Millions are losing their health insurance policies and being forced onto the ObamaCare exchanges, where most plans only provide local medical coverage. As Americans realize they must pay for all non-emergency medical care when they leave their home county
With your old, “bad” health insurance, you were covered if you took a vacation. With your new, “better” health insurance, you are not.
I wish that the web site had been working well from day one. That way, these glitches would have shown up sooner, and Obamacare would have failed quickly and cleanly. Instead, it will fail slowly, and its supporters will forever be saying, “If only the technical issues had been handled correctly…”
Hopefully [right word??], what these experiences will disclose is the absolute and essential distinction between (1) healthCARE and (2) health insurance; and therefore the difference that has to be made in the two forms of contracts; (1) for services, (2) for transfers and spreading of risks that give rise to expenses of medical services other than those of (1).
However it is done, those commercial enterprises which choose to provide either (1) or (2) or both, should do so in the form of separate contracts for each provision.
Where the electoral preferences or political powers require (per State), there might be a legislative requirement that any issuer of (2) must offer to any “insured” a (1) as well for “services.”
That separation would make it possible for others (non-insurers) to offer (2) , perhaps bringing in a greater spread of forms of services, or more “tailored” forms – priced to anticipated (and often determinable) needs.
That would not have to rule out the issuance of “comprehensive” contracts, but it would provide better (more efficient) pricing of the separate costs of services and risks.
Apology:
In Para. 4 I meant to state that others could offer (1).
Naturally, only insurers could offer (2).
Arnold,
I’d find a higher quality source then “American Thinker”. That site’s quality is maybe one step up from “Infowars”, or similar conspiracy theory garbage sites.
Brian, regardless of the source, are you saying that Obamacare policies co offer nationwide provider networks?
Actually, this is a limitation of many non-Obamacare policies. This is an issue for me and my wife because we are looking at snowbirding for a few years. The Ohio State Teacher Retirement System offers a number of policies for retirees but only one or two options for retirees who want nationwide coverage. One or two depending on whether you are supplementing Medicare or looking for pre-Medicare coverage.
Then a “respectable” news should verify the scoop and steal the credit.
If you like going on vacation, you can keep going on vacation. Period.
Well, the President can just use his plenary executive discretion and waive the out-of-local-network nonreimbursement with a mere administrative measure too, right? When he does so, that’s what the Obamacare supporters will defend.
‘stella paul reports”
reports seems a little strong; we have some anecdotes, but reportage: how many states are affected ? (per discussion at marginal rev, CA may not be in this bucket)
etc
there are 300,000,000 odd people in this country; roughly 30,000,000 in the ACA affected individual market
even if 0.1% of those people have a problem,that i 30,000 people..who can make a lot of noise
but 0.1% is pretty good for anything as complex as helathcare
I am no fan of Obamacare, but I think critics are making too much of these narrow network issues. While exchanges are massively sub-optimal markets, they are still markets where insurers will be able to respond to consumer demand and offer broader networks, IF people are willing to pay the incremental cost. I think Obamacare may well fail for other reasons, but not because it forces insurers to offer (it doesn’t) or consumers to purchase plans with limited network options.