You’re right, there is a HUGE difference between it being done on the federal level and at the state level. I’m also very surprised in Robert’s particularly siding with the majority on this while Kennedy (who is almost always the swing vote) did not.
I dont have health care now because i cant afford it…
I agree with vlad here. Most of the people who i’ve heard bitch about this have absolutely no idea what their talking about. A similar system works for canada albeit on a much smaller scale.
From a healthcare professional standpoint i’m ecstatic right now. I’ve always wanted to own my own pharmacy but reimbursement in NYS is terrible. Now that everyones getting medicine and everyones covered that doesnt look like a huge deal. Time to move to a city and put out straight volume!!!
you dont even have to move to a city. my friend is doing very well for himself. then again, he’s smart and makes his own compounds.
http://www.saugertiesrx.com/[](http://www.villageapothecary.com/)
you do realize that because of this so called “free healthcare” you are looking at the largest tax increase on the middle class in over 50 years
realistically all this did was show obamacare for what it really is, true cost and all. Now Obama will have to defend it as a tax, which he wasn’t doing before.
I wanted single payer, so we could rejoin the ranks of first world countries.
Adequate medical care is a human right, like clean drinking water. OH NOES a new tax! We are clearly getting something for this one, don’t see it as a problem. Rather this than more unneeded military spending. The healthier our populace, the better.
Of course, Romney is going to go and be even more completely full of shit, and people are going to be all “ANYTHING BUT THAT KENYAN SOCIALIST MUSLIM” and vote for him anyways. I’m not even a fan of obama.
What people call “Obamacare” is actually the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. However, people were calling it “Obamacare” before everyone even hammered out what it would be. It’s a term mostly used by people who don’t like the PPACA, and it’s become popularized in part because PPACA is a really long and awkward name, even when you turn it into an acronym like that.
Anyway, the PPACA made a bunch of new rules regarding health care, with the purpose of making health care more affordable for everyone. Opponents of the PPACA, on the other hand, feel that the rules it makes take away too many freedoms and force people (both individuals and businesses) to do things they shouldn’t have to.
So what does it do? Well, here is everything, in the order of when it goes into effect (because some of it happens later than other parts of it):
(Note: Page numbers listed in citations are the page numbers within the actual document, not the page numbers of the PDF file)
Already in effect:
It allows the Food and Drug Administration to approve more generic drugs (making for more competition in the market to drive down prices) ( Citation: An entire section of the bill, called Title VII, is devoted to this, starting on page 747 )
It increases the rebates on drugs people get through Medicare (so drugs cost less) ( Citation: Page 216, sec. 2501 )
It establishes a non-profit group, that the government doesn’t directly control, PCORI, to study different kinds of treatments to see what works better and is the best use of money. ( Citation: Page 665, sec. 1181 )
It makes chain restaurants like McDonalds display how many calories are in all of their foods, so people can have an easier time making choices to eat healthy. ( Citation: Page 499, sec. 4205 )
It makes a “high-risk pool” for people with pre-existing conditions. Basically, this is a way to slowly ease into getting rid of “pre-existing conditions” altogether. For now, people who already have health issues that would be considered “pre-existing conditions” can still get insurance, but at different rates than people without them. ( Citation: Page 30, sec. 1101, Page 45, sec. 2704, and Page 46, sec. 2702 )
It forbids insurance companies from discriminating based on a disability, or because they were the victim of domestic abuse in the past (yes, insurers really did deny coverage for that) ( Citation: Page 47, sec. 2705 )
It renews some old policies, and calls for the appointment of various positions.
It creates a new 10% tax on indoor tanning booths. ( Citation: Page 923, sec. 5000B )
It says that health insurance companies can no longer tell customers that they won’t get any more coverage because they have hit a “lifetime limit”. Basically, if someone has paid for health insurance, that company can’t tell that person that he’s used that insurance too much throughout his life so they won’t cover him any more. They can’t do this for lifetime spending, and they’re limited in how much they can do this for yearly spending. ( Citation: Page 14, sec. 2711 )
Kids can continue to be covered by their parents’ health insurance until they’re 26. ( Citation: Page 15, sec. 2714 )
No more “pre-existing conditions” for kids under the age of 19. ( Citation: Page 45, sec. 2704 and Page 57, sec. 1255 )
Insurers have less ability to change the amount customers have to pay for their plans. ( Citation: Page 47, sec. 2794 )
People in a “Medicare Gap” get a rebate to make up for the extra money they would otherwise have to spend. ( Citation: Page 379, sec. 3301 )
Insurers can’t just drop customers once they get sick. ( Citation: Page 14, sec. 2712 )
Insurers have to tell customers what they’re spending money on. (Instead of just “administrative fee”, they have to be more specific).
Insurers need to have an appeals process for when they turn down a claim, so customers have some manner of recourse other than a lawsuit when they’re turned down. ( Citation: Page 42, sec. 2719 )
Anti-fraud funding is increased and new ways to stop fraud are created. ( Citation: Page 699, sec. 6402 )
Medicare extends to smaller hospitals. ( Citation: Starting on page 344, the entire section “Part II” seems to deal with this )
Medicare patients with chronic illnesses must be monitored more thoroughly.
Reduces the costs for some companies that handle benefits for the elderly. ( Citation: Page 492, sec. 4202 )
A new website is made to give people insurance and health information. (I think this is it: http://www.healthcare.gov/ ). ( Citation: Page 36, sec. 1103 )
A credit program is made that will make it easier for business to invest in new ways to treat illness by paying half the cost of the investment. (Note - this program was temporary. It already ended) ( Citation: Page 830, sec. 9023 )
A limit is placed on just how much of a percentage of the money an insurer makes can be profit, to make sure they’re not price-gouging customers. ( Citation: Page 22, sec. 1101 )
A limit is placed on what type of insurance accounts can be used to pay for over-the-counter drugs without a prescription. Basically, your insurer isn’t paying for the Aspirin you bought for that hangover. ( Citation: Page 800, sec. 9003 )
Employers need to list the benefits they provided to employees on their tax forms. ( Citation: Page 800, sec. 9002 )
Any new health plans must provide preventative care (mammograms, colonoscopies, etc.) without requiring any sort of co-pay or charge. ( Citation: Page 14, sec. 2713 )
1/1/2013
If you make over $200,000 a year, your taxes go up a tiny bit (0.9%). Edit: To address those who take issue with the word “tiny”, a change of 0.9% is relatively tiny. Any look at how taxes have fluctuated over the years will reveal that a change of less than one percent is miniscule, especially when we’re talking about people in the top 5% of earners. ( Citation: Page 818, sec. 9015 )1/1/2014
This is when a lot of the really big changes happen.
No more “pre-existing conditions”. At all. People will be charged the same regardless of their medical history. ( Citation: Page 45, sec. 2704, Page 46, sec. 2701, and Page 57, sec. 1255 )
If you can afford insurance but do not get it, you will be charged a fee. This is the “mandate” that people are talking about. Basically, it’s a trade-off for the “pre-existing conditions” bit, saying that since insurers now have to cover you regardless of what you have, you can’t just wait to buy insurance until you get sick. Otherwise no one would buy insurance until they needed it. You can opt not to get insurance, but you’ll have to pay the fee instead, unless of course you’re not buying insurance because you just can’t afford it. (Note: On 6/28/12, the Supreme Court ruled that this is Constitutional, as long as it’s considered a tax on the uninsured and not a penalty for not buying insurance… nitpicking about wording, mostly, but the long and short of it is, it looks like this is accepted by the courts) ( Citation: Page 145, sec. 5000A, and here is the actual court ruling for those who wish to read it. )
Question: What determines whether or not I can afford the mandate? Will I be forced to pay for insurance I can’t afford?
Answer: There are all kinds of checks in place to keep you from getting screwed. Kaiser actually has a webpage with a pretty good rundown on it, if you’re worried about it. You can see it here.
Okay, have we got that settled? Okay, moving on…
Small businesses get some tax credits for two years. (It looks like this is specifically for businesses with 25 or fewer employees) ( Citation: Page 138, sec. 1421 )
Businesses with over 50 employees must offer health insurance to full-time employees, or pay a penalty.
Insurers now can’t do annual spending caps. Their customers can get as much health care in a given year as they need. ( Citation: Page 14, sec. 2711 )
Limits how high of an annual deductible insurers can charge customers. ( Citation: Page 62, sec. 1302 )
Cut some Medicare spending
Place a $2500 limit on tax-free spending on FSAs (accounts for medical spending). Basically, people using these accounts now have to pay taxes on any money over $2500 they put into them. ( Citation: Page 801, sec. 9005 )
Establish health insurance exchanges and rebates for the lower and middle-class, basically making it so they have an easier time getting affordable medical coverage.
Congress and Congressional staff will only be offered the same insurance offered to people in the insurance exchanges, rather than Federal Insurance. Basically, we won’t be footing their health care bills any more than any other American citizen. ( Citation: Page 81, sec. 1312 )
A new tax on pharmaceutical companies.
A new tax on the purchase of medical devices.
A new tax on insurance companies based on their market share. Basically, the more of the market they control, the more they’ll get taxed.
The amount you can deduct from your taxes for medical expenses increases.
1/1/2015
Doctors’ pay will be determined by the quality of their care, not how many people they treat. Edit: a_real_MD addresses questions regarding this one in far more detail and with far more expertise than I can offer in this post. If you’re looking for a more in-depth explanation of this one (as many of you are), I highly recommend you give his post a read.1/1/2017
If any state can come up with their own plan, one which gives citizens the same level of care at the same price as the PPACA, they can ask the Secretary of Health and Human Resources for permission to do their plan instead of the PPACA. So if they can get the same results without, say, the mandate, they can be allowed to do so. Vermont, for example, has expressed a desire to just go straight to single-payer (in simple terms, everyone is covered, and medical expenses are paid by taxpayers). ( Citation: Page 98, sec. 1332 )2018
All health care plans must now cover preventative care (not just the new ones).
A new tax on “Cadillac” health care plans (more expensive plans for rich people who want fancier coverage).
2020
The elimination of the “Medicare gap”
I’m not quite sure how you can call medical care a “human right.”
I can’t help but LOL at this: “It makes chain restaurants like McDonalds display how many calories are in all of their foods, so people can have an easier time making choices to eat healthy. ( Citation: Page 499, sec. 4205 )”
Many state’s and localities already require restaurants to do this, and this should NOT be a federal issue. More importantly though, if you’re going to McDonald’s the last thing on your mind is a calorie count.
It may suck for people, but welcome to politics…everyone acts like stupidity doesn’t occur everyday with the government.
Gov’t comes up with an idea > Taxes get raised > We pay the taxes > Life goes on.
It’s a never ending cycle and I’ve come to just deal with it LOL.
Why can’t he call it a human right? We are supposed to be a “civilized” nation; one in which that cares about its citizens. When a person is sick or dying, do they not deserve the right to medical care to make them better? Why should certain people get good care and others not? :dunno
Everybody gets care no matter what. They just dont have an insurance company paying for it. Health care can be called a human right sure. How you pay for it has nothing to do with human rights.
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Sorry, access to affordable healthcare. The healthcare industry should be about treating people, not making insane profits off the sicknesses of said people.
I’m not trying to stir the pot here, but can you back this up?
Slightly off topic but still involves obama. Does anyone care that he openly called on African Americans to vote for him! This new campaign of his is called “African Americans for Obama”. He openly tells black citizens to go door and door, and to churches and ask fellow black citizens for his vote. Clearly breaking the separation between church and state. Imagine Romney asking for all the white votes. He would pry never be in politics again, and would have to make a public apology. This president is so out of control, if anyone votes for him shot yourself
Basic human rights are the ability to defend oneself, to not be enslaved, to be recognized under the law, etc; general principles that have guided mankind for hundreds of years. This idea that healthcare is a human right is a very recent one and one made by progressives as a justification for government interference in peoples lives. Why should certain people get AC and others not?
Society long ago said that we don’t want our poorest suffering, hence we now have Medicaid. I think the issue that most people have with the ACA is not the goal of making sure everyone is insured, it’s the manner in which it is done. If a state (and I will always argue this is a state issue, not federal) wishes to establish a low-cost insurance exchange for people to take advantage of, they should be able to. However the federal government should not tell tham that they have to, and more importantly the federal government should not tell individuals that they must buy this product or incur a penalty. THAT is the problem.
Yes health care is not a right. We also should stop providing all this water to peoples houses also. If you want water you should have to go to the river and get it yourself bowl it and then drink it. Or have a company handle it without government oversite so prices are jacked up and only the rich can afford it.
Unfortunately we don’t live in fantasy land and some people are not able to get a job that provides health care. Example Walmart employes allot of people but they keep them part time so they can save money. So they work and don’t deserve the same health care as any man in this country? So instead give him crappy care. Now you may say well he can go to.college but the fact is some people are not smart enough, can’t afford it, or have a family situation that doesn’t allow it. Well you could tell them to join the military which is a great idea but who foots the bill for that guys pay, healthcare, GI bill ect. You can also do state funded college but who pays for that.
To have a properly functioning society you need housing, food, water, and health.
Just look at what happens when say there is a disaster. Red cross provides those exact things basic human life support.
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Literally your best post I’ve seen on Shift.
Red Cross is also funded mostly by donations and volunteer work. It’s not the government is forcing people to pay for that care.
I don’t get how people don’t see the big issue here in that we are being FORCED to get insurance or pay a hefty tax/fine. It’s not whether people should have insurance or not, or if “health care is a right”. Health care is about as much of a right as a driver’s license. It’s nice to have it, but some can’t afford it or simply don’t want it.
OK then FEMA who pays for that? Your right but then I should not be required to carry car insurance ether. Since it is only nice to have. If you do not provide health care sickness and disease will rum rampent. Look at the middle ages black plague or guy breaks leg they cut it off.
I have no problem paying taxes or quality government services.
Example over pricing by health providers.
I was in the military and on leave got sick and went to the hospital. Got the bill of $2200 because they new I had insurance. Well what they didn’t know is tricare an insurance for military funded by the government. I submitted my bill to tricare and they responded to the hospital with you get $990 for that work. Nice try hospital. So if your insurance rates keep going up and up you know why.
This is factual information and happens all the time. Tricare pays what they deem as a proper price.
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On a side note did you know that federal government vehicals do not carry car insurance. When they get in an accinent they just pay it outright.
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