Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Hazy, Risky Health Plan, Pt.6 – More pain; more gain, so they say.

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All that goes away with individual-risk assessed policies. The young and healthy may save a few bucks, but the rest will get nailed. Many will go without health insurance because of either cost or from being denied coverage altogether. Another problem is that the proposed tax credits will be miniscule compared to the new premium rates of most people. The new rates for a typical comprehensive group policy will jump dramatically, as the health insurance providers start doling out ‘Wal-Mart flavored’ health insurance policies at lower prices. The trend is certain for people to be ‘buying down’ to these cheaper bare-bones policies. The adequate comprehensive benefits that most Americans have enjoyed all their lives will be taken away from them.

To boot, the tax credits that are supposed to be so good today (a few bucks left over, maybe) will not last long. As costs rise each year, the tax credit will only keep up with inflation. Not so, with health insurance rates. The longstanding trend has been for health insurance rates to increase three-times faster than inflation.

So now, not only will it be harder to buy the premiums in the first place but, within five years, most people will be paying out more in health insurance taxes than the tax credit itself is worth. Mr. McCain knows this and his campaign’s website is deliberately clouding the issue.

Lastly, placing our hands into the loving care of Wall Street is almost like playing against ‘the house’ in Vegas. Some will win, but most will lose big and be to proud to admit it. Trading employer-based health insurance for “free market” would be the most reckless and bold change of a health insurance system anywhere in the world has ever undertaken. Since it’s so radical, there are no models to compare it to. It has never been tested anywhere.

Over 60% of our nation is relying on the stability of employer-based health insurance. At last count (2007 US Census) some 170 million Americans were relying on it. For more on the ramifications of these changes, please refer to the article series entitled: “Health-Care Contrasts”.

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