ok So I have been trying to find the answer to this online but can't seem to find it. My husband and I are worried about what the health care reform will mean for us if it goes into effect. Currently My husband and I are uninsured but are children are covered by medicaid. Our income is at the 100% poverty level (we make a gross of about $23,000 a year for a family of four.) and I know the new law would require medicaid to cover people under the 133% level. However my husbands employer does offer coverage. It would be $100 a week. My husband works out of town (because there are no real buisnesses in town) and spends about $45 in gas a week to get to work. After gas and paying for insurance through his employer we would be left with $140 for all our bills, clothes, diapers, ect. This is why we are uninsured. As our income stands right now it qualifies us for the Healthy Indiana Plan. Which is a medicaid program for adults who don't meet the income requirements for traditional medicaid (which is about $400 a month for a family of four) however one of the requirements is that your employer does not offer coverage. It does not matter if you can afford that coverage it just can't be offered. If this is kept with the health care reform law it would not matter if medicaid covered up to 133% or to 200% we still could not get on it or afford other coverage (no matter how competitive the prices would be.) Does anyone know if medicaid is suppose to cover people under 133% poverty on traditional medicaid or on medicaid funded programs (like the healthy indiana plan)
It is my understanding you would not pay anything for your children's insurance, their care is covered at your earning level.
You and your husband would pay a small percentage, I think I heard at your level about 6%, but remember this will be your total cost.
$1300. for the year? Which is amazing to have full coverage.
S.,
Most likely, there will be subsidization based on a sliding scale. Many want that to apply (help with SOME of the cost) for families making up to 88K per year.
The good news would be that you & your husband would not have to live with the "what if's" of NOT having coverage.
IF the public option is more affordable, you will be able to get that and opt out of your husband's employer's plan, as you've done already.
Here's O. link with some info:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/politics/8-q...
If the healthy Indiana plan is your Medicaid that would be what you would be forced on to or pay the penalty. Actually I haven't read the 2,700 page law so for all I know if you are Medicaid eligible you may not even have the option to pay the penalty which is 2.5% of your income up to, I believe, 675 a month.
It has been one of the things that I don't understand about poor people's attitude to Obama care, it still isn't free. It will be forced on you. If you can't afford it now how can you afford it in the future.
Guys, affordable exchanges? Just because someone who makes 250,000 a year plus thinks it is affordable doesn't mean someone making 30,000 a year would agree.
None of us have read the 2700 page bill. None of us can read the Supreme Court justices minds. None of us know how, exactly, the law changes are going to affect us.
IMO, there do seem to be more protections for those of us in the lower income brackets than there are now. Protections as in subsidies to pay for insurance based on ability to pay.
We'll all have to be patient for now and wait to hear more details as things get worked out.
I'm scared because how much power this will give the government. They will require you to pay for government health care, if you are not covered otherwise, and the cost will probably be less than private health care, so people will switch because its cheaper, not knowing that puts them immediately at risk as far as choice goes... health procedures, doctors visits, what is covered or not covered will be ALL up to the government because they are "covering it". Do you think any of the coverage will be personal? Absolutely not! Will this be better than private insurance? NO! Why put our entire country at risk (by being in debt, and therefore being "owned" by the countries that loaned us gobs of money- one being CHINA) to do this? Our future is becoming more and more screwed because the budget is never considered, just spend, spend spend... and then tax more, and even THAT doesn't cover what is already being spent! Not to mention the new proposals. YIKES! Uggghhh...
I honestly wish almost everything be privatized. It doesn't put us at risk, it causes more competition, it raises employment, and gives the people freedom of choice.
The low cost will also mean that everyone will STILL not be paid for, and our country will go further in debt. Private insurers will go bankrupt, our choices will be fewer and fewer, and for those that like alternative medicine, or those that DON'T want REQUIRED immunizations will be SOL because that will effect all of that. The government will choose one procedure over another, NOT YOU. The government will choose what doctors you can and cannot see.
...and not to mention, you will be FINED if you do not pay. How is that CONSTITUTIONAL!?!? It isn't. There is no debate over it. The liberal Justices only voted for it because of political affiliation. Which isn't right, they should be there to uphold the constitution and nothing else.
ANYway, we are uninsured as well, and we don't make a lot of money either. Our kids are also covered by medicaid. My husband works hard for us, and I stay at home with the kids. He owns his own business, he's his own boss, so going through his "employer" isn't an option for us. We probably will be one of the ones covered but don't have to pay... probably.... but STILL, I find that whole health reform thing just SO WRONG. I don't believe I should be "forced" to get health insurance. That should be my own choice, dammit! We are on a very tight budget... and I don't want more government control!!!
Just like Sue W said... "none of us have read the 2700 page bill". We all don't know for sure about anything- except I am sure that it sounds like a scary mess that was pushed through congress in hopes of them not having a chance to read it so they would find out they DIDN'T want to pass it. I mean, you cannot deny that that is just plain stupid! "Um, I'll pass it if you REALLY want me to, even though I barely read it... because a democrat wrote it, right? Okay then, it has gotta be okay...". Real nice, politician idiots!
Thank GOD that the entire congress voted "no" on Obama's new recent budget. Whew!
Our system is so broken and the current reforms are certainly not going far enough to fix it. Unfortunately I do not know the answer to your question. I just keep hoping our political will gets strong enough to finally join the rest of the Western world and get a single payer system. The cost of having uninsured people is killing our country. My husband and I run a small business and cover all our employees (though we can't afford to cover their families) but every year it gets harder and harder to pay those premiums. Every insured person is paying an average of $1000/year of their premiums to cover the expense of uninsured people who can't pay for their medical bills. The most common reason for people to file bankruptcy is health care bills (common even for people who are insured). In addition, as a nation we lose millions of $$$ in lost productivity for workers who can't afford to be treated properly for their health conditions.
For those interested, I am reading an intriguing (though a bit "dry") book called "One Nation Uninsured" that looks at our continued failed attempts to deal with our health care woes.
The whole thing is a mess and I'm not surprised you can't find answers.
Hope it works out for the best for your family.
I can honestly say that I cannot afford insurance either. I do believe he will not be able to police the people who do not pay for insurance, the jails would be filled to overflowing. There are some that just will not be able to pay it. There is no way he can enforce this. It will fail.
They need to set up health care so that poorer people can have free clinics to go to, more low income clinics available too. There are a few in my area but I have to save up the $20 co-pay to be able to go. It is $20 for each thing they do, office call, X-ray, blood test, pap smear, etc...those twenties add up so I always have to save for several months. If I am acutely sick I just have to use the ER.
We need more low income places and to set up tons of free clinics for people. That is the only way health care will be available to all.
