Obamacare

As Predicted, Obamacare Is Absolutely Killing The Middle Class

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People better learn fast how to heal themselves through alternative medicine (Acupuncture, homeopathy, herbal medicine, etc.), diet and exercise, because the greatest collapse in world history is coming and Alois Irlmaier foresaw that the U.S. will get the greatest revolution of all time.

The medical system will no longer exist and you have to become your own doctor.

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– As Predicted, Obamacare Is Absolutely Killing The Middle Class:

The critics of Obamacare have been proven right.  The Obama administration promised that health insurance premiums would go down.  Instead, they have absolutely skyrocketed.  The Obama administration promised that Obamacare would not kill jobs.  Instead, firms are hiring fewer workers because of suffocating health care costs.  As you will see below, even the Federal Reserve is admitting this.  The Obama administration also promised that the big health insurance companies would love the new Obamacare plans and would eagerly compete with one another to win customers in the new health insurance marketplaces.  Instead, many of the big health insurance companies are now dropping Obamacare plans altogether.

We witnessed the latest stunning example of this phenomenon just a few days ago.  It turns out that Aetna has been losing hundreds of millions of dollars on plans sold through the health exchanges, and now they plan to pull out of the program almost entirely…

Read moreAs Predicted, Obamacare Is Absolutely Killing The Middle Class

Karl Denninger Rages: “Stop The Stupid!”

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– Karl Denninger Rages: “Stop The Stupid!”:

Submitted by Karl Denninger via Market Ticker blog,

I tire of people who are too damned ignorant to be bothered with 30 seconds of research.

For example, one of the memes going around is how “evil” Aetna is because their CEO gets paid a lot of money.  The meme, of course, is that Aetna the company (and other health “insurers”) is screwing Americans out of huge amounts of money because they are refusing to continue selling “health insurance” at a loss through Obamacare exchanges, and told the government in advance that adverse action by them against a merger they wanted to conduct would lead them to not have the economy of scale required to defray those losses.

The government sued anyway, and they kept their promise.  For this they’re evil, you see.

Read moreKarl Denninger Rages: “Stop The Stupid!”

More Crony Capitalism: Aetna Gives An Ultimatum To The DOJ – “If Humana Deal Is Blocked, We Exit Obamacare”

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– More Crony Capitalism: Aetna Gives An Ultimatum To The DOJ – “If Humana Deal Is Blocked, We Exit Obamacare“:

In a glaring example of crony capitalism, Aetna CEO Bertolini wrote that, despite Aetna’s past support for Obamacare, “unfortunately, a challenge by the DOJ to that acquisition and/or the DOJ successfully blocking the transaction would have a negative financial impact on Aetna and would impair Aetna’s ability to continue its support, leaving Aetna with no choice but to take actions to steward its financial health.“…

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Obamacare Doomed As Insurers Lose $2 Billion On Plans In 2016 (Prompting 2017 Rates To Soar)

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obamacare will hurt

– Obamacare Doomed As Insurers Lose $2 Billion On Plans In 2016 (Prompting 2017 Rates To Soar):

The typical rosy Democrat narrative on Obamacare highlights the decline in uninsured Americans as evidence of its great “success” while conveniently ignoring the fact that most of the “newly insured” are actually coming from the expansion of Medicaid.  The fact is that Obamacare is a debacle and is on the verge of collapse (see our previous post “Obamacare On “Verge Of Collapse” As Premiums Set To Soar Again In 2017“).

Our reasoning is quite simple and is the same reason Obamacare was doomed from the start.  As we’ve pointed out numerous times in the past, the true downfall of Obamacare will be in its inherent “adverse selection bias.”  “Sicker/older” people have every incentive to enroll while “younger/healthier” people, the ones that were supposed to subsidize everyone else by buying policies they didn’t need, are choosing to simply pay their penalties instead.  So what you’re left with is a pool of “sicker/older” people who consume a massive amount of healthcare but whom don’t pay “their fair share” because Obamacare specifically caps the rates that can be charged to the “sicker/older” people at 3x the rates charged to “younger/healthier” people (who cares if they consume 20x more healthcare…3x just sounded about right). 

Read moreObamacare Doomed As Insurers Lose $2 Billion On Plans In 2016 (Prompting 2017 Rates To Soar)

Obamacare Sticker Shock: Average 2017 Premium Surges 24%

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– Obamacare Sticker Shock: Average 2017 Premium Surges 24%:

Two weeks ago, we asked readers to spot the “odd inflation out” when looking at the map below.

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The reference, of course, was to the state by state surge in proposed 2017 Obamacare premiums, contrasted with what the government contends is a modest 1.0% inflation rate.

Read moreObamacare Sticker Shock: Average 2017 Premium Surges 24%

Obamacare On “Verge Of Collapse” As Premiums Set To Soar Again In 2017

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obamacare will hurt

– Obamacare On “Verge Of Collapse” As Premiums Set To Soar Again In 2017:

If Obamacare enrollments continue their current trend and insurers continue to hike premiums at alarming rates then Republicans may not have to worry about “repealing and replacing Obamacare” as it might just work itself out “naturally”.  The 4th open enrollment period for Obamacare begins on November 1, 2016 and industry experts are warning that another year of tepid demand from “young and healthy” Americans could force more insurers out of the exchanges effectively marking the end of Obamacare as we know it.  According to a story published by The Hill, 11 million people bought health insurance through the exchanges for 2016 which was drastically below the Congressional Budget Office’s initial projection of 21 million.

Well we’re shocked!  Turns out that whole “adverse selection bias” was a real thing.  So you’re telling us that young, healthy people don’t want to pay for insurance they know they’ll never use?  We guess America’s youth can actually do basic math, after all.  Apparently they were able to figure out they would rather take the lower tax associated with Obamacare penalties than the larger tax associated with buying a healthcare policy they’ll never use.  We guess Millennials are a little less enthusiastic about embracing socialism when the costs are coming out of their pockets.

Read moreObamacare On “Verge Of Collapse” As Premiums Set To Soar Again In 2017

An Update on the Obamacare Disaster

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– An Update on the Obamacare Disaster:

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

2017 is shaping up to be a very, very ugly year for Obamacare. A year in which it may become obvious to all that the entire thing is an unredeemable failure.

Many of you surely have been paying attention to headlines regarding insurers fleeing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges due to major financial losses (despite huge premium hikes), but you may still not recognize how bad the situation really is.

In that regard, read the following excerpts from a Vox article published yesterday titled, Obamacare’s Markets Will Be Less Competitive Next Year:

Read moreAn Update on the Obamacare Disaster

Where The July Jobs Were: “Obamacare Again Offset Weak Industrial, Consumer Sector”

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– Where The July Jobs Were: “Obamacare Again Offset Weak Industrial, Consumer Sector”:

While last month’s outlier spike in Information-related jobs, which saw 42K tech sector created in June, has come and gone, the breakdown of the July job additions confirms that some recently well-known trends continue, namely that the bulk of new jobs added remain in low-paying industries. Not only that, but some frank question marks emerge, like for example how did the government add 27K education jobs in July (out of a toal 38K) at a time when shools don’t hire. The answer: seasonal adjustments and model quirks.

So where were the July jobs? As our friends at Southbay Research point out, “Obamacare jobs offset weak Industrial and Consumer payrolls”

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Aetna Posts $300 Million Obamacare Loss, Warns May Exit Altogether

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– Aetna Posts $300 Million Obamacare Loss, Warns May Exit Altogether:

After every other major US health insurance provider already admitted to generating substantial losses on the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamcare, earlier today Aetna became the latest to report that its annual loss on Obamacare plans would be more than $300 million, and said it had scrapped plans to further expand its Obamacare business next year. More ominously, Aetna joined the biggest US health insurer UnitedHealth in reviewing how, if at all, it would continue providing ACA services in the 15 states it’s currently in.

Read moreAetna Posts $300 Million Obamacare Loss, Warns May Exit Altogether

Illinois Obamacare Co-Op Goes Bust Leaving Tens of Thousands at Risk

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obamacare will hurt

– Illinois Obamacare Co-Op Goes Bust Leaving Tens of Thousands at Risk:

The fact that Obamacare is a gigantic train wreck barreling uncontrollably into a brick wall is pretty much undeniable at this point. I’ve covered this reality from several angles in 2016, with one of the more popular posts being, The Health Insurance Scam – “Coverage” Doesn’t Mean Affordability or Access, in which I noted: 

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.

While a greater number of Americans having health insurance is a good thing when it comes to protecting against unexpected catastrophic events or extended hospital stays, it doesn’t tell you anything about two very important variables: 1) How much does it cost? 2) What kind of access does it provide? As usual, the devil is in the details.

Read moreIllinois Obamacare Co-Op Goes Bust Leaving Tens of Thousands at Risk

Obamacare Accounted For 58% Of US “Growth” In The First Quarter

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– Obamacare Accounted For 58% Of US “Growth” In The First Quarter:

Remember when the Supreme Court decided that Obamcare is legal but it’s a tax? Well, the nuances were irrelevant, but when it comes to the Bureau of Economic Analysis they could not have been greater: by effectively counting a tax as part of US economic growth, Obama, the Supreme Court and the US government’s beancounters assured themselves of a steady stream of “economic growth” for quarters to come, and sure enough, Q1 was no different.

As regular readers know, when it comes to the one constant source of US economic growth, nothing is more reliable than Healthcare, which is merely another name for how Obamacare figured in the bean-count reports. And, we are confident, it will come as no surprise that in Q1, when real GDP grew by $44 billion in real terms, or 1.1% annualized, from $16.471 trillion to $16.515 trillion, Healthcare was responsible for $26 billion (rising from $1,896 billion to $1,929 billion annualized) or a whopping 58.4% of the total.

Read moreObamacare Accounted For 58% Of US “Growth” In The First Quarter

Nearly 100,000 Left Without Insurance In Colorado Due To Obamacare

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– Nearly 100,000 Left Without Insurance In Colorado Due To Obamacare:

“it’s time for the president to admit Obamacare is a disaster for the American people. When the president rammed his partisan health care law through congress, he repeatedly promised the American people that if you like your plan, you can keep it. President Obama and those that supported this law are now silent as 92,000 Coloradans must find a new insurance plan.“

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Thanks Obamacare: Texas Health Insurance Costs Will Soar By 60%

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Obamacare

– Thanks Obamacare: Texas Health Insurance Costs Will Soar By 60%:

According to the Houston Chronicle which cites federal regulator filings, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas – the state’s largest insurer – has asked for rate hikes of nearly 60% for next year in three popular HMO plans. The company, which is the only carrier to offer health coverage in all of Texas’ 254 counties, would not specify Wednesday what would happen if does not get the rate increase it says it needs.

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This Is How Much Your Health Insurance Payment Is About To Jump By

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– This Is How Much Your Health Insurance Payment Is About To Jump By:

It’s official: years of warnings that Obamacare will lead to dramatic increases in healthcare premiums are about to be validated.

As the WSJ writes, big health plans stung by losses in the first few years of the U.S. health law’s implementation are seeking hefty premium increases for individual plans sold through insurance exchanges in more than a dozen states.

To be sure, we have extensively covered the imminent danger of rising healthcare prices as a result of Obamacare’s intrusive intervention in the insurance sector; however now that this is about to become mainstream information, we expect consumers to hunker down and save even more in anticipation of what is about to be a shock price increase for millions of middle-class American families.

As the WSJ reports, the insurers’ proposed rates for individual coverage in states that have made their 2017 requests public largely bear out health plans’ grim predictions about their challenges under the health-care overhaul. According to the insurers’ filings with regulators, large plans in states including New York, Pennsylvania and Georgia are seeking to raise rates by 20% or more.

Read moreThis Is How Much Your Health Insurance Payment Is About To Jump By

Insurer Sues US Government For $223 Million In Obamacare Related Back Payments

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– Insurer Sues US Government For $223 Million In Obamacare Related Back Payments:

In yet another development in the train wreck that is Obamacare, while we know that the legislation is failing individuals and businesses, the government is now failing to live up to its obligations made to the insurers who chose to participate in the healthcare exchanges. “All we’re asking is for the federal government to do what they promised” said Highmark Health CEO David Holmberg.

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As Insurance Losses Mount So Do Refusals: “Sorry, We Don’t Take Obamacare”

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– As Insurance Losses Mount So Do Refusals: “Sorry, We Don’t Take Obamacare”:

A McKinsey study shows Obamacare insurers lost money in 2014 and the losses doubled in 2015.

Amazingly, the study concludes there’s nothing to worry about because “30 percent of insurers nationwide were profitable.”

Meanwhile, outright refusals to accept Obamacare mount. “Sorry, We Don’t Take Obamacare” is now a frequent response.

Read moreAs Insurance Losses Mount So Do Refusals: “Sorry, We Don’t Take Obamacare”

Major Court Ruling Against Obamacare, Insurers Will Scream; Potential End of Obamacare

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– Major Court Ruling Against Obamacare, Insurers Will Scream; Potential End of Obamacare:

Healthcare insurers are already taking it on the chin. Some insurers got out of the healthcare business entirely, others stopped coverage in multiple states due to mounting losses.

What happened is healthy individuals, especially millennials decided to opt out of Obamacare. Those who opted in after having been denied coverage previously were high-cost individuals.

Adding fat to the fire, a federal court ruled today that “cost sharing reductions”  to insurers are unconstitutional payments.

Please consider Judge Rules for House GOP in ObamaCare Suit.

Read moreMajor Court Ruling Against Obamacare, Insurers Will Scream; Potential End of Obamacare

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

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Related info:

– 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

LIES, LIES AND OMG, MORE LIES

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– LIES, LIES AND OMG, MORE LIES:

It’s that time of year again. It’s open enrollment for health plans at my employer. They are biggest employer in Philly and have the most leverage possible with the insurance companies. They have such good leverage that my premiums are going up “only” 9.8% this year for a basic HMO plan. Based on what I hear from others, I should be thankful for just a 9.8% increase.

This isn’t a new development. Since I’ve been tracking all my expenditures using Quicken since 1991, I know exactly what my annual health insurance costs have been every year. Obamacare was passed in 2009 and began to be implemented in 2010. Obama declared that families could expect $2,500 of savings per year. I know for a fact my annual medical expenses were $2,000 higher in 2015 than they were in 2010.

Read moreLIES, LIES AND OMG, MORE LIES

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