President Obama’s 2010 health reform law has been heralded by its supporters as strongly beneficial for young Americans. After all, the ACA decrees that all health insurance plans that offer any dependent coverage must offer coverage to enrollees’ “adult children” (the terminology used in the law) until age 26, even if the adult child no longer lives with his or her parents, is not a dependent on a parent’s tax return, or is no longer a student … even if the adult child is married. And the uninsured rate for those between 19 and 26 has indeed decreased.
So what’s not to like about the health law for young Americans? The under-appreciated truth is that the ACA has serious adverse impacts on young Americans, far more significant and longer lasting than temporary eligibility to remain on a parent’s insurance.
Health insurance costs are now dramatically shifted onto the backs of younger, healthier adults. Proponents of the ACA claim that those shunning insurance are responsible for shifting massive costs to insured Americans, thereby raising insurance prices significantly without the ACA’s individual mandate. This is factually false. Generally, the population at whom the mandate is directed – those who voluntarily do not buy insurance and are not eligible for current government insurance – tend to be younger, healthier, and use far less medical care, on average about $850 and only $56 per year in emergency care. Based on both household survey and provider data, uninsured health care shifts only 0.8% to at most 1.7% of expenditures toward those already insured.
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All they care about is texting.The world could be coming to an end & as long as they have their cell phone nothing else matters.
ReplyDeleteI particularly like the 80% rule that if premiums collected are over 80% paid out in care they must refund the difference. All these insurance companies call themselves non profits and now they will actually have to behave like they are.
ReplyDelete@11:27 why would young American's say make any difference? WE go to college to come out in debt. Then have no jobs available. On top of that 50% are defaulting at this rate on their loans. But yes as long as health care is in the younger generations favor they should be praising Obama. Bull crap we are just as screwed, if not more so, then every other generation.
ReplyDelete1150-Do you even realize the razor thin margins that insurers have? Of course you don't, keep sipping the flavor aid.
ReplyDelete12:22 You are screwed because Bush spent like a drunken sailor on two wars and a medicare drug give away. He gave Halliburton and the drug companies everything.
ReplyDelete12:45 Democrats controlled Congress since 2006. Obama has spent more in his tenure than ALL OTHER PRESIDENTS COMBINED. He has added more to the welfare and food stamp rolls than ever in history. Do you honestly believe that after nearly 4 years into Obamas rule that you can blame Bush? Halliburton doesn't hold a candle to the obscene profits that Goldman Sachs, GE and Comcast reap because they are huge Democrat donors? You are hopelessly and erroneously stuck in the propaganda of the leftist progressives.
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