Obamacare. Is it working?

[billvon 2,435]

Another, this one from the Journal of the American Medical Association (I know, I know, like they know anything . . . .)

==================
The ACA’s first 2 open enrollment periods were associated with significantly improved trends in self-reported coverage, access to primary care and medications, affordability, and health. Low-income adults in states that expanded Medicaid reported significant gains in insurance coverage and access compared with adults in states that did not expand Medicaid.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2411283
==================

[rushmc 18]

billvon

Another, this one from the Journal of the American Medical Association (I know, I know, like they know anything . . . .)

==================
The ACA’s first 2 open enrollment periods were associated with significantly improved trends in self-reported coverage, access to primary care and medications, affordability, and health. Low-income adults in states that expanded Medicaid reported significant gains in insurance coverage and access compared with adults in states that did not expand Medicaid.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2411283
==================

Follow the money

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[kallend 1,649]

rushmc

***Another, this one from the Journal of the American Medical Association (I know, I know, like they know anything . . . .)

==================
The ACA’s first 2 open enrollment periods were associated with significantly improved trends in self-reported coverage, access to primary care and medications, affordability, and health. Low-income adults in states that expanded Medicaid reported significant gains in insurance coverage and access compared with adults in states that did not expand Medicaid.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2411283
==================

Follow the money

OK, so the Koch brothers opposed the ACA too.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[kallend 1,649]

billvon

Another, this one from the Journal of the American Medical Association (I know, I know, like they know anything . . . .)

==================
The ACA’s first 2 open enrollment periods were associated with significantly improved trends in self-reported coverage, access to primary care and medications, affordability, and health. Low-income adults in states that expanded Medicaid reported significant gains in insurance coverage and access compared with adults in states that did not expand Medicaid.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2411283
==================

While it is disgusting that the red states that refused to expand Medicaid did so to spite Obama to the disadvantage of their poorest residents, it is pathetic that many of these disadvantaged residents are so stupid that they continue to support the GOP, not realizing that it screwed them.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[billvon 2,435]

>Follow the money

Yes, let's! From your first post:
=========
According to the consulting giant, McKinsey & Company, the troubles of UnitedHealth Group are echoes of troubles of other insurers that have “lost billions selling Obamacare plans in 2014, and the losses are mounting again this year.”
=========

So insurers are losing money because they have to cover more people.

NEXT!

[rushmc 18]

billvon

>Follow the money

Yes, let's! From your first post:
=========
According to the consulting giant, McKinsey & Company, the troubles of UnitedHealth Group are echoes of troubles of other insurers that have “lost billions selling Obamacare plans in 2014, and the losses are mounting again this year.”
=========

So insurers are losing money because they have to cover more people.

NEXT!

You have no idea of the cosequenses what you just posted, do you?

And if you do? Well the Obamacare is succeding just as those who wrote, and you, hoped it would.

Ends justify the means crowd strikes again

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[billvon 2,435]

So - if Obamacare causes insurance companies to lose money, it is a failure, because economy. If Obamacare causes insurance companies to make money, it is a failure, because follow the money fraud evil Obama.

The usual doubletalk from RushMC.

[rushmc 18]

billvon

So - if Obamacare causes insurance companies to lose money, it is a failure, because economy. If Obamacare causes insurance companies to make money, it is a failure, because follow the money fraud evil Obama.

The usual doubletalk from RushMC.

Per usual you shit this into something I am not saying

So you are saying that insurance companies are making money?

If so, why would they be dropping out then?

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[normiss 622]

rushmc

***So - if Obamacare causes insurance companies to lose money, it is a failure, because economy. If Obamacare causes insurance companies to make money, it is a failure, because follow the money fraud evil Obama.

The usual doubletalk from RushMC.

Per usual you shit this into something I am not saying

So you are saying that insurance companies are making money?

If so, why would they be dropping out then?

Per usual, you shit them rather well on your own.

[billvon 2,435]

>Per usual you shit this into something I am not saying
>So you are saying that insurance companies are making money?

A most excellent twist from the master of twist here!

Meanwhile, this from a doctor:
============================
Kavita Patel

The Affordable Care Act had three main priorities: to improve access to health care, control the growing cost of health care spending and improve the quality of services delivered to Americans. Prior to the Affordable Care Act, our system was broken – family premiums for employer coverage doubled over ten years, and in 2009, health spending reached nearly 18 percent of the gross domestic product. Finally, the United States lagged behind other similar countries on infant mortality, obesity and hospital-acquired infections.

As a practicing physician and a policy researcher, I can say that improvements in all three key priority areas are really happening. One of my newest patients is a 52-year-old woman with progressively debilitating shortness of breath. She was working two part-time jobs as a waitress, and could not previously afford health insurance until the Affordable Care Act. I found out she had undiagnosed heart disease, which we were able to diagnose and treat. I am also making sure that she receives other important preventive services, such as breast cancer detection and immunizations. Her quality of life was improved dramatically in a matter of weeks, thanks in large part to the the health care law.

But it’s not just stories from doctors’ offices – we are seeing signs of success across the country.

Improvements in Access: In the state of Kentucky, 75 percent of individuals who enrolled in the Affordable Care Act last year said that it was the first time they had health insurance. Technical glitches and all, the state of California was able reduce its rate of uninsured persons in half, from 22 percent to 11 percent. This year, California has opened storefronts to help people enroll and is targeting difficult-to-reach populations through additional efforts.

Controlling Costs: Growth in health spending over the past four years has been the slowest rate on record in approximately 50 years. There is a great deal of disagreement on the reasons for the slowdown (e.g., the recession, health system reforms, the Affordable Care Act), but aspects of the health care law are working to improve costs for consumers. New models of care that improve coordination of care – from the primary care doctor’s office to the emergency room – and reduce waste within the system are beginning to take hold in communities throughout the country. Patients also now have more resources and tools that support transparency in pricing and quality of providers, which can help them save money on procedures without compromising safety or effectiveness.

Improving Quality: In a short time, efforts to improve our nation’s quality of care have also yielded success. For example, rates of Ventilator-associated pneumonia (a condition which is considered avoidable) have decreased 55.3 percent from 2010 to 2012, and the rate of dangerous blood clots during hospitalization have dropped 12 percent during the same time period.

Are there improvements to be made to the Affordable Care Act? Definitely. Will there be aspects of the law that are imperfect and frustrating? Absolutely.

But it is working, and should continue to be allowed to improve the health of our nation. For historical perspective, when the Medicaid program was implemented in 1966, only six states signed up initially. The last state to adopt the program was Arizona in 1982. Large-scale policy changes are complex and can be confusing. To ensure that the Affordable Care Act is improving lives, we should collectively focus on how to encourage more conversations about health care and how to build on the law’s three main priorities.

http://www.usnews.com/debate-club/is-obamacare-working/making-america-a-better-country

[rushmc 18]

normiss

******So - if Obamacare causes insurance companies to lose money, it is a failure, because economy. If Obamacare causes insurance companies to make money, it is a failure, because follow the money fraud evil Obama.

The usual doubletalk from RushMC.

Per usual you shit this into something I am not saying

So you are saying that insurance companies are making money?

If so, why would they be dropping out then?

Per usual, you shit them rather well on your own.


I will ask again

If the insurance companies are making so much money because they are insuring so many more people, why are they getting out?
Why are the exchanges folding?

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[rushmc 18]

Quote

The Affordable Care Act had three main priorities: to improve access to health care, control the growing cost of health care spending and improve the quality of services delivered to Americans.

None on these have been realized

Edited to add

I these goals had been achieved, the media would be crowing from the rooftops

Not happening

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[normiss 622]

My carrier (UHC) is participating fully in the ACA.

The way some states set up exchanges, is another story in itself as I understand it.
No clear knowledge on the exchanges though as I'm fortunate enough to not have to go that route. Yet.

[rushmc 18]

normiss

My carrier (UHC) is participating fully in the ACA.

The way some states set up exchanges, is another story in itself as I understand it.
No clear knowledge on the exchanges though as I'm fortunate enough to not have to go that route. Yet.

"Yet" is the operative word.

I do not have to use the exchanges either
But I know some who have tried

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[normiss 622]

My understanding is most of those issues are with the governors of those states that are simply flying the middle finger to the feds in an argument over the ACA.

[rushmc 18]

normiss

My understanding is most of those issues are with the governors of those states that are simply flying the middle finger to the feds in an argument over the ACA.

Well that is a good thing

IMO

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[billvon 2,435]

>If the insurance companies are making so much money because they are insuring so
>many more people, why are they getting out?

They are not "making so much money." Nor was that a goal of Obamacare. Some are doing well, some are folding. As always.

[billvon 2,435]

>Well that is a good thing

If by "good thing" you mean "screwing poor people" then yes.

[rushmc 18]

billvon

>Well that is a good thing

If by "good thing" you mean "screwing poor people" then yes.

As per your usual

I dont mean that

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[billvon 2,435]

>I dont mean that

OK. In that case, it's a bad thing. Fortunately, even GOP governors are starting to choose helping their constituents over screwing them - and the people they help seem to appreciate it.
=================
D.C. Republicans Hate Obamacare, but GOP Governors Have Learned to Love It

Executives in Democratic states have almost all embraced the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion -- and seen their political fortunes improve.

Oct 2, 2013 Politics
TheAtlantic

Republicans in Congress, you may have heard, are determined to stop Obamacare. So determined are some of them that they allowed the federal government to shut down when their efforts to stop the Affordable Care Act failed. But some Republican governors have a different view: Increasingly, they’re turning to a controversial part of Obamacare to save them politically.

The latest was Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, a dismally unpopular Republican who’s up for reelection next year. After months of insisting his state wouldn’t agree to expand Medicaid — a component of health-care reform that the Supreme Court made optional for states — Corbett suddenly flipped last month, announcing that Pennsylvania would negotiate with the federal government to accept the expansion money through a modified program.

If his plan is approved, Corbett would become the 10th of the 30 GOP governors to take advantage of the Medicaid-expansion funds made available by Obamacare — up from just four at the beginning of this year. Perhaps not coincidentally, most of the others are also vulnerable incumbents seeking reelection in 2014.

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, for example, was damaged in his home state by a divisive battle over right-to-work legislation last December. A poll in June had Snyder trailing Democrat Mark Schauer by 4 points. But last month, after a heavy lobbying effort of his own party in the state legislature, Snyder got a Medicaid expansion passed in Michigan A subsequent poll put Snyder 8 points ahead of Schauer. “I think certainly the success of Medicaid expansion was a boost for him among independents and maybe even some Democrats,” pollster Bernie Porn told MLive by way of explaining the surge.

The governors up for reelection next year were all elected in the 2010 Tea Party wave, many in states — like Michigan and Pennsylvania — that went on to vote for President Obama by wide margins in 2012. Now, their reelections hinge on their ability to win votes beyond the GOP base in a year when the Tea Party fervor has cooled substantially.

For many, the Medicaid expansion appears to offer such an opportunity. Though red-state conservatives like Texas Governor Rick Perry have resisted it as an expensive federal encroachment -- potentially leaving thousands uninsured who are too poor to qualify for health-care exchange subsidies but too well-off to qualify for standard Medicaid -- the expansion is initially 100 percent paid for by the federal government. Even in strongly Republican states where Obamacare is viewed unfavorably on the whole, the idea of expanding Medicaid is popular: One recent poll had 60 percent favoring the expansion in Georgia, though Republican Governor Nathan Deal has refused it.

The expansion gives Republican governors in Democratic states a point of collaboration with legislators, creating a benefit for their constituents at no cost to the state, at least at first. Two Southwestern Republicans with Democratic legislatures, Nevada’s Brian Sandoval and New Mexico’s Susana Martinez, were the first to embrace the expansion. In New Jersey, another strongly Democratic state, Republican Governor Chris Christie signed a budget expanding Medicaid this year, though he vetoed a proposal to make the expansion permanent.

Blue-state governors with Republican legislatures have had a trickier time. Ohio Governor John Kasich and Florida Governor Rick Scott would like to join the ranks of Medicaid-expanding Republicans, but both have been blocked by their own party in their respective legislatures. Kasich has stormed the state to make the case for expansion -- “We need this program to treat and help the working poor get comprehensive health care,” he told a Cleveland-area audience in mid-September -- and as he has done so, his approval ratings have climbed to their highest level since he took office. Scott’s embrace of Medicaid was shot down by Florida lawmakers, and he remains unpopular. But a poll over the summer put his approval rating above 40 percent for the first time in his governorship.

Another GOP governor in an Obama state, Iowa’s Terry Branstad, worked with both parties in his legislature to pass a modified Medicaid expansion; he is favored for reelection. Maine Governor Paul LePage, on the other hand, has vetoed expanding Medicaid in his state, which went for Obama by a 15-point margin; LePage is brutally unpopular, and recent polls have him losing if he seeks reelection. In fact, there’s only one Republican incumbent in an Obama-voting state who’s favored in 2014 despite unequivocally rejecting federally funded Medicaid expansion: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.

The Cook Political Report rates Walker’s reelection “likely,” and a recent set of polls showed him leading every prospective Democratic opponent by 4 to 7 points. But if Walker suddenly finds himself trailing, he wouldn't be the first to change his tune on Medicaid — and reap the political rewards.

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/10/dc-republicans-hate-obamacare-but-gop-governors-have-learned-to-love-it/280182/
=============================

[headoverheels 291]

Here's something interesting. There are now more customers where the insurer isn't responsible for the cost of medical care, than those where the buyer/company is responsible for the actual costs. That explains why I couldn't get any interest from the insurance company when my insurance got billed for someone else's colonoscopy (with complications) in addition to billing for mine. They basically get a cut of cash flow, and my employer picks up the variance from expected at the end of the year. I'm still not sure that the money was ever returned by the provider.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-belk/the-obomacare-paradox-the_b_8735042.html?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592

[kallend 1,649]

billvon

>I dont mean that

OK. In that case, it's a bad thing. Fortunately, even GOP governors are starting to choose helping their constituents over screwing them - and the people they help seem to appreciate it.
=================

=============================

And then there's Kentucky.

At least when you divorce your wife in Kentucky, she's still your sister.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[JerryBaumchen 1,068]

Hi John,

Quote

And then there's Kentucky.

From your link: "My religious beliefs outweigh whether or not I have insurance," Strong said.

Think she might be Trump supporter?



Jerry Baumchen

[billvon 2,435]

>From your link: "My religious beliefs outweigh whether or not I have insurance,"
>Strong said.

. . . but of course she will keep accepting Medicaid in the meantime.

Ahh, Kentucky. Where the religious beliefs of governors are imposed on the people.