium for a similar plan to what she has now is ~$220 higher than what she was offered on renewal. The good news? The premium will be subsidized in full by The Federal Government. Her employee with coverage will also be covered, but his cost will be about $55/month for his plan - a saving of about $200 out of his pocket, on premium $75 more than the renewal offer they had.

So in short; my sister's family just got an $800/mo. raise, their employee $200 - AND the insurance companies get to make an additional $500!

Is this what they mean by "affordable"?

You mean the website actually worked? :lol

[101A]

You mean the website actually worked? :lol

Flawlessly; worked for several scenarios I've run, tbh.

[ElNono]

I actually tried to sign up to check the plans about a week ago, and all shit broke. Haven't returned since.

[boutons_deux]

Q. I’m sure you’ve been following the glitches and whatnot with the rollout of the health insurance marketplaces. You’re a health care futurist. Is this the future?

A. I am telling groups the metaphor is the Wright Brothers, not the Indianapolis 500. Let’s just get this sucker up in the air before we declare that flying is a bad idea. I just heard a panel of exchange execs say Massachusetts enrolled only 5% of its first year total in first month. The Washington state exchange is on that run rate. Everyone needs to chill out and see where we are by November 2014 when the election happens, not November 2013. The press frenzy is making this worse. Would you like to be fixing code under this scrutiny and pressure?

http://www.propublica.org/article/is-healthcare-dot-gov-the-future-we-ask-a-health-futurist (http://www.propublica.org/article/is-healthcare-dot-gov-the-future-we-ask-a-health-futurist)

[AntiChrist]

Flawlessly; worked for several scenarios I've run, tbh.


And you haven't been contacted by CNN?

[Bender]

I haven't been able to log on since it came live. I did go thru the account creation process finally, and I got the email, and I did the email confirmation, and I got the Success message about my account being created. Can't log on ever since then.

So, other than that, I guess I have no anecdote yet...

[Chief Brody]

Q. I’m sure you’ve been following the glitches and whatnot with the rollout of the health insurance marketplaces. You’re a health care futurist. Is this the future?

A. I am telling groups the metaphor is the Wright Brothers, not the Indianapolis 500. Let’s just get this sucker up in the air before we declare that flying is a bad idea. I just heard a panel of exchange execs say Massachusetts enrolled only 5% of its first year total in first month. The Washington state exchange is on that run rate. Everyone needs to chill out and see where we are by November 2014 when the election happens, not November 2013. The press frenzy is making this worse. Would you like to be fixing code under this scrutiny and pressure?

http://www.propublica.org/article/is-healthcare-dot-gov-the-future-we-ask-a-health-futurist (http://www.propublica.org/article/is-healthcare-dot-gov-the-future-we-ask-a-health-futurist)



Nobody's going to read this.

Sorry.

[boutons_deux]

Nobody's going to read this.

Sorry.

your loss, AND

you're not sorry. GFY

[AntiChrist]

You people are brave to give any personal data to that shitty website

[cheguevara]

You people are brave to give any personal data to that shitty website

I have to agree. IMO the system right now is a black hole that is daily being given bandaid after bandaid. Why should I put in ALL my info at this point?? it's like putting ALL your personal info into a black hole. I will wait at least 1 month until they have fixed it to a point of usability.

And I want to hear some answers from the incompetent Sebelius when she stands in front of Congress on the 30th of this month. I heard someone decided at the last minute to ban access to the entire marketplace unless you give ALL your info beforehand. I want to know who decided this and why.

There are some brave or desperate souls out there daring to use the system today. I commend you and hope they can fix it so the rest of us can use it at some point.


or maybe I might decide to give it another try at some point if I have 1 or 2 hours to waste :lol

[boutons_deux]

The Affordable Care Act’s Lower-Than-Projected Premiums Will Save $190 Billion

The Affordable Care Act is already working: Intense price competition among health plans in the marketplaces for individuals has lowered premiums below projected levels. As a result of these lower premiums, the federal government will save about $190 billion over the next 10 years, according to our estimates.

These savings will boost the health law’s amount of deficit reduction by 174 percent and represent about 40 percent of the health care savings proposed by the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform—commonly known as the Simpson-Bowles commission—in 2010.

Moreover, we estimate that lower premiums will lower the number of uninsured even further, by an additional 700,000 people, even as the number of individuals who receive tax credits will decline because insurance is more affordable.

In short, the Affordable Care Act is working even better than expected, producing more coverage for much less money.

http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/report/2013/10/23/77537/the-affordable-care-acts-lower-than-projected-premiums-will-save-190-billion/ (http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/report/2013/10/23/77537/the-affordable-care-acts-lower-than-projected-premiums-will-save-190-billion/)

[TDMVPDPOY]

dunno why u guys complaining about premiums, when each year they are subject to rise %>inflation rate :(

[boutons_deux]

dunno why u guys complaining about premiums, when each year they are subject to rise %>inflation rate :(

yep, but now the insurance companies hide behind the lie that the hikes are 100% due to ACA, and of course the tea baggers and Repugs are simply lying about everything.

[boutons_deux]

These three Texans want Sen. Cruz to shut up already about Obamacare (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/25/1250624/-These-three-Texans-want-Sen-Cruz-to-shut-up-already-about-Obamacare)

Stacy Anderson, from Fort Worth, runs her own business selling sweaters online. She says she has not had health insurance for the past seven years because the sweater business is not too lucrative. "It cost more than I made some months," she says. Anderson says she was just diagnosed with skin cancer, though it is not life-threatening. "I've had it, apparently, for the entire seven years I've been uninsured," she says. "It will be nice if I can buy health insurance and get it treated."

Jeffrey Coffey is a 49-year-old from Austin who earns a living as a musician. He says has insurance, but notes that the $361 monthly premium is "way expensive" on his $22,000 salary; he says he pays more because he has asthma. Coffey says he applied for cheaper plans numerous times this year, but was turned down. "Getting rejection letters is depressing," he says. When Coffey buys insurance on the exchange, he estimates he will able to get coverage for $160 a month, a $200 savings. "But so far I haven't been able to log on to the website," he adds.

Andrew (who prefers his last name not be used) is a BFA student at Texas State University in San Marcos. He's in his mid-30s and has gone without insurance for years because it's too expensive. He has also avoided doctors for fear that he'd be diagnosed with a chronic condition, and insurance companies would "blacklist" him when he finally applied for coverage. Andrew says he no longer has to worry about that when he signs up for insurance through the exchanges this month. Andrew and his wife, a pre-K teacher, want to have a baby soon, and he says that Obamacare makes it "much more affordable for us to plan when and where we will start a family. I no longer need to worry that, god forbid, if one of us gets sick, we will be dropped from our insurance."

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/25/1250624/-These-three-Texans-want-Sen-Cruz-to-shut-up-already-about-Obamacare?detail=email

[AntiChrist]

Obama admin knew millions could not keep their health insurance

http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/28/21213547-obama-admin-knew-millions-could-not-keep-their-health-insurance?lite

[TSA]

These three Texans want Sen. Cruz to shut up already about Obamacare (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/25/1250624/-These-three-Texans-want-Sen-Cruz-to-shut-up-already-about-Obamacare)

Stacy Anderson, from Fort Worth, runs her own business selling sweaters online. She says she has not had health insurance for the past seven years because the sweater business is not too lucrative. "It cost more than I made some months," she says. Anderson says she was just diagnosed with skin cancer, though it is not life-threatening. "I've had it, apparently, for the entire seven years I've been uninsured," she says. "It will be nice if I can buy health insurance and get it treated."

Jeffrey Coffey is a 49-year-old from Austin who earns a living as a musician. He says has insurance, but notes that the $361 monthly premium is "way expensive" on his $22,000 salary; he says he pays more because he has asthma. Coffey says he applied for cheaper plans numerous times this year, but was turned down. "Getting rejection letters is depressing," he says. When Coffey buys insurance on the exchange, he estimates he will able to get coverage for $160 a month, a $200 savings. "But so far I haven't been able to log on to the website," he adds.

Andrew (who prefers his last name not be used) is a BFA student at Texas State University in San Marcos. He's in his mid-30s and has gone without insurance for years because it's too expensive. He has also avoided doctors for fear that he'd be diagnosed with a chronic condition, and insurance companies would "blacklist" him when he finally applied for coverage. Andrew says he no longer has to worry about that when he signs up for insurance through the exchanges this month. Andrew and his wife, a pre-K teacher, want to have a baby soon, and he says that Obamacare makes it "much more affordable for us to plan when and where we will start a family. I no longer need to worry that, god forbid, if one of us gets sick, we will be dropped from our insurance."

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/25/1250624/-These-three-Texans-want-Sen-Cruz-to-shut-up-already-about-Obamacare?detail=email




Hey Stacy, find a new job if knitting sweaters doesn't bring in enough to buy insurance. Same goes for you Jeffrey, you sound like you must be a pretty shitty musician if you're only pulling in 22,000 a year. Find a real job and stop assuming other hard working people are okay with footing your bill. And Andrew, you can't even afford healthcare for yourself but you think you want to have a kid soon? You stupid piece of shit.

Thanks for the article boutons, needed a reminder of how many stupid fucks are putting their hands out.

[boutons_deux]

thanks for reminding us how prejudiced, ignorant, sociopathic you run-of-the-mill right-wing haters are. Please post a link to your hate for the 50 huge, wealthy companies in the Fortune500 who pay tax rate of 0%, aka, corporate welfare, or Walmart with its hand out to taxpayers to top up the shitty salaries of its employees.

[TSA]

thanks for reminding us how prejudiced, ignorant, sociopathic you run-of-the-mill right-wing haters are. Please post a link to your hate for the 50 huge, wealthy companies in the Fortune500 who pay tax rate of 0%, aka, corporate welfare, or Walmart with its hand out to taxpayers to top up the shitty salaries of its employees.

Fuck them too, and yourself as well. :)

[AntiChrist]

thanks for reminding us how prejudiced, ignorant, sociopathic you run-of-the-mill right-wing haters are. Please post a link to your hate for the 50 huge, wealthy companies in the Fortune500 who pay tax rate of 0%, aka, corporate welfare, or Walmart with its hand out to taxpayers to top up the shitty salaries of its employees.


lol, irony

[boutons_deux]

lol, irony

lol, shit for brains

[Clipper Nation]

thanks for reminding us how prejudiced, ignorant, sociopathic you run-of-the-mill right-wing haters are. Please post a link to your hate for the 50 huge, wealthy companies in the Fortune500 who pay tax rate of 0%, aka, corporate welfare, or Walmart with its hand out to taxpayers to top up the shitty salaries of its employees.
Translation: :cry "Stop disagreeing with me!" :cry

[boutons_deux]

Translation: :cry "Stop disagreeing with me!" :cry

she gave, I bitch slapped back. she retorted, wimpering, with a GFY

[SnakeBoy]

My current individual market plan is $315 month for my wife and I. I've received a letter from BCBS telling me I can keep this plan (for now) or switch to one of their ACA plans. Their website actually works so I took a look at the quotes. In order to get the same benefits we currently get the new ACA plan will cost us $835/month. The cheapest ACA compliant plan is $392/month with fewer benefits than our current plan and a $6000 per individual deductible compared to our current $2500 per individual deductible.

The only additional benefits I can see on the ACA plans are maternity/pediatric/substance abuse coverage...none of which we need.

[TSA]

My current individual market plan is $315 month for my wife and I. I've received a letter from BCBS telling me I can keep this plan (for now) or switch to one of their ACA plans. Their website actually works so I took a look at the quotes. In order to get the same benefits we currently get the new ACA plan will cost us $835/month. The cheapest ACA compliant plan is $392/month with fewer benefits than our current plan and a $6000 per individual deductible compared to our current $2500 per individual deductible.

The only additional benefits I can see on the ACA plans are maternity/pediatric/substance abuse coverage...none of which we need.

But you're helping Stacy, Jeffrey, and Andrew.

[101A]

My current individual market plan is $315 month for my wife and I. I've received a letter from BCBS telling me I can keep this plan (for now) or switch to one of their ACA plans. Their website actually works so I took a look at the quotes. In order to get the same benefits we currently get the new ACA plan will cost us $835/month. The cheapest ACA compliant plan is $392/month with fewer benefits than our current plan and a $6000 per individual deductible compared to our current $2500 per individual deductible.

The only additional benefits I can see on the ACA plans are maternity/pediatric/substance abuse coverage...none of which we need.

I assume your renewal is prior to 1/1? I"m thinking this is the last year you can keep that plan.

[cheguevara]

is there ONE person in here that has been successfully enrolled and is insured and happy with Obamacare? anyone? :lol

[boutons_deux]

Fox is pushing the propaganda that the govt knew MILLIONS would be forced to change their health insurance. Fox's message being that ACA pimps have been lying, but the minimum requirements for policies dictated by ACA have been known all along.

Heard a govt lady last night say yes, "junk" health insurance policies that were useless (high deductible, limited coverage, leading to medical personal bankruptcy if you really got sick, even after you spent $1000s on premiums) was terminated by the minimum requirements of ACA.

And of course, it's not ACA's fault if an insurance cancels your policy, they do that 100Ks times/year before ACA.

[SnakeBoy]

I assume your renewal is prior to 1/1? I"m thinking this is the last year you can keep that plan.

My understanding is that I can keep my plan until they make any slight change to the policy then it will no longer be grandfathered and I'll have to switch. I'm sure bcbs will do that at some point, why wouldn't they want to charge me more for less.

[SnakeBoy]

Fox is pushing the propaganda that the govt knew MILLIONS would be forced to change their health insurance. Fox's message being that ACA pimps have been lying, but the minimum requirements for policies dictated by ACA have been known all along.

Heard a govt lady last night say yes, "junk" health insurance policies that were useless (high deductible, limited coverage, leading to medical personal bankruptcy if you really got sick, even after you spent $1000s on premiums) was terminated by the minimum requirements of ACA.

And of course, it's not ACA's fault if an insurance cancels your policy, they do that 100Ks times/year before ACA.

You're full of shit as usual.

[boutons_deux]

You're full of shit as usual.

a devastating rebuttal, as usual.

Here's mine, equally fact filled: GFY

[Th'Pusher]

When I search for similar plans on healthcare.gov to what I receive through my employer (gold package for family), there are a number of plans (the majority) that are significantly less than what my employer/I pay. What's up with that?

[boutons_deux]

When I search for similar plans on healthcare.gov to what I receive through my employer (gold package for family), there are a number of plans (the majority) that are significantly less than what my employer/I pay. What's up with that?

complex stuff, you sure you're comparing apples and apples?

[TSA]

When I search for similar plans on healthcare.gov to what I receive through my employer (gold package for family), there are a number of plans (the majority) that are significantly less than what my employer/I pay. What's up with that?

You qualify for subsidies?

[Th'Pusher]

You qualify for subsidies?
No.

[TSA]

No.

That's good then. You're the first I've read here with something positive.

[Th'Pusher]

That's good then. You're the first I've read here with something positive.
Well, only 3 other people have provided any anecdotes and only 2 dealt with cost. And I'm still not sure I am comparing apples to apples as I can't see the specifics of the ACA coverage via the quick quote method. What I know is that my coverage through my employer is well over $14k per year (partially paid by me and partially paid by my employer) and the ACA site is quoting me $800 to $1k per month for the gold package which is 80% avg cost coverage (similar to what I get from my employer).

[SA210]

CBS: Insurance Companies Canceling Two Million plus Policies, and counting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Vb9zn0__V4&feature=youtu.be&t=59s

[TSA]

CBS: Insurance Companies Canceling Two Million plus Policies, and counting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Vb9zn0__V4&feature=youtu.be&t=59s

But but but......

"If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period,"-Obama

[SA210]

"Based on what little information the administration has disclosed, it turns out that more people have received cancellation notices for their health care plans this month than have enrolled in the (health care website)," said Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp.


Health Policy Cancellations: New blow for Obama


By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR and STEPHEN OHLEMACHER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP)

-- Move over, website woes. Lawmakers confronted the Obama administration Tuesday with a difficult new health care problem - a wave of cancellation notices hitting individuals and small business who buy their own insurance.

At the same time, the federal official closest to the website apologized for its dysfunction in new sign-ups and asserted things are getting better by the day. Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner said it's not the administration but insurers who are responsible for cancellation letters now reaching many of the estimated 14 million people who buy individual policies.

And, officials said, people who get cancellation notices will be able to find better replacement plans, in some cases for less. The Associated Press, citing the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, reported in May that many carriers would opt to cancel policies this fall and issue new ones. Administratively that was seen as easier than changing existing plans to comply with the new law, which mandates coverage of more services and provides better financial protection against catastrophic illnesses.

While the administration had ample warning of the cancellations, they could become another public relations debacle for President Barack Obama's signature legislation. This problem goes to the credibility of one of the president's earliest promises about the health care overhaul: You can keep your plan if you like it. In the spring, state insurance commissioners started giving insurers the option of canceling existing individual plans for 2014, because the coverage required under Obama's law is significantly more robust.

Some states directed insurers to issue cancellations. Large employer plans that cover most workers and their families are unlikely to be affected. The cancellation notices are now reaching policyholders, and they've been complaining to their lawmakers - who were grilling Tavenner on Tuesday. "Based on what little information the administration has disclosed, it turns out that more people have received cancellation notices for their health care plans this month than have enrolled in the (health care website)," said Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich. He cited a news report of 146,000 cancellations in his state alone. Up and down the dais, lawmakers chimed in with stories of constituents who had received similar notices.

Continued..

Read More at: http://www.news4sanantonio.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/health-policy-cancellations-new-blow-obama-administration-5220.shtml

[SnakeBoy]

But but but......

"If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period,"-Obama

That's actually a separate lie from the "you can keep your insurance" lie. My wife's practice will not participate in obamacare. In fact they have discussed switching to concierge medicine if thing get even worse than they have been. She doesn't want to because it would mean reducing her patient base from 3800 to around 700 patients, the rest get kicked to the curb. Personally I hope they do...more money, less work, to hell with ethics.

[TSA]

That's actually a separate lie from the "you can keep your insurance" lie. My wife's practice will not participate in obamacare. In fact they have discussed switching to concierge medicine if thing get even worse than they have been. She doesn't want to because it would mean reducing her patient base from 3800 to around 700 patients, the rest get kicked to the curb. Personally I hope they do...more money, less work, to hell with ethics.

My bad, got my Obama lies mixed up.

[boutons_deux]

Looks like CBS has its propaganda hatchets and lie spewing machine in action

Fox Finds New Anti-Health Care Star In CBS's Misleading Coverage

After CBS News ran a deceptive segment highlighting a Florida woman's increased health care costs, Fox News reportedly contacted the woman to appear on three of its shows. CBS has run several misleading segments on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) since the implementation of the law's exchanges.

On CBS' This Morning, political correspondent Jan Crawford highlighted the story of Dianne Barette, a Florida woman who received notice that her plan did not meet the ACA's minimum coverage requirements. In the segment, Crawford said Barette "pays $54 a month. The new plan she's being offered would run $591 a month, ten times more than what she currently pays." According to the Washington Post's media blogger Erik Wemple, after the CBS story aired, Barette was contacted by three Fox News shows, Fox & Friends, Your World with Neil Cavuto, and On The Record with Greta Van Susteren.

Wemple, who also interviewed Barrette, pointed out a detail the CBS report failed to mention: in addition to being inadequate, the coverage Barrette currently receives doesn't cover hospitalizations, something that "could well have bankrupted Barrette under her current insurance."

http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/28/fox-finds-new-anti-health-care-star-in-cbss-mis/196635



CBS This Morning's Research-Free Health Care Report

CBS News political correspondent Jan Crawford claimed that CBS couldn't "find anyone who's enrolled" in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) since the exchanges went online, proving not that Americans haven't signed up for the exchanges, but that CBS did not look very hard for examples.

On the October 16 edition of CBS This Morning, Crawford described the exchanges as a "complete disaster" and quoted from a Miami Herald article describing ACA enrollees as an "urban legend":

Contrary to Crawford's claim, reports of individuals who have successfully signed up for health insurance exchanges are readily available:

In addition, directly in the Miami Herald article Crawford quoted as describing enrollees as an "urban legend," there are several examples of citizens who have successfully signed up for the exchanges:

Reports of Americans successfully signing up for the exchanges are readily available. In Kentucky alone, 240 small businesses have enrolled in order to provide their staffs with healthcare. MSNBC reported that as of October 12 the state was averaging 1,000 individual enrollees per day. Furthermore, in California 28,000 have signed up, and in New York 40,000 have signed up.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/16/cbs-this-mornings-research-free-health-care-rep/196460


CBS' Faulty Obamacare Reporting: Pregnancy Edition

CBS News highlighted the complaints of a man upset with Affordable Care Act provisions that require all insurance plans to provide maternity care coverage, a reliance on anecdotal journalism that omitted the important benefits this coverage could provide -- like ending gender discrimination in the insurance marketplace and improving the nation's sub-par infant mortality rate.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires all insurance plans, private and employer-based, to cover maternity and newborn care, one of the law's 10 categories of 'essential health benefits' that every policy must include.

CBS Evening News chose to present the impact of this mandatory maternity coverage as a superfluous benefit on its October 28 broadcast. Rather than interviewing a beneficiary of the coverage or a health expert who could discuss the motivation behind the requirement, CBS highlighted a male realtor upset that his plan included such benefits.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/29/cbs-faulty-obamacare-reporting-pregnancy-editio/196653

[boutons_deux]

where does anything say anybody must change doctors?

[boutons_deux]

about 20% of individual policies are cancelled every year before ACA. Repugs/Fox didn't scream and whine and propagandize about that.

Many of the cancelled policies are junk policies that don't cover, or cover very poorly, eg, cancer, CVD, hosptilization, etc, AND have very high deductibles.

All these junk policies now are terminated because they don't meet ACA minimum requirements.

iow, government is protecting individual insurance buyers from capitalism's principle of "shittiest possible product for highest possible price". These policies will "fine print" you into bankruptcy in a medical catastrophe. Good riddance, thanks to government intervention in the "fuck you" free market.

[CosmicCowboy]

My understanding is that I can keep my plan until they make any slight change to the policy then it will no longer be grandfathered and I'll have to switch. I'm sure bcbs will do that at some point, why wouldn't they want to charge me more for less.

Nope, that only grandfathers you until Jan 1, 2015, then you have to buy an ACA compliant plan.

[101A]

My understanding is that I can keep my plan until they make any slight change to the policy then it will no longer be grandfathered and I'll have to switch. I'm sure bcbs will do that at some point, why wouldn't they want to charge me more for less.

All plans sold or renewed after 1/1 MUST cover maternity and mental health. There is no grandfathering for this, as I understand it.

[101A]

All plans sold or renewed after 1/1 MUST cover maternity and mental health. There is no grandfathering for this, as I understand it.

My bad, you plan must be older than 3/10 - you ARE grandfathered, as you assumed, until BCBS makes an adjustment to that plan.