Another Issue With Obamacare I Mentioned Previously

[SPK145]

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- One in three Americans say they have put off getting medical treatment that they or their family members need because of cost. Although this percentage is in line with the roughly 30% figures seen in recent years, it is among the highest readings in the 14-year history of Gallup asking the question.

Since 2001, Gallup has asked Americans each November if they have put off any sort of medical treatment for themselves or their families in the past 12 months. Last year, many hoped that the opening of the government healthcare exchanges and the resulting increase in the number of Americans with health insurance would enable more people to seek medical treatment. But, despite a drop in the uninsured rate, a slightly higher percentage of Americans than in previous years report having put off medical treatment, suggesting that the Affordable Care Act has not immediately affected this measure.

Gallup

 

[Merge]

It isn't the affordable care act that is causing this, it is the shift of the cost sharing forcing consumers to be involved in their healthcare decisions. This shift began before Obama took office.

This trend is a good thing if you want to bend the cost curve. Healthcare in the US has been to inexpensive in our recent history causing over utilization. The price for consumers had to go up.

I understand where you are going in regards to health outcomes, but we really will not know the impact of the shift in cost sharing for many years. Really can't even begin to assess the data for the next several years.

I believe within a few years we will see a decline in insurance costs, and the ACA will be credited as the reason... mistakenly for the most part... but it will make a great talking point for the left. A big reason will be this cost shift. Also, I have been doing some reading recently about the impact of the baby boomer generation entering medicare. The population of citizens 65 or older is going to increase by about 70% over the next twenty years... Scary thought for Medicare expenses, but the private insurance market will benefit from a healthier population each year.

 

[HALL85]

Merge, the flaw in that thinking is, that if people are putting off more serious procedures, the downstream costs to treat them will be significantly more expensive. This cost shifting is kicking the can down the road for even higher treatment costs.

I will guarantee that insurance costs will not come down as you're suggesting. You are correct about Medicare numbers...we have an aging population that under the current system gets access to great care but it's a numbers game. Medicare isn't solvent today...there is no way to pay for it under it's current construct.

 

[Merge]

Originally posted by HALL85:

Merge, the flaw in that thinking is, that if people are putting off more serious procedures, the downstream costs to treat them will be significantly more expensive. This cost shifting is kicking the can down the road for even higher treatment costs.

I will guarantee that insurance costs will not come down as you're suggesting. You are correct about Medicare numbers...we have an aging population that under the current system gets access to great care but it's a numbers game. Medicare isn't solvent today...there is no way to pay for it under it's current construct.

Since it is based on polling, we really don't know how people are defining what "serious" and "somewhat serious" are and we don't know if they are changing their lifestyles in any way to attempt to fix the issues on their own.

I always use my brother as an example since he had no insurance for a period after his divorce, but he was not doing well physically. He couldn't afford to treat any kind of major illness and put off going to the doctor for chest pain and instead focused on fixing his diet. He probably would have called that "somewhat serious" that he was putting off, but fixed it on his own.

This is exactly what we need honestly. I mentioned it it the other thread but the penalty for eating like garbage your entire life should cost more than 5 $20 doctors visit copays and a monthly RX. Maybe obesity wouldn't be as prevalent as it is today if people were afraid of paying thousands of dollars a year.

I agree that Medicare is a huge problem that needs to be addressed... but when the average age of the privately insured starts to shrink... Expenses associated will also start to decrease. Deductibles will stay where they are for the most part and policy costs will start to decrease, or at least rise slower than inflation.

 

[HALL85]

And you wonder why our healthcare expenses are out of control....

Sex Change Coverage

 

[Section112]

Not completely driven by people getting more involved with their healthcare decisions. In many ways things were decided for them already in the plans they can purchase. In my Obamacare plan I pay for dental coverage and maternity coverage that I will never ever use. That pushes up the cost unnecessarily and I have no choice in the matter. Yet my deductibles have gone even higher than before due to the rising costs. So in my mind Obamacare has made this trend much worse. I gave you the example of my brother in law who now has patients that need procedures that are not getting them due to the high deductibles that they cannot afford. So they now have more expensive insurance that they cannot take advantage of because of the high all around costs. If this is progress shoot me now please.

This was simply a huge asset transfer from companies and small businesses like mine that were responsible and insuring their people and folks who were buying their own insurance, to get more people insured. That is what it was and the politicians who sold this should have had the guts to come out and say that. They denied it and said you can keep your plan and your doctor etc. Total lies and they wonder why now everyone hates this plan. And it hasn't even gotten fully under way yet.