You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Insurance costs’ category.
A panel of judges has ruled that subsidies are no longer legal. For millions of Americans, this means they will immediately be slapped with charges up to $800 a month for what many are paying under a hundred…
They will drop their insurance out of necessity, or will be dropped for non-payment.
Republicans are celebrating this…
When the law was written in 2010 it was assumed that all states would do their own exchanges. In states that are doing their own exchanges, there will be no change. That is what the law says and as Republicans say: the law is law….
But for states like Delaware which rightly decided that the Federal exchange would be cheaper for its citizens because of the larger pool, that line in the law was never changed…. It says “state exchanges”… (Remember the law is alleged to be some 15,000 pages long, and is still, believe it or not, something I have not yet read….)
But in one line the word “state” is indeed there and that, according to this particular court, means that it is illegal for the federal exchanges to be subsidized… I have looked, and at this early moment just hours after the decision, there is no confirmation (just estimates) on how many insured that will affect…..
But to all you who were insured in the Federal exchange? Guess what? You got no Obama care….
Map courtesy of Kaiser
To hear the far extremist right saying “ha, ha, ha, suffer bitches” you can go here or here…
Now…
On this same day, another Federal court in the same city, decided this was indeed legal. There were two cases before two different conservative courts, and we got two opposite decisions. It now goes up the next step and will probably hit the Supreme Court. Which should mean that IF insurance companies are willing, the Obamacare program can continue as is until struck down… But as we saw with Obamacare last November, when it comes to making money, private insurance companies are ruthless and lack heart…
Second… to fix this, all we need is a bill put forth, worded like this…. A bill: To amend the ACA Healthcare law by removing the word “state” and inserting “all or any”…..
That will happen in the Senate, but will never happen in the House…. Which is why, in whatever state you read this, you must get Democrats into your Congressional seat… IF you succeed, or if ENOUGH of you succeed, your insurance can and will continue… You will continue to be insured.
Remember it is just one stupid word so don’t be bulldozed by smart-assed Republicans gloating over the “rule of law” .,… (They don’t honor rule of law when it applies to one of their favored corporations….) It can easily be changed… but it must require people sympathetic to Obamacare for it to get passed….. Only Democrats can guarantee you your insurance will continue… Only Democrats.
You must, must make your vote count this November; you must make your friends, neighbors, church goers go to the polls in your behalf; unfriend them if necessary, bitches….. Your entire future depends on this one vote… Seriously, you could be dead next year thanks to your … Republican friends….
Although support for the TDC power plant may look like a chance to support jobs, the reality it that it is an environmental disaster.
When you support a disaster, you eventually lose….
Labor Unions will lose public support if this TDC center goes through…. Withholding the environmental dangers from the public may work short term and get approval, …
But once built, and when ash particles the size of golf-balls begin to fall on Newark, Stanton, Elsmere, Wilmington and Claymont, the public will ask,,, how on earth could this have been approved?
The truth will come out at that point, that bad people sneaked it through using bad ways…..
You will eventually lose prevailing wage if this TDC goes through…. The public will turn on you. I almost turned on you before I calmed down. Economics are a strong suit. But one’s life trumps economics. The environmental consequences of this TDC are gigantic. Everyone who gets cancer will blame you… Anything they can do to hurt you will become their dying wish, if you know what I mean….
What to do….
- Support a data center without a power plant.
- Support building a data center in a rural area close by so we get the same jobs… 20 miles into Cecil County or east of Middletown would do the trick.
- Support something else being built on the same location…. One that has no environmental impact.
Putting your loyalty and support behind the Data Center, is like putting your loyalty and support behind a candidate who unknown to you committed child abuse 25 years ago… At some future point, you lose all your investment…… and are left to fight a defensive war to keep more from being taken away by business groups…..
You did not know this would turn on you. But it has, and will get worse…. Now is the time to sneak out of the back of the crowd while no one is really looking or counting…..
Signed: Your most ardent supporter.
K
Courtesy of AP/Nati Harnik
This is the DOT 111…. It is called the traveling nuclear bomb. This rail car was deemed unsafe in 1990… it still carries 65% of the crude across North America…. It is these cars that blew up La Magnetic in Quebec. It is these cars that blew up Casselton, North Dakota. It is the cars that blew up in Lynchburg, VA just last week…
Here is the explanation via video.
The National Transportation Safety Board has been urging replacing or retrofitting the tank cars since 1991 (George H.W. Bush was president), but the most recent federal effort to write tougher regulations for new cars didn’t get underway until 2011…. You can rightly blame the oil presidency for that delay. New rules are to be out by this upcoming December….
Though these cars look nice, they are easily ruptured in an accident, spilling out their contents. With US oil production being up 70% over 2009 levels, increasing per day production from 5 million barrels to 8.5 million barrels per day, these cars are getting a heavier workout than at any time in their history. Increased exposure means increased potential for a harmful accident….
U.S. freight railroads transported about 415,000 carloads of crude in 2013, up from just 9,500 in 2008, according to government and industry figures. That is an increase of 4200%…. So yes, that translates to having 4200 times more of a chance at a spill, 4200 more of a chance at an explosion, or 4200 more chance of a death or maiming….
The rail and chemical industries have committed to a safer design for new tankers but are pressing regulators not to require modifications to tens of thousands of existing cars, despite a spike in the number of accidents… It is modifications to these cars that will save lives..
Essentially we and regulators are being asked to trade in our lives for their money…. In other words they can fix the problem, but it will cost them money to do so, and they don’t want that. Since if a train explodes not that many people will die, that is an acceptable loss society should bear they say, so as not to invest any money into a tank car that will soon be scrap metal once newer safer cars are available…..
After last years explosions Canada has moved forward on making their railroads safer… The US has gotten as far as a Congressional Hearing.
Then 2 months ago, the NSTB issued an emergency order. The order requires all crude oil be properly tested before being transported. And all crude that travels by rail must be carried in these DOT-111 tank cars. The older DOT-111 tank cars were deemed inadequate by the National Transportation Board more than 20 years ago.
Some crude from the Bakken region, including the oil in the tragic Lac Megantic derailment, was misclassified. What that means is that potentially explosive crude oil was being shipped in rail cars even less safe than the DOT-111’s. The so-called misclassification has resulted in $93,000 in fines.
So if you are driving through Bear, and a train is crossing your path, look up and see if the rail cars look like the one above, If so, make U turn and get out of there… quick! The extra few minutes your drive may cost you, could mean a lifetime of thank-yous….
Uninsured percentage is lowest since 2008….. This is what was driving costs upwards and now? … they are insured…..
God bless Obamacare, and all those individuals who kept it moving forward into reality. We are truly witnessing something amazing in our times….
There is a reason the opponents of Obama care are racing the clock to defund it before October 1st. They know how popular it will become to the American people.
I just looked and Delaware does not have their worksheets up yet, but in the state offices, things are looking rather rosy for the citizens of Delaware… Most of you will save thousands per year on medical bills. Not all, but most.. Looking at the voting trends, those who vote often, will all save money with insurance.
Other states do have their insurance options up and I have been looking through them. The general trend is thusly. If you are young, you are going to incur an expense you have not had to yet pay. Sorry. That will come with sticker shock, as does a new car, as does your first house. However, it should allow you the confidence to get checked out sooner, and therefore live healthier in your golden years than you otherwise would today if you had to pay full expense for care.
Hopefully, since you have to pay for it anyway, you will take advantage of it.
But you! Oh you! Who are old? Who have pre-existing conditions? Who have suffered with poor coverage for so long? You are going to love what this does. You will be able to figure out medical costs to the penny across your future years with your financial planning advisor, no matter what happens to your body. The costs will be fixed, and a lot cheaper than you paying through the nose upon each occurrence.
One can describe it as buying a warranty. What, the initial questioners ask? You want me to pay money to this shop each month even when nothing happens? Yes and if something happens you get your car fixed for free. Some gripe about losing $150 a month, until they see their first bill at a hospital would have cost them $5,000…. Then … they finally understand.
And you with families? Especially you who have not taken your kids to a doctor because you couldn’t afford it? You’re kids can now go…
So yes, those with money to lose will spend it all on ads telling you horror stories and capitalizing on one or two exceptions they make up as to who will pay more…
but just wait till October 1st, when you see that you start saving thousands… EVERY SINGLE YEAR!
Then remember the Republican party tried to run the economy over a cliff, twice, to stop these savings from coming to you…..
October 1st, it is almost here. About time for the pirated version to be leaked, don’t you think?
August 18, 2015
Today, in a domino tumbling of bad news for Delawareans, it was announced that Christiana Care would be leaving the state. The local medical facilities and clinics would go up for sale. In hours, AI Dupont announce it was leaving all health care organizations, and would only take privately funded patients. One hour later, BayHealth announced it was closing Kent General and Milford Memorial…
All cited Highmark as the reason. Highmark announced their plan to pay insurance claims only to their own doctors and hospitals. This freezes out all others, since most patients do not have an option but to take the employer’s offered medical plan. Since the first of August, over 90% of Delawareans have switched to Highmark.
This action was originally allowed in Delaware by Karen Weldin Stewart, the insurance commissioner in 2012 and was subsequently supported by ALEC legislator Patty Blevins currently head of the Senate… Neither could be reached for comment. Both are vacationing in the Grand Cayman Islands.
The medical profession is falling apart. Hospitals, insurance, clinics, are all taking your money, and spending it on themselves, not you. In an age when middle America is biting bullets, those in charge of Medicine are getting rich. Steve just put up where Hallmark is denying insurance payments to those in its own clinic, then applying their credit card used for the co-pay, to soak up the total amount of the bill.
People are finding their bank balances zero, at very inopportune times.
When we grew up, doctors were decent people. Now all they want is $$$$. They don’t help people anymore. It is time to change that. It is past time to change that.
Competition. That is how. Doctors who work on the cheap. Of, if you want, you can keep your high priced physician, who does nothing but talk to you for 5 minutes, have a prescription called in for you, and for that take a full day’s wages out of your pocket.
Imagine getting medical attention for $5? Here is how.
We hire the smartest college graduates from the finest schools. These are smart people. Once hired, we take them away to a retreat, and give them a 5 week program grounded in everything medical. Everyone has been to a doctors office. How hard can it be? In that five week course, they learn everything a doctor needs to know. WE then put them in clinics across the inner cities, areas where it is hard to staff, so people can get medical coverage for $5 dollars a visit. One can imagine how busy they would be!
These are very smart people. They can figure out the rest as they go along. Who really needs to know the name of every bone? The names of every muscle? How the digestive system works. Does it really matter if you can’t remember whether the large intestine comes before or after the small intestine? If one can’t remember, just stick your fingers up (wear gloves of course) and find out.
The problem is all those doctors who went to expensive medical school, and over charge because of it. Being a doctor is so simple, even a cave man can do it. The reason medical costs are so high, is because of medical boards that set pricing.
This program will get around that, by hiring college students at normal college student wages, and put them in clinics charging $5 a pop…
One would think insurers would prefer paying out $5 instead of $500! They will be on board. KWS will make sure of that. And one of the greatest things about this program, is that when incompetent existing doctors throw in their towel, or get banned by their customer’s test scores, we have a whole crop of ready-to-go doctors who can jump into to any practice at a moment’s notice.
Just give them a medical book, and we have cheap, quality health-care. After all, they are very smart people you know.
This is not medieval England. Today, anyone can be a doctor. you just type the symptoms into Google, and write the perscription it spits out. We don’t need four years of medical school on top of our undergraduate program. We need people who jump in, and Heal for America.
Really. They are just doctors. We’ve all been to doctor’s offices. How hard could it be? Competent medical care on the cheap!.. “‘Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished!” Just think of all those lazy investors crying crocodile tears because they can’t rip us off anymore! I mean 5 weeks is enough to learn about everything. Even 6 weeks study is too much.
Our medical profession needs kicked. We can’t delay any more this concept’s implementation.
Courtesy of Western Pennsylvania Healthcare News
I haven’t been paying attention. Thank Goodness Steve has.
Bruce Ennis put forth a bill (SR8) requesting Delaware go forward with formally supporting Glass Steagall re-implementation by the US Congress.
Bryan Townsend kind of came out against it. Here is Nancy’s copy of his emailed response to her.
One must understand all legislative members in Delaware are somewhat compromised. We are a banking state. In the words of Gov. Howard Dean, MD. himself… ” Any candidate who challenges Wall Street’s status quo is going to come under an avalanche of hateful attack ads this year –“
So there is considerable reason not to be an ardent Delaware fan of the return in 2013 of Glass Steagall….. One must give the courageous Bruce Ennis a plug for being one.
But it makes so much sense. There are times in our life when one can willingly chose a very risky path of action which will occupy 100% of ones attention, as in driving a mountain road along the cliffs in Montenegro at over 100 km/h. Or, we can choose to put ourselves into a safety bubble, such as cruise control on a major interstate highway, and relax and enjoy the other things in life, since all our effort is not involved on monitoring what otherwise could become a life or death scenario.
I have read Mr. Townsend’s statement and it is accurate. However my criticism is that it deals with banks. His and our responsibility is to the people whose money is in those banks. And who are on the hook when those banks fail.
The FDIC insures deposits now up to $250,000. It should not be responsible for funds placed in hedge funds, As Elizabeth Warren accurately stated:
If we are going to insure the people’s money, it should be kept in safe investments. What point have we in insuring by default hedge funds, swaps dealing, and other risky investment banking services. When the same institutions that take huge risks are also the ones that control your savings account, the entire banking system is riskier.
The funds for checking and savings accounts of America’s families and businesses, should not be handed over to the London Whale. If a crash occurs, and the money is safe, then the losses are only on paper. But when yours and my monies are in Bangledesh, China, or Antarctica on some risky get-rich scheme, and fail… our tax money needs not be thrown away because our American Banks were involved.
Banks cried the economy was safe enough for the repeal of Glass Steagall.. History showed them wrong. Even the most vibrant time of economic growth ever seen in America (92-00), could not prevent the collapse 9 years later after 8 years of Republican control..
The only way to keep citizens money safe, is to insure it. We are lucky we have a rich nation which can do that. We barely survived the financial collapse of late 2008. Our employment numbers still show the cost.
Yes, one can take the bank’s side and say things were different in 1932 than they are in 2013. But doing so, puts one in contrast with what is best for We, the people. The simple solution is to make it clear to all, that the FDIC will only insure safe investments used for checking and savings accounts. For risky investments banks are on their own. For them a bank must use other funds it can easily afford to lose if it wants to play at the crap table… It should not be throwing our money away because it assumes the taxpayers will simply replace their losses for free.
We should not be in the business of arguing what or what not banks should or should not do. They can do that within whatever parameters we choose to give them. However our concern is simply over how much we should insure. The new Glass Steagall Act of 2013 will make that clear.
Congress is budged $1.248 billion a year… there are 52 weeks in each year… The cost of congress per week is $24 million. (How can that be?)
Since the Tea Party entered the scene, there have been 34 votes to repeal Obama Care, all passing the House and all dying in the Senate. These are feel good bills being proffered by Congresspeople to satisfy their most ardent critics back home. If Congressperson “A” proffers a bill to abolish Obamacare, … Congressperson “B” does exactly the same copy two weeks later. Congressperson “C” then follow up with the same copy the next month.
These votes are not free. They take time away from other duties. If this time were spent on something that would pass the Senate, all of us might be better off.
CBS estimated these bills took up an average of 2 and a half hours each. If added they amount to roughly 80 hours or two weeks…
At $24 million a week, these silly votes of posturing have cost the American taxpayers $48 million dollars… $48 million would pay for 960 $50,000 jobs for a full year…
America can’t afford Republicans any more.
kavips 