“What Could Have Possibly Raised Your Costs” – Hillary Can’t Answer Why Obamacare Costs Are Soaring (Video)

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Obamacare Update: Insurance Premiums Set To EXPLODE Higher In 2017


“What Could Have Possibly Raised Your Costs” – Hillary Can’t Answer Why Obamacare Costs Are Soaring:

Hillary Clinton’s strategy to get in front of voters and answer one-on-one type questions is not working out very well.

First, Clinton couldn’t explain to an unemployed West Virginian why she was promising to put a lot of coal miners out of work. Now, Hillary can’t explain why Obamacare fees are higher than promised, and are set to explode even higher next year.

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During a recent town hall event, a small business owner explained to the Democratic front-runner that her health insurance has gone up so significantly for her family that the thought of providing benefits to her employees is secondary at this point.

Read more“What Could Have Possibly Raised Your Costs” – Hillary Can’t Answer Why Obamacare Costs Are Soaring (Video)

Obamacare Update: Insurance Premiums Set To EXPLODE Higher In 2017

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Obamacare Update: Insurance Premiums Set To Explode Higher In 2017: 

 Just recently we warned that thanks to Obamacare, insurers would be unveiling enormous premium increases to the public, ironically just one week before the presidential election.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, Oregon and Virginia are the first two states to make insurers’ premium proposals for 2017 public, and we are now able to see a glimpse of what will be coming regarding insurance premiums for next year [Spoiler alert: it’s ugly]. While it is noted that some of the subsidies provided by the federal government will help the lowest income consumers cover the bill, based on what we have learned from Virginia and Oregon, a vast majority of individuals will be googling “sticky wages” soon, as they scramble to figure out how they’re going to be able to afford such enormous increases.

Read moreObamacare Update: Insurance Premiums Set To EXPLODE Higher In 2017

Obamacare To Unveil “Price Shock” One Week Before The Elections

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Obamacare To Unveil “Price Shock” One Week Before The Elections:

The writing was on the wall long before the largest US insurer, UnitedHealth, decided to pull the plug on Obamacare in mid April.  Then, just a week later, Aetna’s CEO said Thursday that his company expects to break even, but legislative fixes are needed to make the marketplace sustainable.

“I think a lot of insurance carriers expected red ink, but they didn’t expect this much red ink,” said Greg Scott, who oversees Deloitte’s health plans practice. “… A number of carriers need double-digit increases.”

It gets better.

Read moreObamacare To Unveil “Price Shock” One Week Before The Elections

The Obamacare Health Care Gold Rush is Bankrupting America

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The Obamacare Health Care Gold Rush is Bankrupting America:

Our health care system is going to implode under its own weight. National Health Expenditures are approaching 20 percent of gross domestic product — a figure that is expected to about double over the next half century. Obamacare didn’t start the process, but it’s expediting the job started when Kaiser Shipyards requested permission during World War II to offer health coverage as a fringe benefit. This was further exacerbated in 1965 by the poorly-designed entitlement programs Medicare and Medicaid that are now draining the Treasury.

Just look at the evidence. Health care is unaffordable for most Americans. To have any hope of affording even minor medical procedures, Americans rely on health insurance or public coverage to pay much of the cost. About 88 percent of medical bills are paid for by an entity other than the patient. As a result, health insurance has also become unaffordable. The average employer plan costs American families $17,545 per year. A Bronze plan from the exchange for the average middle-age family costs $12,000 per year with combined annual deductibles of $8,000 to $13,000. Provider networks are so narrow that any major procedure is surely to result in out-of-network charges that can be astronomical.

Read moreThe Obamacare Health Care Gold Rush is Bankrupting America

Largest U.S. Health Insurer Is Done With Obamacare: UnitedHealth To Exit Most State Exchanges

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Largest U.S. Health Insurer Is Done With Obamacare: UnitedHealth To Exit Most State Exchanges:

As conclusion to our article yesterday reporting on the largest U.S. health insurer’s accelerating exodus from various Obamacare markets (it had already announced it was out of Georgie, Arkansas, Michigan and Oklahoma) we said that UnitedHealth “will likely announce more defections in the coming days.”

Read moreLargest U.S. Health Insurer Is Done With Obamacare: UnitedHealth To Exit Most State Exchanges

Obamacare Exodus Accelerates: After Georgia And Arkansas, Biggest Health Insurer Exits Michigan And Oklahoma

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Obamacare Exodus Accelerates: After Georgia And Arkansas, Biggest Health Insurer Exits Michigan And Oklahoma:

Two weeks ago we reported that after its November warning that it may exit certain Obamacare markets as a result of substantial losses, the largest U.S. health insurer UnitedHealth, did just that when it announced it would no longer sell plans for next year in Georgia and Arkansas.

Then over the weekend, UnitedHealth also added Michigan to the list of states whose Obamacare market it would no longer service. As Bloomberg reported, “the insurer won’t sell policies through Michigan’s ACA exchange for next year, according to Andrea Miller, a spokeswoman for the state’s Department of Insurance and Financial Services. Georgia and Arkansas said last week that UnitedHealth will quit their exchanges for 2017.”

Read moreObamacare Exodus Accelerates: After Georgia And Arkansas, Biggest Health Insurer Exits Michigan And Oklahoma

The Beginning Of The End For Obamacare: Largest US Health Insurer Exits Georgia, Arkanasas

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The Beginning Of The End For Obamacare: Largest US Health Insurer Exits Georgia, Arkanasas:

You can’t say UnitedHealth didn’t warn us.

* * *

Tracking the slow motion trainwreck of Obamacare has become one of our preferred hobbies: below is just a random sample of headlines covering just the most recent tribulations of the “we have to pass it to find out what’s in it” Unaffordable Care Act:

Read moreThe Beginning Of The End For Obamacare: Largest US Health Insurer Exits Georgia, Arkanasas

Thanks Obamacare: This Is What Americans Spent Most Money On In 2015

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Thanks Obamacare: This Is What Americans Spent Most Money On In 2015:

We have been covering the consumption tax, pardon, endless spending black hole that is Obamacarefor over a year, so we doubt it will come as a surprise to anyone that in 2015 healthcare was the second biggest use of US consumer funds, soaking up a record $1.9 trillion in real dollars, and more importantly for US economic “growth”, the single biggest source of incremental spending by nearly a factor of two.

Incidentally, with spending on healthcare (courtesy of the Supreme Court’s Obamacare tax) soaring, while outlays on the traditionally most consumption-intensive category, housing and utilities, going nowhere for the past several years, it is only a matter of 2-3 quarters before Healthcare surpasses Housing as the biggest use of American cash.

Read moreThanks Obamacare: This Is What Americans Spent Most Money On In 2015

The Health Insurance Scam: “Coverage” Doesn’t Mean Affordability or Access

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The Health Insurance Scam – “Coverage” Doesn’t Mean Affordability or Access:

An architect of the federal healthcare law said last year that a “lack of transparency” and the “stupidity of the American voter” helped Congress approve ObamaCare.

He suggested that many lawmakers and voters didn’t know what was in the law or how its financing worked, and that this helped it win approval.

– From the post: Video of the Day – Obamacare Architect Credits “Lack of Transparency” and “Stupidity of the American People” for Passage of Healthcare Law

Politicians, particularly those of the Democratic persuasion, love to throw around statistics about how many additional people have healthcare coverage without ever talking about the cost of such coverage, or whether it actually translates into actual access in the real world.

Read moreThe Health Insurance Scam: “Coverage” Doesn’t Mean Affordability or Access

Here’s your Obamacare: Hospitals now demanding patients pay up front before receiving treatment

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Here’s your Obamacare: Hospitals now demanding patients pay up front before receiving treatment:

Deductibles are soaring under Obamacare, and many U.S. hospitals are now attempting to collect medical payments before services are even rendered, according to new reports. The financial burden of medical care has increased so much as a result of Obamacare — just as predicted — that hospitals can now clearly see the writing on the wall: Many more people than ever before will be unwilling or unable to pay their medical bills.

According to CNN Money, Americans today are having to foot a much higher percentage of their medical bills than ever before due to ever-increasing deductibles. Five years ago, for instance, an individual, employer-sponsored policy had a deductible of just over $800. Today, that same policy carries a deductible of about $1,217, a rate more than 50 percent higher.

Read moreHere’s your Obamacare: Hospitals now demanding patients pay up front before receiving treatment

And The Biggest Contributor To U.S. Growth in 2015 Was …

“Peddling Fiction” – US Economy Grew A Paltry 0.69% In The Fourth Quarter, Missing Expectations


And The Biggest Contributor To U.S. Growth in 2015 Was…:

By now, not even CNBC’s cheerleading permabulls can deny that the US is in a manufacturing recession: in fact, it is so bad that even the staunchest defenders of Keynesian dogma admit what we said in late 2014, namely that crashing oil is bad for the economy.

And yet, the “services” part of the US economy continues to hum right along, leading to such surprising outcomes as a stronger than expected print in Personal Consumption Expenditures. How can this be?

Simple: one look at the chart below should explain not only how the “services” half of the US economy continues to grow, but just which tax, because that is how the Supreme Court defined Obamacare, is responsible for healthcare “spending” amounting to a quarter of the growth in US personal consumption expenditures, almost 100% higher than the second highest spending category which was… Recreational goods and vehicles?

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And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you convert a tax into a source of economic progress.

1 In 3 Americans Slash Staples Spending To ‘Afford’ Obamacare

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Shared Sacrifice? 1 In 3 Americans Slash Staples Spending To ‘Afford’ Obamacare:

Health insurers are in panic mode as the Obama administration, ever eager maximize coverage optics for Obamacare, has, as The NY Times reports, allowed large numbers of people to sign up for insurance after the deadlines in the last two years, destabilizing insurance markets and driving up premiums. This surge in costs, from unintended consequences, has left 1 in 5 Americans with health insurance is having problems paying medical bills; and, as a new poll finds, more than one in three Americans, or 35 percent, said they were unable to pay for basic necessities such as food, heat, and housing because of medical bill problems

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Obamacare Is Sucking Up To 10% Of Americans’ Incomes

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Obamacare Is Sucking Up To 10% Of Americans’ Incomes:

The latest dilemma facing economists is why “unequivocally good” low oil prices haven’t sparked excuberant consumer spending across America. We have discussed the simple (though awkward for the establishment) answer many times – soaring costs for ‘shelter’ and healthcare have hoovered up every penny saved (and more); and now, a new study proves it– exposing the reality that many Obamacare customers pay more than 10 percent of their incomes toward coverage (and some paying considerably more).

The Beginning Of The End For The Affordable Care Act? Largest US Health Insurer May Exit ObamaCare

Obama Supporters Meet Obamacare

The Beginning Of The End For The Affordable Care Act? Largest US Health Insurer May Exit ObamaCare:

Tracking the slow motion trainwreck of Obamacare has become one of our preferred hobbies: below is just a random sample of headlines covering just the most recent tribulations of the “we have to pass it to find out what’s in it” Unaffordable Care Act:

But the most surprising article we wrote was our explanation from three weeks ago explaining why “Your Health Insurance Premiums Are About To Go Through The Roof” showing that even insurance companies have been unable to earn a profit under Obamacare, as shown in the following chart:

Read moreThe Beginning Of The End For The Affordable Care Act? Largest US Health Insurer May Exit ObamaCare

Meet The Family That Just Spent Half Its Annual Income Paying For Obamacare

Meet The Family That Just Spent Half Its Annual Income Paying For Obamacare:

Not a week passes without some incremental revelation showing precisely what happens when Congress passes a bill just to see what’s in it.

Well, since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, also known as the Obamacare tax, we have watched in horror as shocker after shocker are revealed.

Some examples:

Read moreMeet The Family That Just Spent Half Its Annual Income Paying For Obamacare

“$19,000 Premiums, Up 4x Since Passage”: The ‘Crippling Effect’ Of Obamacare On The Middle Class

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“$19,000 Premiums, Up 4x Since Passage”: The ‘Crippling Effect’ Of Obamacare On The Middle Class:

The past month has seen a veritable litany of reports that have slammed Obamacare, from sources on both the left and the right. Some examples:

As we have warned over the years, all of this was expected, and is precisely what happens when the government tries to take over a critical industry. It may have had “good intentions” but the result has been a total failure.

And nowhere is it seen better than from the laments of those whom it was supposed to benefit, such as Ed Elliott, who has laid out precisely what the “Affordable Care Act” means for the US: “This is crippling effect of ACA on small biz owners & middle class. $19000/yr premiums up 4x since passage.

Read more“$19,000 Premiums, Up 4x Since Passage”: The ‘Crippling Effect’ Of Obamacare On The Middle Class

“Get Covered” America Or “Take Cover” America

“Get Covered” America Or “Take Cover” America:

Isn’t it interesting the mainstream media makes barely a peep about the ongoing and worsening Obamacare debacle. Healthcare premiums, co-pays and deductibles are soaring, while doctor and plan choices contract to a minuscule level.

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Source: Townhall

Recent surveys reveal the hardship being inflicted upon families across the nation. As The Burning Platform’s Jim Quinn details, those who are willfully baffled by the lack of consumer spending need look no further than Obamacare and its impact on the budgets of hard working Americans.

Read more“Get Covered” America Or “Take Cover” America

Your Health Insurance Premiums Are About To Go Through The Roof -The Stunning Reason Why

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Your Health Insurance Premiums Are About To Go Through The Roof -The Stunning Reason Why:

After years of delays and failed launches, Obamacare has finally taken hold, and with it the economic and financial implications from this mandatory tax are finally being felt.

We have extensively covered how Obama’s Affordable Care Act will end up being a failure,  observing both the economic implications in “In Latest Obamacare Fiasco, Most Low-Income Workers Can’t Afford “Affordable Care Act” as well as its operational shortcomings in “Obamacare Is A Disaster: Co-Op Insurers Across America Are Collapsing, And Now There Is Fraud“, paradoxically even as Obamacare – a tax – was according to the BEA the single biggest contributor to GDP growth in the third quarter.

Read moreYour Health Insurance Premiums Are About To Go Through The Roof -The Stunning Reason Why

Obamacare Is A Disaster: Co-Op Insurers Across America Are Collapsing, And Now There Is Fraud

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Obamacare Is A Disaster: Co-Op Insurers Across America Are Collapsing, And Now There Is Fraud:

Two weeks ago we reported that in what at the time was still a rather isolated incident, Colorado’s largest nonprofit health insurer (aka co-op), Colorado HealthOP is abruptly shutting down, forcing 80,000 Coloradans to find a new insurer for 2016.

At the time, we said that the health insurer had been decertified by the Division of Insurance as an eligible insurance company because the cooperative relied on federal support, and federal authorities announced last month they wouldn’t be able to pay most of what they owed in a program designed to help health insurance co-ops get established.

Read moreObamacare Is A Disaster: Co-Op Insurers Across America Are Collapsing, And Now There Is Fraud

In Latest Obamacare Fiasco, Most Low-Income Workers Can’t Afford “Affordable Care Act”

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In Latest Obamacare Fiasco, Most Low-Income Workers Can’t Afford “Affordable Care Act”:

Just ten days ago we described the latest unintended (we hope) consequence of the Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare, when Colorado’s largest nonprofit co-op health insurer and participant in that state’s insurance exchange, Colorado HealthOP, announcing it was abruptly shutting down ahead of the November 1 start of enrollment for 2016, forcing 80,000 Coloradans to find a new insurer for 2016.

It wasn’t the first: the Colorado co-op was at least the fifth in the nation to collapse. Similar nonprofit insurers have already failed in Louisiana, Iowa/Nebraska, Nevada and New York. A health insurance cooperative in Tennessee announced this week that it would stop offering new policies.

Read moreIn Latest Obamacare Fiasco, Most Low-Income Workers Can’t Afford “Affordable Care Act”

Obamacare’s Latest Casualty: Largest Health Insurer On Colorado Exchange Abruptly Collapses

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Obamacare’s Latest Casualty: Largest Health Insurer On Colorado Exchange Abruptly Collapses:

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

With the mainstream media, at least the majority that is left of center, flooded with story after story touting Obamacare’s success, the news coming this morning from Denver that Colorado’s largest nonprofit health insurer and participant in that state’s insurance exchange Colorado HealthOP is abruptly shutting down, forcing 80,000 Coloradans to find a new insurer for 2016, was a slap in the face for the Obama administration’s crowning achievement.

According to AP, the health insurer announced Friday that the state Division of Insurance has de-certified it as an eligible insurance company. That’s because the cooperative relied on federal support, and federal authorities announced last month they wouldn’t be able to pay most of what they owed in a program designed to help health insurance co-ops get established.

Read moreObamacare’s Latest Casualty: Largest Health Insurer On Colorado Exchange Abruptly Collapses

The Stunning “Explanation” An Insurance Company Just Used To Boost Health Premiums By 60%

The Stunning “Explanation” An Insurance Company Just Used To Boost Health Premiums By 60%:

“With advances in medical technology, prescription drugs and ways to treat injuries and illnesses, Americans are living healthier lives. [i.e., living longer] Because of these changes, we must adjust your premium to stay in line with increased costs.”

A Complete Farce: Ex-Obamacare Head To Lead Health Insurance Lobby

Marilyn Tavenner

–  A Complete Farce: Ex-Obamacare Head To Lead Health Insurance Lobby (ZeroHedge, July 15, 2015):

If there was any doubt just who Obamacare was created to serve from day one (spoiler alert: it was never America’s population), we now have the answer and it is so simple, even a 5-year-old can get it. Moments ago Politico reported that former Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner, and the infamous former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services who was responsible for writing many of Obamacare’s rules and regulations for the insurance industry, only to be fired following the disastrous rollout of the HealthCare.gov enrollment website, has been hired as the new CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans, the “powerful K Street lobbying group.

Cited by Politico, AHIP board chairman Mark Ganz in a statement that”There is no better individual than Marilyn to lead our industry through the increasingly complex health care transformation that is underway. She has the respect and trust of policymakers and stakeholders from all sides, and a personal commitment to advance meaningful solutions for improving access to quality, affordable care for all Americans.”

Read moreA Complete Farce: Ex-Obamacare Head To Lead Health Insurance Lobby

Obamacare Sticker Shock Arrives: Insurance Premiums To Soar 20-40%

Obamacare Sticker Shock Arrives: Insurance Premiums To Soar 20-40% (ZeroHedge, July 6, 2015):

Two months ago, we outlined why the CPI-boosting Affordable Care Act is on the verge of bankrupting that all important driver of the US economic growth engine — the American consumer.

Put simply, inflation in medical care services costs hadn’t yet reared its ugly head because many insurers were as yet unable to gauge the full base-effect impact of Obamacare on their P&L. That, we said, was about to change: “After finally digesting the true cost of Obamacare, any recent insurance prime hikes will seem like a walk in the park compared to what is coming.

Medical Care Services Inflation

Sure enough, insurers have now taken a close look at exactly how much socialized medicine is costing them.

Not surprisingly, the picture isn’t pretty.

Read moreObamacare Sticker Shock Arrives: Insurance Premiums To Soar 20-40%