Obamacare to reduce NY Health Insurance Premiums by an average of 50%

Three states revealed their new health insurance exchange rates today.

Seems like the sky isn't falling at all. At least not in New York.

Here's the story.

New York's health insurance rates to plummet: Vindication for ObamaCare?
Officials say mandated health care exchanges will cut rates in half
By Jon Terbush | 4:03pm EST

http://theweek.com/article/index/247...-for-obamacare

Well, look at that.

Insurance rates for New Yorkers who purchase their own coverage will fall by half next year with the implementation of a state-run health care exchange network mandated by the Affordable Care Act, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced Wednesday.

Starting in October — when the health care exchanges will go into place — New Yorkers will be able to buy insurance at rates around 50 percent lower on average than what is currently available. (You can see a full list of the current and future rates here.) The change will not affect those who receive insurance through their employers.

The timing and size of that drop, supporters of ObamaCare said, proved that the law would, in fact, reduce costs for consumers. The sharp decline in costs "demonstrates the profound promise of the Affordable Care Act," Elisabeth Benjamin, vice president for health initiatives with the Community Service Society of New York, told the New York Times.

"Health insurance has suddenly become affordable in New York," she said. "It's not bargain-basement prices, but we're going from Bergdorf's to Filene's here."

Cuomo himself suggested rates would drop specifically because of the ACA, saying in a statement that the exchanges "will offer the type of real competition that helps drive down health insurance costs for consumers and businesses."

In another encouraging sign for ObamaCare fans, New York officials estimated that 615,000 people would sign up for coverage under the reduced rates. Only about 17,000 New Yorkers independently purchase insurance now.

Following the news, the White House announced that President Obama would deliver a speech Thursday to discuss the law's benefits to consumers. The president's Twitter account also crowed about New York's projected rate cuts.


Yet the magnitude of the drop in New York's insurance rates can't be entirely attributed to ObamaCare. As the Washington Post's Sarah Kliff pointed out, New York has for two decades had the highest insurance premiums in the nation, so there was significant room for rates to fall.

A lot of it seems to trace back to a law passed in 1993, which required insurance plans to accept all applicants, regardless of how sick or healthy they were. That law did not, however, require everyone to sign up, as the Affordable Care Act does.

New York has, for 20 years now, been a long-running experiment in what happens to universal coverage without an individual mandate. It's the type of law the country would have if House Republicans succeeded in delaying the individual mandate, as they will vote to do this afternoon. The result: a small insurance market with very high insurance premiums. [Washington Post]

New York, with its heavily regulated insurance marketplace, already has in place some of the new regulations required by the ACA. Those regulations, which typically drive up insurance costs, therefore won't add costs for New York's consumers, though they will in other states.

"Adding ObamaCare to this mix [in New York] means adding elements like subsidies and the individual mandate that will tend to make insurance cheaper," the New Republic's Jonathan Cohn wrote. "Things won't work out so neatly in states like Florida or Texas, which don't have as many insurance regulations on the books already."

Still, the plummeting rates appeared to show that the health care exchanges are at least increasing competition and driving down costs on one front. And that in itself is a victory for the health care law.

SNIPE AWAY FOLKS. THIS IS REALITY.

Still, the plummeting rates appeared to show that the health care exchanges are at least increasing competition and driving down costs on one front. And that in itself is a victory for the health care law.

on that note, maybe the House can try to repeal Obiecare again .. for the 40th time

Insurance premium drops for New Yorkers, but I bet they will see tax increases elsewhere.

Still, the plummeting rates appeared to show that the health care exchanges are at least increasing competition and driving down costs on one front. And that in itself is a victory for the health care law.

on that note, maybe the House can try to repeal Obiecare again .. for the 40th time Originally Posted by CJ7

You might want to look at the actual numbers before you talk about plummeting rates...

(Yes, I'm one of those really annoying skunks who insists on injecting FACTS into perfectly good political shouting matches. Deal with it.)

You might want to look at the actual numbers before you talk about plummeting rates...

(Yes, I'm one of those really annoying skunks who insists on injecting FACTS into perfectly good political shouting matches. Deal with it.) Originally Posted by Sidewinder

so do your factual numbers include the subsidy individuals receive ?

Just some Oastroturfing BS.

Astroturfing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the type of advocacy. For the artificial grass, see AstroTurf.
Astroturfing refers to political, advertising, or public relations campaigns that are designed to mask the sponsors of the message to give the appearance of coming from a disinterested, grassroots participant. Astroturfing is intended to give the statements the credibility of an independent entity by withholding information about the source's financial connection. The term is a derivation of AstroTurf, a brand of synthetic carpeting designed to look like natural grass.
Astroturfers use software to mask their identity. Sometimes one individual operates over many personas to give the impression of widespread support for their client's agenda.[1][2] Some studies suggest astroturfing can alter public viewpoints and create enough doubt to inhibit action.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/17/he...anted=all&_r=0

Yeah, and Star Furniture is running a 50% off sale, but just this week.

Yeah, and Star Furniture is running a 50% off sale, but just this week. Originally Posted by chicagoboy

no they're not


https://www.starfurniture.com/

Still, the plummeting rates appeared to show that the health care exchanges are at least increasing competition and driving down costs on one front. And that in itself is a victory for the health care law.

on that note, maybe the House can try to repeal Obiecare again .. for the 40th time Originally Posted by CJ7

Good post CJ7. Affordable Healthcare for all. Your coverage begins 1/1/2014. Just don't get sick until then. COF, any complaints now?

You fools keep pissing, moaning, whining and crying about this deal.

Hysterical.

At least Trayvon Martin won't be getting any Obamacare! Rejoice in that, knuckledraggers!

Good post CJ7. Affordable Healthcare for all. Your coverage begins 1/1/2014. Just don't get sick until then. COF, any complaints now? Originally Posted by flghtr65

apparently sidewinder couldn't deal with it ... imagine that?

You fools keep pissing, moaning, whining and crying about this deal.

Hysterical.

At least Trayvon Martin won't be getting any Obamacare! Rejoice in that, knuckledraggers! Originally Posted by Yssup Rider

It scares them to death....it absolutely fucking scares them to death....that it just might work. After all their bitching, after all their obfuscation, after all the roll-back attempts, after 38 votes by the House, after all their dire predictions of disaster and the end of the world....What if it actually works and the American people are happy with it? Just imagine how their credibility blows away like dried-up dog shit.

By the way, assuming that this report is credible.....how is it not a good thing? If insurers in New York were charging rates that are now going to be one-half of what they charged previously? Where is the downside to that? Consumers were being overcharged and this legislation corrected that? Why doesn't the Affordable Healthcare Act not get a pat on the back?

Because it was Romney's idea of course!