You said it yourself, SkyWolf, there are requirements that must be met within 5 years, just as there has been regulation of insurance plans in the past and present and no one has complained about that. The insurance system we currently have will remain, but some stiffer requirements will be in place. This is really much ado about nothing.
I'm changing health care plans this year, not because I wanted to but because the company I'm with, Blue Cross - Blue Shield, isn't writing health care coverage in my zip code any longer. Now I have a choice of Aetna PPO, a company I left several years ago because of dissatisfaction or two HMO's that I don't particularly care for. The fact is that I still have availability to affordable health care coverage and many Americans don't. I'll make the best choice for me and be grateful that I at least have a choice.
My biggest fear, is that private insurance companies would be competing with the government. I'm not at all convinced that the government wouldn't "undercut" them in order to run the off, using our taxpayer money.
Merlinsflame:
I had Aetna PPO about 3 years when I retired and then bought private insurance - they suck so bad. I am relatively healthy and so the policy started out at $260/month - three short years the policy went to $650/month for no reason other than they could do it. The deductables were terrible etc. What I was hoping for with the healthcare plan was the Feds allowing private insurance holders to come together and buy insurance at the price given to large corporations. That would really help me out.
Currently I have Cigna PPO, I like it better.
Unfortunately one has to accept whatever your employer offers, unless you can afford to buy your own. My former employer offered one and only one plan...I either bought it or went without.
All I can say the whole insurance business is just out to make money! When the CEO of United makes something like $124 million a year.. there is NO reason why they can't cut costs to us! It's just plain old greed!
check em out!
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After I lost my job we had to get our own health insurance as my husband is self employed. We were paying almost 1000 a month. Could not do that. Year by year we have got less and less coverage and now the cheapest we can get, the deductibles are high so the monthly cost is lower. Basically its next to useless. I can not any longer afford mamograms or colonoscopies etc. My husband took VA insurance and thats OK if you are healthy but to have to travel downstate to get anything done (colonoscopy) is impossible. I cant drive anymore and he would not be able to drive back after any proceedures so we just do not get things done. I am loosing the sight in one eye because I cant get anything done about it.................this is not a complaint, just an explanation of why to me the NHS that I enjoyed in England was so much better. Thats not even bringing the cost of drugs into the equasion. Pretty soon I will have to give that up too...............Those who have good plans and still have good jobs will not understand until they are in the same situation.
Espirit: I really understand your pain as I experienced the same issues when I retired and went to get private insurance - that is really where one takes a hit. Why the new healthcare reform doesn't address this is beyond me because if we private insurance users were able to form a collective group we could force insurance companies to provide the same price to us as they do large corporations.
Today we are not allowed to do this -
I wholeheartedly agree Zorro -- there is hope! We agreed!
It wasn't that long ago, in this very group, that some of the conservatives were arguing that CEO's who were paid these (what I consider outrageously) large sums of money must be worth it or they wouldn't command that kind of salary. Other than the fact that it's a bad business model, what caused the change in attitude?
