Obamacare horror stories
Maggie Mahar at healthinsurance.org takes a look at stories easily fact checked in Anatomy of an Obamacare horror story
For months, health reform’s opponents have been feasting on tales of Obamacare’s innocent victims – Americans who lost their insurance because it doesn’t comply with the ACA’s regulations, and now have to shell out more than they can afford – or go without coverage.
Trouble is, many of those stories just aren’t true.
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The paper describes them as among Obamacare’s “losers,” but the truth is that they didn’t want to be winners. Two hadn’t even attempted to check prices in the exchanges.
Meanwhile, it appeared that no one at the Star-Telegram even attempted to run a background check on the sources, or fact check their stories. I couldn’t help but wonder: “Why?”
The answer will surprise you.
I would suggest “googling” the editor’s name and see what pops up. He is either incompetent or dishonest, there are no other choices. He edited a column that contained an overstatement of cost by 65%, yet he is “not sure” he is going to correct it?
In terms of the reporter, she should find a new profession. Even with the incredible amount of disinformation roaming around the ACA, she did not need a fact checker to figure this one out. She hasn’t heard about the exchanges? Is she trying to say that in writing this article she did not come across anything that suggested she could fact check herself in a half an hour?
She gave the editor what he wanted without any kind of effort to ensure the truth in her story. That is the worst thing a journalist can do.
Let me tell you a horror story that is really real because I have been living it.
We had the same health insurance for 8 years and it was what we needed. The policy was cancelled and replaced January 1 in order for the policy to meet the ACA rules. Roughly equivalent, except higher premiums, co-pays and deductibles.
The policy needs to provide the 62 “free” services (no co-pay or deduct) and needs to fund those, I understand that.
So Mrs. Rustbelt RN needs some prescription refills January 10th.
The new cards have not arrived by then.
The pharmacy staff is overwhelmed trying to track down new policy numbers and new policy terms (based on first hand observations by both of us waiting in line multiple times) and deal with new formularies.
The physician office is overwhelmed trying to enter new data, track down data for people without new cards (ours arrived) and do pre-certifications on items not previously requiring pre-certs.
And today we find out the one medicine Mrs. R really needs is no longer covered and will not be stocked by the pharmacy without a special order. So she is going to have to have doc appointments and lab tests and go through an ordeal (we are lucky to be pay for the pills for now if the special order works) and then more paperwork until three doctors and the pharmacy are all on the same page.
To quote Mrs. R:
“I spent my whole life taking care of other people, I will have osteoarthritis in my knees and hips until the day I die from my nursing, and now I have to go through an ordeal to get a scrip filled.
Damn Obama anyway. And damn his stupid computer system.”
She is in the next room writing her retirement letter, which is tragic for her elderly patients.
I am spending a couple of hours a day working with national associations (mostly physician and surgery related, some long-term care) and this story is repeating itself thousands of times daily.
What a friggin’ mess.
I’m very sorry for the hassle your wife is experiencing.
Advice for everyone: before choosing a plan, you need to call the insurer them and find out if they cover your medications.
(This has been explained over and over–but not everyone reads newspapers.)
Obamacare has no control over Which medications any individual plan decides to cover.–that’s up to the insurer.
Then it’s up to the customer to pick a plan that covers his or her meds.
(This has always been the case: Pre-Obamacare different insurers covered different meds.
The good news is that under Obamacare if your physician feels you need a medication and your insurer doesn’t cover it, there is a greatly improved appeals process.
See http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/things-you-need-to-know-about-the-affordable-care-act-and-prescription-drugs–but-probably-dont/2013/12/09/c00054c4-5eba-11e3-95c2-13623eb2b0e1_story.html
(Even pre-Obamacare your odds of winning the appeal were very good, and now they will be better.
Pharmacies were asked to fill prescriptions even if customers don’t yet have their insurance care. Many are doing that.
Inevitably, when any major plan rolls out there will be administrative hassles. Check what happened when Medicare part D came out–and that was much less complicated legislation..
And the Affordable Care Act is an enormous (and enormously important) piece of legislation that will help millions of people.
No one has ever tried to do anything like this on this scale ever
before. (Universal healthcare in a country this size.)
Even if the computer system designs had been excellent (and most weren’t) , it was inevitable that there would be many glitches.
Even when Microsoft or Apple try to do something new there are glitches. And the U.S. government is not a high-tech company.
Everyone needs to be patient, and realize that as things settle down, we all (as a society) will be better off.
Maggie,
Rusty just has to continue his anecdotal attack on the ACA since he has been predicting the end of the world for a couple of years now.
He seems like a nice man, but I have a hard time dealing with someone who constantly discusses topics in this manner. And some of it brings up red flags to me.
For example, I have a hard time understanding his and Mrs. R’s health insurance. I am not aware of any hospitals not having employer provided health insurance for their employees, yet the Rustbelts seem to have their insurance from the private market. (course, my knowledge of hospitals is limited to two sisters who worked in administration, and one niece who is Director of Nursing so that is anecdotal also).
I guess Mrs. R’s hospital is just different from most hospitals, but that sort of undercuts all of his anecdotal stories of the damage caused to hospitals and RNs by the ACA.
EMichael–
You make a good point. I also have never heard of a hospital that doesn’t provide health benefits for employees.
And it would be very unusual for a hospital to offer insurance that
doesn’t meet Obamacare’s standards.
Also, the notion that the physician’s office is “overwhelmed” trying to deal with people with new policies sounds unlikely. Less than 5% of the population buys their own insurance in the individual market–and not all of them saw their policies cancelled.
Does this physician only deal with people who purchase their own insurance? Highly unlikely.