healthguy

These departures will leave self-employed people and those who get their insurance through the ACA exchanges at a very real risk of having no insurance options – or only extremely expensive options. Blue Cross Blue Shield announced on August 7, 2017 that it (via Anthem) will not offer individual health insurance coverage in metro Atlanta in 2018.  It has almost withdrawn entirely from Georgia’s individual market; yet, in 96 of the state’s 159 counties, Blue Cross is the only company left in the Obamacare health insurance exchange market.

Other providers are pulling out at an alarming rate:

Aetna announced in May that it plans to completely leave the ObamaCare marketplace by 2018.

Humana announced earlier this year that it would leave the ACA’s public exchange.

Minuteman Health announced in June that it plans to withdraw from the market in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

Molina Healthcare Inc., plans to withdraw from the marketplace in Utah and Wisconsin.

UnitedHealth Group Inc., via Harken Health Insurance will pull out of the marketplace in Georgia or Chicago and UHG pulled out of the individual insurance marketplace.

Here it is mid 2019, and with regard to health insurance, little has changed since February, when President Trump signed an executive order directing the IRS not to collect a tax penalty for not having ACA-compliant insurance.

At the moment, the situation is crummy. Insurance providers don’t know what will happen, so they cannot plan for 2018.  Which means more will likely pull out of the market. Premiums will continue to rise.

Democrats continue to oppose anything Republicans suggest (unless, of course, the Republicans simply give the Dems whatever they want).  But the Republicans cannot seem to figure out what to do.

To us, it does not seem to be that difficult:

1. Repeal ObamaCare
2. Begin meaningful tort reform
3. Create true competition for healthcare, health insurance and medications by allowing purchases across state and national borders.
4. Begin a process of creating transparency in healthcare costs.
5. Create high risk pools and fund them from an income tax, which by law could never, ever be used for anything other than healthcare.
6. Require that all health insurance policies provide for preventative care, meaning an annual checkup, vaccinations, colonoscopy, mammogram, prostate exam, etc. (early detection and treatment reduces everyone’s costs)
7. Pre-existing conditions fall under the high risk pool subsidy.
8. Improve and expand VA hospitals to provide care to high risk pools and those below the poverty line.
9. Allow all others to purchase whatever insurance or whatever type they feel is best for themselves and their own families.
10. Allow children to stay on parent’s policy until age 26.
11. Allow states to manage their programs.
12. Require, going forward, that treatment for conditions caused by individuals’ own actions be paid by themselves.  In other words, insurance companies can charge you much, much higher premiums if you ever smoke, get obese, don’t get required vaccinations, etc. Let us be clear: if YOU CHOOSE TO SMOKE, OVEREAT,AND ENGAGE IN RISKY BEHAVIORS – YOU PAY THE COST OF TREATMENT – not other taxpayers.

We need to ensure that anyone who tries to live a health lifestyle can get affordable care and not be financially ruined by conditions beyond their control.  Likewise, people who by their own choice and actions, such as smoking and self-caused obesity should not expect the rest of us to pay for their self-indulgent lifestyle! We need to create healthy behaviors by both incentive and penalty.  Americans need to learn to live a healthier lifestyle, so we can afford to provide affordable healthcare to all.
<!––nextpage––>