Obama Defends 'Keep Your Plan' Claim

[DonViejo]

Source: TPM

TOM KLUDT – NOVEMBER 5, 2013, 6:57 AM EST

Amid a troubled rollout for his signature legislative achievement, President Barack Obama on Monday defended both the Affordable Care Act and a previous pledge he made in selling the law to the American public.

During a speech before volunteers for Organizing for Action, the President acknowledged that he's been bothered by the rollout, particularly the problems surrounding the website HealthCare.gov.

"Obviously we've been very frustrated, I personally have been very frustrated, with the problems around the website and healthcare," Obama said, according to a White House pool report. "

"It's inexcusable and there are a whole range of things we're going to need to do once we get this fixed, to talk about federal procurement when it comes to IT and how that's organized. But the model of providing health insurance for all Americans and using not just what government can do but also private sector competition and choice, that model's working."

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/obama-defends-keep-your-plan-claim-video

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Video of the President's comments at the link, above.

[bigwillq]

1. What a joke.

People are losing their plans. Get a clue, Obama.

[DonViejo]

2. Back up your charge with links to articles

confirming your allegations.

[bigwillq]

33. Obama administration knew millions could not keep their health insurance

But millions of Americans are getting or are about to get cancellation letters for their health insurance under Obamacare, say experts, and the Obama administration has known that for at least three years.

Four sources deeply involved in the Affordable Care Act tell NBC News that 50 to 75 percent of the 14 million consumers who buy their insurance individually can expect to receive a “cancellation” letter or the equivalent over the next year because their existing policies don’t meet the standards mandated by the new health care law. One expert predicts that number could reach as high as 80 percent. And all say that many of those forced to buy pricier new policies will experience “sticker shock.”


http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/28/21222195-obama-administration-knew-millions-could-not-keep-their-health-insurance



Obamacare: More than 2 million people getting booted from existing health insurance plans


CBS News has learned more than two million Americans have been told they cannot renew their current insurance policies -- more than triple the number of people said to be buying insurance under the new Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.

CBS News has confirmed with insurance companies across the country that more than two million people are getting notices they no longer can keep their existing plans. In California, there are 279,000; in Michigan, 140,000; Florida, 300,000; and in New Jersey, 800,000. And those numbers are certain to go even higher. Some companies who tell CBS News they've sent letters won't say how many.


http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505263_162-57609737/obamacare-more-than-2-million-people-getting-booted-from-existing-health-insurance-plans/

[geek tragedy]

36. You realize that many plans get 'cancelled' each year and then replaced with

very similar plans, right?

If people really thought Obama was promising that every single insurance plan in existence at any point would remain in existence for time eternal, they're a little foolish.

[bigwillq]

38. Obama said if you like your plan you can keep it.

That was a false statement.
He lied.

[North Carolina Knigh]

40. Some people just can't deal with it

He did not tell he truth in order to get it passed. I'm glad he did, but a saint he is not.

[bigwillq]

41. Saint? Nope. Liar? Yes.

Wrong of Obama to mislead regardless of private insurance dropping people in the past.

[North Carolina Knigh]

42. In the long run

It will be for the better but he is politician, nothing better.

[Incitatus]

49. I agree.

Many plans have to be upgraded to be compliant. Of course, many companies are trying to take advantage of that, not his fault. So what he said wasn't really true and I think we will be much better off in the long run. It's not like he told a lie that caused two wars.

[bigwillq]

52. Oh, I agree, ACA, in the long run, hopefully, is a step in the right direction

But sick of politicians lying.

[YarnAddict]

39. Will a real life story do?

When my son turned 27 in May, and got kicked off our group insurance, our independent agent found a policy for him. It is BC/BS, and it is specifically designed for young, healthy adults. The way it was set up, he wouldn't be eligible after age 30. It was perfect, and it was cheap. About $100/month. It was good coverage, although he never had to use it. Well, he got his notice a couple of weeks ago that this policy will cease to exist on Jan. 1. Sure, he can get other insurance, which he will probably also never use. You can bet it will cost more, but it will cover pre-natal, just in case he gets pregnant.

I'm really disappointed. I had such high hopes for this law. Just never realized how negatively it would impact my family.

[seabeyond]

51. OMG... it is womens fault. damn pre natal. or maternity i think you mean. nt

[YarnAddict]

53. Yeah, he won't need that

or the mental health, or the drug/alcohol coverage, or the prescription coverage. All we wanted was something that would be there in case his appendix burst, or something else unexpected happened.

[scheming daemons]

3. only people listing their plans are those with bogus plans in first place

...that didn't cover what they thought it covered.

[City Lights]

4. That's not true.

Our plan was cancelled because it doesn't comply with the ACA, but we knew exactly what we were getting when we signed up for it.

[Doremus]

7. So you were happy your insurer was spending less than 80% on healthcare?

Why?

[City Lights]

8. Where did I say I was happy?

I hated my policy, but it was the best we could get at the time.

[DonViejo]

9. Umm, so what's your point? Your insurance was cancelled

because it didn't comply with the law and some how that makes the President a liar? A crook? A con artist?

[City Lights]

11. Stop putting words into my mouth.

The poster I responded to claimed that plans were being cancelled because their plans didn't cover what they thought it covered. That's not true. At least not in my case.

[DonViejo]

14. Sorry, I'm not trying to put words in your mouth...

I was trying to understand what you were writing. I'm still not sure I understand (maybe I'm still asleep) but, thanks for the effort at clarifying

[Cryptoad]

13. Did you

sign up for this policy before ACA??????

if so has there been any changes to your policy since then?????

[City Lights]

16. We signed up in May of 2010. No changes to policy. nt

[Cryptoad]

21. You may be the only person in America

who has no changes in their policies in since then!

[City Lights]

22. Well none that I'm aware of.

Are you talking changes in coverage? That's what I'm talking about. We did raise the deductible once because the old deductible became unaffordable.

[tridim]

30. Individual policy, no change, no rate hike...

And I've been getting rebate checks from my insurer (4 checks in 6 months) because they haven't been spending 80% on providing healthcare. My premium has essentially been cut in half.

Insurers are going to have to lower the price of their premiums fast, because they're getting destroyed by the exchange prices. Right now they think they can compete on name-recognition or something, which is completely nuts.

[Nine]

23. Your policy is not "grandfathered" then. The cutoff is March 23, 2010. (nt)

[City Lights]

24. Right. That's why it's being cancelled. nt

[boomersense]

25. I'll answer your question the way many are answering it.

Suppose I have a not great plan that doesn't cover everything but my doctor is someone I have been going to for 22 years. I TRUST HIM. Under my new plan many more things are covered...allegedly...but my new doctor is a stranger, someone I am afraid of... I would prefer to stay with my old plan regardless of what is covered. If I contract a disease which is not covered, then it is time for me to meet my maker--then sobeit. Now, this is what people have told me regarding medical plans they are going to have to switch to. For me personally, who has some money saved, I would pay much more to keep the same plan and DOCTOR then to have to switch to a plan with a new doctor. And the "new" doctors, this is a whole conversation in itself. But I don't blame this on Obama. The old plan should have offered some kind of bridge to stay on it. If I am on an old plan that cost me $600.00 a month and the new one costs $450.00, a mechanism should have been set up where I could stay with the old plan even if I had to pay a penalty. I would have gladly paid the penalty pretty much whatever it was.

[giftedgirl77]

26. Are you saying you couldn't find a single plan

with your doctor listed as a provider? Especially since you are willing to pay more?

[boomersense]

28. I began my post with the word Suppose. This doesn't affect

me. It has come up in questions to me of a medical website I am part of. I have insurance and will be going on Medicare next year some time, then leaving the country and who knows what will happen then. One of the things my wife and I are looking at is medical care in other countries. Have to make a decision soon.

[U4ikLefty]

46. Which medical website is that?

Those sound eerily similar to the right-wing talking point going around lately.

"Suppose" I had a Unicorn and it farted glitter.

[kmlisle]

27. I believe you can keep that plan one more year

through 2014 if your insurance company does not end it s coverage. I heard they do have that option. Also many people go on the exchanges and shop for plans that let them keep their doctors. You should probably call a navigator and get the correct information.

[boomersense]

29. My query wasn't for me. I was answering the

question based on what people have been asking me. Thanks for the info.

[CANDO]

10. And when something catastrophic happens...

and your plan doesn't cover you, bankruptcy ensues and then the rest of us pick up the tab for your non-coverage. The law has minimum coverage standards for this very reason. In some instances, it will cost you more. In others, the more comprehensive coverage will be just as affordable as the junk plan cost. It depends on individual circumstances.

[City Lights]

12. Yes, I know.

I'm not defending the plan I have. It sucks and I'm eager to get something else through the exchanges. The point I made is that I knew the plan was crap when I bought it, but it was the best available that we could afford at the time, so the poster's claim that plans were cancelled because they don't cover what they thought it covered is not true in my case.

[CANDO]

17. Ok

I'm right there with you on this. I used to be in a high deductible plan and they suck! I'm hoping and expecting for you to find a very nice plan on the exchange which is affordable.

[City Lights]

19. Thank you!

I hope so, too!

[1StrongBlackMan]

44. I was going to call B.S., …

As being untruthful, but reading through your latter posts … just wonder why you are working so hard to pile onto a simplistic narrative that you (presumably) know works against the ACA that gives/will give you more for your consumer dollar?

Perhaps, we should recognize when a correction, though true, is counter-productive.

[KareBear]

5. doubling in cost

Our employer provided family's health care cost is doubling this year up to around $600 a month for just my spouse an I. Something has gone wrong if it was supposed to get more affordable. When can we drop this pretense and get single payer like every other civilized country? Anything else is just a money grab by big pharma and the insurance companies.

[Cryptoad]

15. be more specific

what state?

your general income?

what did you old policy cover?

every claim I have seen like yours has been debunked when investigated!

[KareBear]

34. nothing to debunk

There's really nothing to debunk. I work for a major university in Missouri employing thousands of people. The United HealthCare Choice Plus plan is going from around $300 a month for employee plus spouse to around $600 a month. There's no special coverage or circumstances, we are not self employed, just a giant price hike. Not trying to pull one over on anyone with this.

While cause and effect may not be related here to the ACA, it is a huge burden on our family to suddenly take a $3600 pay cut out of the blue.

[Cryptoad]

35. you are getting screwed,,,, it aint by ACA! nt

[U4ikLefty]

47. Which major university?

Are they paying a portion of your insurance premium?

If so, why would they pay more?

[quadrature]

50. don't forget the $2500 a year you save! ..nt

[1StrongBlackMan]

45. When …

A critical mass of the population demands single-payer … and the body politic is nowhere near that. It seems that folks think that when/if the ACA fails, we will find ourselves with single-payer, when the more likely result will be an insurance market, more strongly dominated by insurance companies.

[dchill]

54. It is ironic, your using the "Get a clue" hackney.

Obama has a clue. It is other people - including some Democrats, apparently - who lack the clue.

[Snake Plissken]

6. Probably the biggest mistake made during the rollout of the ACA was

underestimating how sleazy the insurance industry is.

They are in business for one thing and one thing only, that is to make money. The way they make money is to sell insurance to those who will not use it and to deny insurance to those who need it.

Their corporate culture is to deceive their customers into believing they are getting a better value that they really are,

assuming this was going to chance because a new bill was enacted was very short-sighted.

There should have been far more effort made to let people know the facts not assuming they would find out on their own, making this assumption allowed the fearmongers to get their message out sooner and louder.

[DonViejo]

18. I don't understand why the folks involved in creating the ACA...

didn't know and/or expect the reaction it received from the insurance industry...remember the industry's response to "HillaryCare?"

[tridim]

31. I'd say it's because people already knew the insurance industry sucked.

Problem is, it doesn't take into account corporate-sponsored cognitive dissonance and racist hatred of Obama.

I know for a fact that staunch Republicans (my parents and all their Republican friends) complained about pre-ACA health care more than I ever did.

[Cryptoad]

20. Many of the

super Red States are in bed with the insurance compainies in their effort to obstruct ACA as much as Possible....

Many have made their State Insurance Commissioners to only allow one insurance company to sell in their ACA exchanges making the cost of same policies 50% higher than neighboring states that have many insurance companies selling in their exchanges.

[MyNameGoesHere]

32. Look I get why he said it in the first place

he didn't have to sell it to me. But he should have known there would be blow back from it. He either doesn't care or he thinks it will blow over. Either way to me it was a bizarre move. Was it a lie? IN a political context I guess not, in truth yes it was.

[7962]

37. I had to read 50 posts to get to the ONE that gets the point of the story!

Good job, MyName. His revision during his speech yesterday is ridiculous. He intentionally did not say that all those times before. There are dozens of clips of him saying it over and over. He should have known better. I expect that from my president.

[TeeYiYi]

43. Maybe he was exaggerating...

...kind of like you just did with your "50 posts" whopper.

TYY

[7962]

48. Your parents never said "If ive told you once, I've told you a thousand times"?

I was off by 14. Wow, a HUGE whopper.
A one time statement would be an exaggeration, saying the same thing over and over was deliberate.