The painfully inevitable ACA discussion thread

[LMNO]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

Medicaid still exists, and apparently you can petition for an economic hardship exemption. I'm gonna check to see what it says regarding students.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

In massachusetts if youre uninsured you dont get your tax refund. I imagine it will work similarly nationwide.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

Medicaid still exists, and apparently you can petition for an economic hardship exemption. I'm gonna check to see what it says regarding students.

Yessir, you can take time off from your minimum wage job(s) to go wrangle with exemption forms.

Yay!

[Kai]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

If you can't pay, they "tax" you, and you get health care.  From what I understand.

The skinny:  You pay anyway.

Okay. How is that different than Canada?

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

If you can't pay, they "tax" you, and you get health care.  From what I understand.

The skinny:  You pay anyway.

Okay. How is that different than Canada?

If you're broke in Canada, they don't fine ("tax") you for it.

[LMNO]

There's also a cap on percentage of income based off the poverty level.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

As an aside, the attorney general of the United States has just been charged with criminal contempt of congress.

[Kai]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

If you can't pay, they "tax" you, and you get health care.  From what I understand.

The skinny:  You pay anyway.

Okay. How is that different than Canada?

If you're broke in Canada, they don't fine ("tax") you for it.

So, I guess this needs to be revised, over time, so it eventually is in line with the Canadian model. It may take decades, but I have a feeling it can be done.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I've heard from other people that if you can't pay, you can still get health insurance. Is this true?

If you can't pay, they "tax" you, and you get health care.  From what I understand.

The skinny:  You pay anyway.

Okay. How is that different than Canada?

If you're broke in Canada, they don't fine ("tax") you for it.

So, I guess this needs to be revised, over time, so it eventually is in line with the Canadian model. It may take decades, but I have a feeling it can be done.

Um, just as soon as you and I have the lobbying power of the insurance companies, everything will fall right into line.

[LMNO]

Kai, you may be able to get in on a group plan through your university, which should be cheaper than getting it on your own.

[Kai]

Kai, you may be able to get in on a group plan through your university, which should be cheaper than getting it on your own.

That was my plan. Generally, graduate students get pretty good deals and good coverage. From what I've seen of this university so far, it should be no problem.

[tyrannosaurus vex]

Nothing about the ACA is going to change healthcare. It was written by insurance companies, so we know that its main purpose is to increase the number of people they are able to fuck. If more people, as a minor side effect, get to consume more pharmaceuticals as a result of that, then that's a necessary evil.

That is why the law was written.

But the law was enacted in order to create a gigantic legal diving board from which Washington can now spring into ever deeper pits of horse shit. They now have the power to tax you punitively as Roger mentioned, which means, at least from a legal perspective, they can now tell you to do anything they want, and if you "choose not to," they can simply tax you into debtors' prisons. OH GOOD.

[LMNO]

You also can't be denied for pre existing, nor can you be dropped when you get sick. Plus, ins cos have to use a percentage of profits towards preventative care.

[tyrannosaurus vex]

You also can't be denied for pre existing, nor can you be dropped when you get sick. Plus, ins cos have to use a percentage of profits towards preventative care.

You just wait until they start using the loopholes.

And while you can't be denied for a pre-existing condition, if you are considered to have an illness in progress, you can be moved to the "high risk" queue and have to purchase much more expensive insurance.

[Juana]

Also, you can stay on your parents' plan until you're 26, which is a fucking godsend.