Obamacare is causing insurance rates to skyrocket

[OwnedByFerrets]

I hear it every day from people in all walks of life. They hear this viral meme and are scared shitless. And YES, it has gone viral folks.

What can be done to combat this insanity?

The American people (a majority of them) were stupid enough to beleive that we NEEDED to invade Iraq to protect this country. Hell, many millions still think it was a great idea. So, something like Obamacare = BAD NEWS is very easy for them to swallow.

Logic doesnt work with many of these people, but we have to have some ammunition. What is that ammunition? What is the talking point that will hit home that Obamacare is NOT evil?

Help me here.

[CountAllVotes]

1. my insurance is going up 3% for 2011

n/t

:kick:

[hedgehog]

2. How much would it have gone up without the Health Care Reform bill?

Correlation is not causation.

[CountAllVotes]

6. it probably had no effect on what I pay

luckily, my benefits and the costs are all based on something called a UNION CONTRACT!

WAKE THE HELL UP!

UNION YES.

:kick:

[laughingliberal]

15. About the same as far as I can tell now. nt

[Schema Thing]

3. I saw a post yesterday

that quotes the Kaiser Family Foundation as saying that health insurance premiums rose only 3% this past year, their lowest rate in 15 years.

[laughingliberal]

19. Not going to help much if you're arguing with someone whose premium just went up 25%.

There are large companies going up this much and some are sending out notices blaming the additional costs of compliance with HCR reform for it.

It's a lie as they were planning the rate jacks before HCR passed but how do you fight something like that? Part of the blame lies with a lack of adequate cost control measures in the bill.

[Schema Thing]

25. Actually I think the health insurance cost controls might be working already

hence the 3% rise.


The average worker is seeing a 14% rise. So in this case, it's corporations being the assholes instead of insurance companies being the assholes.


Companies are saying: "sweet, an excuse to shift cost to the workers and blame it on the democrats". Who I suppose, deserve some blame if they weren't smart enough to put into law immediate constraints on companies who would do this.

[laughingliberal]

30. As I said, that won't help much if you're arguing with someone whose premium went up 25% or more.

We did need premium costs addressed. The public option, as Obama said, was the best way to do this. Eveything else is just the little dutch boy with his finger in the dyke.

[valerief]

4. Most Americans did NOT believe war was necessary. Media and polls told us Americans thought that.

If people thought that, Ohio wouldn't have had to have been stolen in 2004.

[mmonk]

5. More like the insurance companies are upping their premiums

and are fine with pretending it's because of the legislation.

[laughingliberal]

16. That's exactly it. nt

[Schema Thing]

27. No, actually that's not what's happening

though it is looking like that to the uninformed.

What is happening is that companies are making the average worker pay 14% more than last year, even though insurance rates have only gone up 3% on average (the smallest increase in 15 years).

[mmonk]

29. I was speaking of an itemized like charge indicating health reform.

[Cant trust em]

7. There is a correlation fallacy afoot here. nt

[EFerrari]

9. Yep. Premiums were going up before and they're going up again.

The true complaint would be that the bill didn't stop the increases but that's a little complicated for a right wing sound bite.

[Fumesucker]

10. Have you ever tried to explain about logical fallacies with a Real 'Murkin?

They think you're talking about some kind of sex fetish..

[kentuck]

8. No. They are using Obamacare as an excuse..

They have been raising prices for many years. They will not stop until they are forced to stop.

[uponit7771]

11. My insurance rate went down after wifes company switched carriers

[wiggs]

12. Two things: 1) they were going up anyway, significantly, and 2) for many, the

portion that the employer pays is being reduced as a cost-cutting measure, so the employee's share goes up.

[kenny blankenship]

13. 1) Invent time machine. 2) Pull head out of ass 3) Go back in time, and pass REAL HEALTHCARE REFORM

Not corporate welfare for the insurance industry, pharmaceutical industry, for-profit hospital industry and the AMA thugs. Do not chain working people to a corporate oar and insult them by calling it a "reform".

And if you can't pass real reform, for God's sake don't pass an ersatz, backwards, corrupt & corporate-dictated version of reform that institutionalizes and shelters the root cause of the problem with the force of law. That will fuck up the field for any sincere reformers who may appear for years to come, and it will prejudice ordinary people against the very idea of government led reform of industry. No, let the Free Market show what it can do, if it refuses to submit quietly to surgical treatment. In other words, best to let it completely fail due to its uncontrollable greed and then watch it strangle on its own filth. In 5 years, even the Repukes would have to pass Medicare-For-All, or else be annihilated at the polls.

The way to combat "this insanity" is to have a LITTLE FORETHOUGHT and to anticipate this insanity and prevent it with a REAL reform effort. All it would have taken was a little forethought. That, and to take the party's mouth away from the corporate zipper for half a minute. But who can think when their mouth is full and busy?

[MH1]

14. My insurance rates have skyrocketed the last few years

Since long BEFORE the health care reform was passed.

If it goes up again this year it will just be more of the same.

[Bitwit1234]

17. My BC/BS monthly insurance rate dropped .32 cents.

and it is only about 34 or 35 dollars. I forgot which it comes out of my retirement check automatically. All together I pay about 97 dollars for health insurance, dental insurance and prescription coverage. I sure hope it doesn't skyrocket like the rest of the country.

[w8liftinglady]

18. Poor,poor insurance companies-"ObamaCare" might affect this:

http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/paywatch/ceou/industry.cfm

2009 salaries for insurance company CEOs

Ticker Company CEO Name Year Compensation ($)
AET AETNA INC Ronald A. Williams 2009 18,058,162
AFL AFLAC INC Daniel P. Amos 2009 13,591,511
ABK AMBAC FINANCIAL GP David W. Wallis 2008 2,832,065
AEL AMERICAN EQTY INVT LIFE HLDG David J. Noble 2008 514,624
AIG AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP Robert H. Benmosche 2009 2,706,530
ANAT AMERICAN NATIONAL INSURANCE Robert L. Moody Sr. 2009 22,325,432
ACAP AMERICAN PHYSICIANS CAPITAL R. Kevin Clinton 2009 1,844,272
AGP AMERIGROUP CORP James G. Carlson 2009 5,232,249
AIZ ASSURANT INC Robert B. Pollock 2009 6,444,198
AGO ASSURED GUARANTY LTD Dominic J. Frederico 2009 7,661,221
CNC CENTENE CORP Michael F. Neidorff 2009 6,077,900
CI CIGNA CORP H. Edward Hanway 2009 18,818,467
CIA CITIZENS INC Harold E. Riley 2009 1,032,943
SUR CNA SURETY CORP John F. Welch 2009 2,210,807
CNO CONSECO INC C. James Prieur 2009 3,326,059
DFG DELPHI FINANCIAL GRP -CL A Robert Rosenkranz 2009 2,393,125
FFG FBL FINANCIAL GROUP INC-CL A James W. Noyce 2009 2,204,218
FNF FIDELITY NATIONAL FINANCIAL Alan L. Stinson 2009 5,379,038
FAF FIRST AMERICAN CORP Frank V. McMahon 2009 6,439,941
FPIC FPIC INSURANCE GROUP INC John R. Byers 2009 2,704,376
GNW GENWORTH FINANCIAL INC Michael D. Fraizer 2009 7,252,186
HNT HEALTH NET INC Jay M. Gellert 2009 3,643,342
HS HEALTHSPRING INC Herbert A. Fritch 2009 3,966,635
HUM HUMANA INC Michael B. McCallister 2009 6,509,452
IHC INDEPENDENCE HOLDING CO Roy T.K. Thung 2008 657,764
LNC LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP DENNIS R. GLASS 2009 6,996,596
MKL MARKEL CORP Alan I. Kirshner 2009 1,021,709
MBI MBIA INC Joseph W. Brown 2009 5,167,360
MET METLIFE INC C. Robert Henrikson 2009 11,600,338
MTG MGIC INVESTMENT CORP/WI Curt Culver 2009 2,279,259
MOH MOLINA HEALTHCARE INC J. Mario Molina 2009 1,866,260
NWLI NATIONAL WESTERN LIFE -CL A Robert L. Moody 2008 3,136,353
NYM NYMAGIC INC A. George Kallop 2009 1,208,970
ORH ODYSSEY RE HOLDINGS CORP Andrew A. Barnard 2008 4,460,033
PNX PHOENIX COMPANIES INC James D. Wehr 2009 3,439,396
PMI PMI GROUP INC L. Stephen Smith 2009 3,032,733
PPD PREPAID LEGAL SERVICES INC Harland C. Stonecipher 2009 1,852,538
PLFE PRESIDENTIAL LIFE CORP Herbert Kurz 2008 723,496
PFG PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL GRP INC Larry D. Zimpleman 2009 4,909,023
PRA PROASSURANCE CORP W. Stancil Starnes 2009 2,522,909
PL PROTECTIVE LIFE CORP John D. Johns 2009 4,606,270
PRU PRUDENTIAL FINANCIAL INC John R. Strangfeld Jr. 2009 18,425,632
RDN RADIAN GROUP INC Sanford A. Ibrahim 2009 2,828,960
RGA REINSURANCE GROUP AMER INC A. Greig Woodring 2009 3,546,187
SFG STANCORP FINANCIAL GROUP INC J. Gregory Ness 2009 3,723,004
STC STEWART INFORMATION SERVICES Stewart Morris Jr. 2009 962,333
TMK TORCHMARK CORP Mark S. McAndrew 2009 2,836,298
GTS TRIPLE-S MANAGEMENT CORP Ramon M. Ruiz-Comas CPA 2009 1,318,431
INDM UNITED AMERICA INDEMNITY LTD Larry A. Frakes 2008 1,779,955
UNH UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC Stephen J. Hemsley 2009 8,901,916
UAM UNIVERSAL AMERICAN CORP Richard A. Barasch 2008 3,503,701
UNM UNUM GROUP Thomas R. Watjen 2009 9,378,363
WCG WELLCARE HEALTH PLANS INC Heath Schiesser 2008 8,077,718
WLP WELLPOINT INC Angela F. Braly 2009 13,108,198
XL XL CAPITAL LTD Michael S. McGavick 2009 6,212,437
YAVY YADKIN VALLEY FINANCIAL CORP William A. Long 2009 445,482

[depakid]

22. If they weren't viewed like baseball players who didn't win the World Series

Maybe.

[Canuckistanian]

20. This is what happens when you do a half-assed job

Sometimes, it makes things WORSE.

[depakid]

21. Unfortunately, the legislation didn't deal with it- and so was bound to blamed

as astute observers and analysts noted at the time.

Get used to it- because there' a LOT more coming down the pipeline.

[EC]

23. Article in our local news today

says insurance increases lower than have been in past 25 years, didn't get to read it before work but will when I get home tonight...

But the policies were going to increase anyway - they always do, just like everything else...but it seems to be at a lesser rate with HR.


On edit: What's with the "Obamacare"?

[OwnedByFerrets]

24. I appreciate all the responses.....you all, however, seem to be

just as unable to come up with a simple CONVINCING answer as I. Maybe there isn't one.

[Alcibiades]

28. It might help if insurers were called out on this

They keep sending folks letters saying premium increases are due to HCR. The administration does not respond. And the administration bargained away single-payer for this?

Punked.

[UTUSN]

26. I don't know if there is a cause-effect but my copay went from $255 to 366 ev 3 months: BC