Obamacare Guarantees Higher Insurance Premiums

[alanschu]

One reason I like living in Canada. Sure I lose 23% of my income to taxes, but I won't go bankrupt due to medical concerns.

 

I lose closer to 33% of my income to taxes (in large part because I now make more money). I still feel the motivation to earn more money because I'll still make more money after taxes.

Edited January 8, 2013 by alanschu

[Nepenthe]

38 % income tax (includes some compulsory social i surance, though), 24 % VAT. Current job has a pretty good health plan, but anything actually serious would probably have to go through my personal insurance, which I can't really specify, since it includes accident coverage etc. Really glad I kept it going through my employment, I doubt I'd get anything that good now. No dental though, as there almost never is in Finland. Last time I switched jobs I wound up paying ariubd 1000e for root canal...

Edited January 8, 2013 by Nepenthe

[alanschu]

I'm not factoring in the taxes I'd pay on purchases. Non-essential items in Alberta have a 5% GST on top of every purchase.

 

My work provides dental (though orthodontics is never covered it seems ). Though that I have the money to afford braces is a good thing.

[Calax]

He was pointing out that a "Mood stabilizer" has the side effect of "Mood changes."

Yeah? And when you stabalize a mood instead of going :_(

 

you go :-l

 

 

I understand what a mood stabilizer does.

 

I chuckled when I saw that a mood stabilizer has a side effect of not stabilizing your mood, but rather changing it.

Eh, The way I look at it, it's more a change to the baseline. So far it's stabalized my mood, but I'm also generally happier while on it.

 

On a side note, I think a lot of the lists compiled for perscription meds have laundry lists of drugs because they begin to attribute EVERY change they see in a person to the drug itself.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sertraline

Was on that one for a while, gave me... digestive problems. The list of side effects however is startling

 

http://www.drugs.com/sfx/sertraline-side-effects.html

 

and any anti-depression med is forced to list increased suicide risk as a side effect by the FDA

[Malcador]

I'm not factoring in the taxes I'd pay on purchases. Non-essential items in Alberta have a 5% GST on top of every purchase.

 

My work provides dental (though orthodontics is never covered it seems ). Though that I have the money to afford braces is a good thing.

 

13% sales here, HST, heh. But yeah I don't really mind the taxes I pay for healthcare and other things. A bit annoying how they cut coverage for eye exams, though.

[Oerwinde]

One reason I like living in Canada. Sure I lose 23% of my income to taxes, but I won't go bankrupt due to medical concerns.

 

I lose closer to 33% of my income to taxes (in large part because I now make more money). I still feel the motivation to earn more money because I'll still make more money after taxes.

 

I thought you lived in Alberta? don't they have a 10% flat tax?

 

I'm in BC. 15% federal tax plus 8% provincial. I make less than 36k per year so I'm still in the lowest tax bracket though.

 

[alanschu]

I thought you lived in Alberta? don't they have a 10% flat tax?

 

I'm in BC. 15% federal tax plus 8% provincial. I make less than 36k per year so I'm still in the lowest tax bracket though.

 

10% provincial tax, and 22% federal tax. CPP and EI pretty much make up for the difference for the first $43k at 15% with the progressive tax rate, so in general I find 1/3 of my paycheque is deducted off my gross. Towards the end of the year I get a bit more as my CPP and EI contributions have maxed out so they are no longer deducted off my paycheques.

[Oerwinde]

I must have read it wrong when I looked it up a while back. I thought the federal rate was flat at 15% and it was the provincial rates that scaled with income. Good to know. Yeah with CPP and EI deductions I essentially lose about 26% I suppose.

 

At least you guys only pay GST. We have the 12% HST right now and I think it goes back to 7% PST plus 5% GST in june.

Edited January 8, 2013 by Oerwinde

[alanschu]

Well, living on huge oil reserves helps pad the government coffers.

[Hurlshort]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2013/09/14/obama-to-labor-unions-multi-employer-health-plans-drop-dead/?partner=yahootix

 

Obama the Labor Union killer?  

 

I'm not sure how widespread the impact of this is, since it only affects small businesses that are part of larger Union groups.  But it is an interesting wrinkle in Obamacare. 

[kgambit]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2013/09/14/obama-to-labor-unions-multi-employer-health-plans-drop-dead/?partner=yahootix

 

Obama the Labor Union killer?  

 

I'm not sure how widespread the impact of this is, since it only affects small businesses that are part of larger Union groups.  But it is an interesting wrinkle in Obamacare. 

 

Interesting article.  Thanks for the link. 

[Monte Carlo]

I though most of Obamacare's provisions only became effective in 2014. What exactly is forcing private insurers to increase premiums so much?

 

Well, basic economics suggests that it's because some people have to pay for other people's illnesses.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

I'm suprised that a necro turned out to be relevant information.

[ShadySands]

Out of curiosity I went and checked the Obamacare website for my state and while the prices are higher than what I currently pay now through my employer they are definitely less than what I used to pay when I bought my own health insurance

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

I read the title as "Obamacare guarantees government shutdown", which I suppose is true now.

[Hiro Protagonist]

Seriously, my health care costs were skyrocketing before Obamacare even got passed. The system is broken. I don't think Obamacare will fix it, but all the people who attack it instead of coming up with reasonable solutions and alternatives are just another part of the problem.

 

The cost of insuring my family of four through my employer right now is $600 a month. We are young and healthy, we don't smoke, we barely drink, we don't take part in bull riding or anything. That's crazy. My employer is shelling out a good deal more than that as well.

 

That's ridiculous what you're paying.

 

Here in Australia, we have medicare which is free. Go see a doctor, free. Go to a public hospital, free. Technically, it's not free as all tax payers pay a small percentage of their wage to medicare. Quite a lot of doctors still do medicare.

 

You can elect to have private health insurance and get a tax break. So for me, I pay $600 a year ($50 a month) for basic health insurance which I don't use just to get out of paying approx $1300 every year (in my case) to the Government for medicare. All people who have private health insurance can have medicare at the same time, which is why I don't use private hospitals as the public hospitals are free.

Edited October 2, 2013 by Hiro Protagonist

[Oerwinde]

It varies by province in Canada. In BC we have to pay for medical, but its 60 bucks a month, but pretty much any job that isn't a minimum wage service job will pay half or all of it. That covers doctor visits, non-elective surgery, hospital visits, etc. Not covered by basic medical is things like ambulance service, physiotherapy, and prescriptions. The wife has extended medical through her work that covers most of that though. Essentially what we have to pay for is 20% of our prescription costs, and major dental work.

[Walsingham]

I don't believe this is about Obama per se.

 

My own perspective is that medical insurance in the USA is too high. But the cartel which has created that overinflation is sensible enough to react to threats to its cartel.

 

It is doing so, equally sensibly, by drawing on simmering resentment over the bloated federal government.

 

I appreciate and concede the position as explained by Gfted1 on previous occasions. This is that the federal government cannot be trusted to take action.

 

However, if I were an American I would be incandescent with fury that a private cartel would use the legislature to hold me to ransom using a government shutdown.

[Nepenthe]

I don't believe this is about Obama per se.

 

My own perspective is that medical insurance in the USA is too high. But the cartel which has created that overinflation is sensible enough to react to threats to its cartel.

 

It is doing so, equally sensibly, by drawing on simmering resentment over the bloated federal government.

 

I appreciate and concede the position as explained by Gfted1 on previous occasions. This is that the federal government cannot be trusted to take action.

 

However, if I were an American I would be incandescent with fury that a private cartel would use the legislature to hold me to ransom using a government shutdown.

 

Hear, hear.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

I don't believe this is about Obama per se.

 

My own perspective is that medical insurance in the USA is too high. But the cartel which has created that overinflation is sensible enough to react to threats to its cartel.

 

It is doing so, equally sensibly, by drawing on simmering resentment over the bloated federal government.

 

I appreciate and concede the position as explained by Gfted1 on previous occasions. This is that the federal government cannot be trusted to take action.

 

However, if I were an American I would be incandescent with fury that a private cartel would use the legislature to hold me to ransom using a government shutdown.

Perhaps, I'm overly cynical, but I think that the shutdown may have more to do with playing politics than serving the cartel. Looking at rhetoric used by certain groups, they believe that a government shutdown is a good thing, and so certain politicians will do so in order to avoid primary challenges and/or they intend to run for higher offices and want support.

[Hurlshort]

I was wrong about my family costs, it is actually $979 a month to cover my family through my employer.  This is what I would pay out of my paycheck every month.

 

I thought this was a funny little synopsis.  

 

http://youtu.be/qSjGouBmo0M

 

If you pay close attention, at no point is he taking a side in the whole political clusterduck.

[Tagaziel]

In response to the OP, I wouldn't say the system in Germany is perfect either. I'm a freelancer, working for a Canadian company. The average monthly payment I'm expected to provide is on the order of 150 Euro per month, just for myself. Which is insane, as that's one fifth of my paycheck on a good month and a half on a bad month.

 

It's not particularly responsible to live with minimal health coverage, but I have no other choice. This year I had to go to a German doctor to get my thyroid checked out for potential cancer. I didn't manage to get it done during my stay in Poland, so I figured I might as well do it in Germany and draw on that minimal health coverage. Turns out, after paying the insurer 1,800 Euro over two years, I still have to pay for diagnostics out of my pocket. 120 Euro down the drain, in the name of "equal treatment" as the lady told me over the e-mail.

 

I'm pretty sure they'd use the same excuse (it not being a life-saving measure) to deny paying for emergency treatment because I didn't die.

[Gorgon]

Why have an insurer. That's a middle man, siphoning off profit that could have gone to healthcare. Let the government employ the doctors. We have learned quite a bit about how this can be done more efficiently during the last decade of economic downturn.

[Guard Dog]

Gorgon that is EXACTLY what Obama and the left wing wants. They made this system that is so inefficient and expensive KNOWING it will fail. Which will be the segue the need to drag us to single payer. Then they get decide who gets healthcare... and who doesn't. It is the ultimate backstage pass into everyone's lives they have lusted after for so long.

[alanschu]

I always enjoyed this recount from a US citizen that spent some time up in Canada and had to endure our health care system.

 

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/permissiontolive/2012/07/how-i-lost-my-fear-of-universal-health-care.html