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Does ObamaCare outlaw private insurance?


daveakl

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http://hotair.com/archives/2009/07/16/does-obamacare-outlaw-private-insurance/

"On page 16 of over a thousand pages of text, they discovered a clause that essentially locks people into their current plan, and locks everyone out of any other plan. Well, presumably the public plan will be an exception:

When we first saw the paragraph Tuesday, just after the 1,018-page document was released, we thought we surely must be misreading it. So we sought help from the House Ways and Means Committee.

It turns out we were right: The provision would indeed outlaw individual private coverage. Under the Orwellian header of “Protecting The Choice To Keep Current Coverage,” the “Limitation On New Enrollment” section of the bill clearly states:

“Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day” of the year the legislation becomes law.

So we can all keep our coverage, just as promised — with, of course, exceptions: Those who currently have private individual coverage won’t be able to change it. Nor will those who leave a company to work for themselves be free to buy individual plans from private carriers."

This seems a little crazy to me.

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I want to make sure I hear this right:

1. If I am not currently in a healthcare plan, I can never join one?

2. If I switch jobs and my new employer uses a different health insurance company, I can't switch my care to that other company?

3. This means no supplemental care? I can ONLY have a government plan if I go on the government plan (e.g. I can't retire, at which point in time my employeer quits covering go on a govenment plan and pick up insurance somewhere else)?

Anybody have this from somewhere else?

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You don't have to take their word for it.

The full text of the proposed bill is online:

http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090714/aahca.pdf

Let me give the entire quote:

(a) GRANDFATHERED HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE DEFINED.—Subject to the succeeding provisions of this section, for purposes of establishing acceptable coverage under this division, the term ‘‘grandfathered health insurance coverage’’ means individual health insurance coverage that is offered and in force and effect before the first day of Y1 if the following conditions are met:

(1) LIMITATION ON NEW ENROLLMENT.

(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day of Y1.

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I don't think anybody really knows what ObamaCare will or won't do. I'm not even sure Obama knows. The thing is hundreds of pages long and supposedly very few people have read all of it.

With that being said, it MUST be passed right away. This bill is almost as urgent as the stimulus package.

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Government is not trying to take over health care or anything right? Just put in some friendly competition? What do insurance companies have to worry about?

The fact that the Government will run it without turning a profit and run the private insurers out of business.

Then once they have total control the dip****s who couldn't coordinate a birthday party with Martha Stewart as a consultant will be making life or death decisions for all of us.

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This thing is a mess from my perspective.

I'm no expert and I'm certainly not informed enough to understand the ramnifications of what is happening here. However.. I get a sense that our government is not very interested in doing the dilligence in important matters such as these.

Every thread I've seen on this topic has reinforced my opinion that Obama is in a hurry to get this through because he knows that if people actually get a chance to look at it, there would be substantial opposition.

That's what happened with the Stimulus, right?

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This thing is a mess from my perspective.

I'm no expert and I'm certainly not informed enough to understand the ramnifications of what is happening here. However.. I get a sense that our government is not very interested in doing the dilligence in important matters such as these.

Every thread I've seen on this topic has reinforced my opinion that Obama is in a hurry to get this through because he knows that if people actually get a chance to look at it, there would be substantial opposition.

That's what happened with the Stimulus, right?

I'm starting to think that Obama intends to follow Bush's "Rush to War" with a "Rush to Everything Else" and with just as little thought into how we survive once we get there.

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The fundamental innaccuracy of the hotair notwithstanding, it's cute how they link Obama to this provision.

Anyone care to put money on whether or not it makes the final cut?

I'd put money on it but I'm saving up for the impending doom.

:evilg:

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I'm wondering if anybody's clicked on the link lately. Check the "UPDATE" part. Food for discussion. :)

You mean this?

Update: Instapundit gets this feedback from a reader:

Investor’s Business Daily did not continue to read the bill to page 19. “Individual health insurance coverage that is not grandfathered health insurance coverage under subsection (a) may only be offered on or after the first day of Y1 as an Exchange-participating health benefits plan. ”

It does not outlaw individual private coverage – you can still buy the plan on the Exchange where they will compete with the public option, not be replaced by it. The advantage of the Exchange, is that the coverage no longer has one of the problems of individual coverage – skyrocketing premiums should you become ill.

Well, that may address the issue, but price-fixing premiums means insurers can’t cover the costs of the risk they assume. Either the insurers will have to start with higher premiums to cover their costs, or they will go out of business when usage increases and premiums remain fixed. Forcing insurers into price-fixing schemes only adds another step to their extinction.

Food for discussion indeed.

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I'm starting to think that Obama intends to follow Bush's "Rush to War" with a "Rush to Everything Else" and with just as little thought into how we survive once we get there.

I think we can safely say that the "most transparent administration" campaign promise Obama made has gone up in flames.

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