# Where are the Obamacare horror stories? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 4, 2014, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307 "2014-04-04T02:01:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/21 "2014-04-04T06:59:19Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > Here’s my horror story. I have several patients who are the working poor, earning close to minimum wage. This puts them below the poverty limit. Because I live in Virginia, there is no expansion of medicaid for low wage earners… Sounds like they may qualify for one of the [exemptions to the penalty](https://www.healthcare.gov/exemptions/). Some of the things that would qualify a low income person for an exemption to the share responsibility payment penalty include… > [@](#): > > You may qualify for an exemption if: > [ul] > [li]The lowest-priced coverage available to you would cost more than 8% of your household income[/li][li]You don’t have to file a tax return because your income is too low (Learn about the filing limit.)[/ul][/li] > Or a hardship exemption if: > [ul] > [li] You were homeless.[/li][li]You were evicted in the past 6 months or were facing eviction or foreclosure.[/li][li]You received a shut-off notice from a utility company.[/li][li]You recently experienced domestic violence.[/li][li]You recently experienced the death of a close family member.[/li][li]You experienced a fire, flood, or other natural or human-caused disaster that caused substantial damage to your property.[/li][li]You filed for bankruptcy in the last 6 months.[/li][li]You had medical expenses you couldn’t pay in the last 24 months.[/li][li]You experienced unexpected increases in necessary expenses due to caring for an ill, disabled, or aging family member.[/li][li]You expect to claim a child as a tax dependent who’s been denied coverage in Medicaid and CHIP, and another person is required by court order to give medical support to the child. In this case, you do not have the pay the penalty for the child.[/li][li] **You were determined ineligible for Medicaid because your state didn’t expand eligibility for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.** [/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/22 "2014-04-04T13:10:10Z")
> [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](#): > > After six months, I’m puzzled by how vanishingly rare this is: someone who had insurance in 2013, learned their plan was ending or their premiums were going up, and successfully accessed the exchange but found only plans that covered less, cost more, or both. > … > I have heard of one possibly legitimate horror story: liberal editorial cartoonist Jen Sorensen [mentions in passing](http://www.npr.org/2014/03/30/295832950/double-take-toons-signup-special-part-1) that she has a friend whose premiums went up. But no others. [Sue Klinkhamer.](http://www.suntimes.com/news/marin/23352031-452/obamacare-jacks-up-her-insurance.html) [Lee Hammack](http://www.propublica.org/article/loyal-obama-supporters-canceled-by-obamacare) [Thousands of New Yorkers.](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/14/nyregion/with-affordable-care-act-canceled-policies-for-new-york-professionals.html?_r=0) Many others. And of course [the fact](http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2013/11/04/49-state-analysis-obamacare-to-increase-individual-market-premiums-by-avg-of-41-subsidies-flow-to-elderly/) that premiums are shooting upwards everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/23 "2014-04-04T13:14:06Z")
> [@Iggy](#): > > Sounds like they may qualify for one of the [exemptions to the penalty](https://www.healthcare.gov/exemptions/). > > Some of the things that would qualify a low income person for an exemption to the share responsibility payment penalty include… But that still doesn’t get them insurance. Right? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/24 "2014-04-04T13:25:10Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > But that still doesn’t get them insurance. > > Right? The fact that they don’t have insurance is _a_ horror story, but it’s not really an _Obamacare_ horror story, is it, since it’s actually not true that Obamacare is imposing a penalty on them? And in any case, Medicaid not expanding in Virginia is Roberts-Scalia-Alito-Kennedy-Thomascare or McDonnellcare, not Obamacare, because Obamacare expanded Medicaid everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/25 "2014-04-04T13:46:19Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Did you ever have a premium increase before Obamacare? Never more than 10%. And the answer did not change since the last time you asked that question a few days ago-- the fact that my premiums would go up was known and predicted by disinterested analysts several years ago. This was not a surprise. Folks like me\* are a small minority of insurees, so the net-net of Obamacare might be good, but this legislation does hurt some people. And I’m OK with that as long as this turns out to be good legislation, overall. That remains to be seen. \*Healthy, self-insured, not eligible for subsidies ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/26 "2014-04-04T13:52:41Z")
I am also an Obamacare horror story, by the parameters of the OP. My health insurance was cancelled because it was not compliant with the requirements of Obamacare, so I bought insurance on the exchange. It took me over six weeks because the website I was directed do did not work in any sense, I spent over a dozen hours on hold or waiting for answers on what to do, and in most or all instances the help desk person told me that nothing could be done and the website simply could not be made to work. After six weeks, finally they took my information and entered me manually into the system. This took another two weeks, and then I was double billed. I chose the cheapest I could find. I do not qualify for any subsidies. My premiums a bit more than doubled, and the insurance covers less than my previous. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/27 "2014-04-04T14:01:03Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > My health insurance was cancelled because it was not compliant with the requirements of Obamacare, so I bought insurance on the exchange. Why? If you are not eligible for any subsidy, why not just buy a policy in the individual market, direct from the insurance company? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/28 "2014-04-04T14:11:15Z")
[I started a thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=719144) asking people of their Obamacare stories and got some negative answers. In my experience, it offers a better plan at cheaper rates than what I’m currently paying. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/29 "2014-04-04T16:49:40Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > I am also an Obamacare horror story, by the parameters of the OP. My health insurance was cancelled because it was not compliant with the requirements of Obamacare, so I bought insurance on the exchange. It took me over six weeks because the website I was directed do did not work in any sense, I spent over a dozen hours on hold or waiting for answers on what to do, and in most or all instances the help desk person told me that nothing could be done and the website simply could not be made to work. After six weeks, finally they took my information and entered me manually into the system. This took another two weeks, and then I was double billed. > > I chose the cheapest I could find. I do not qualify for any subsidies. My premiums a bit more than doubled, and the insurance covers less than my previous. > > Regards, > Shodan Did you have a catastrophic plan before? Can we get details to compare the two? It might be that your previous plan had a lot of holes in it that you aren’t factoring in. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/30 "2014-04-04T17:15:35Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Oh, freelancers that can do business on their own thanks to the ACA. > > The horror, the horror. 😉 That’s our horror story right there. Sure, my premiums went down. But a shit-ton of freelancers entered the market and are pushing prices down. Good for the clients, but we’ll likely lose far more in client fees than an entire year of self-insure premiums. It’s kind of a double shock because our segment took a beating in the Great Recession and things were coming back to normal. Thanks, Obama. Though factually true, there is so much facetiousness in this post I have no idea which smiley to use. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/31 "2014-04-04T17:23:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Quote: > “I thought that Obamacare was going to be a good thing,” Lamb says in the ad. “Barack Obama told us we could keep our health insurance if we liked it. And we can’t. I got a letter in the mail saying that my health insurance was over, that it was gone, it was canceled because of Obamacare. My premiums went from $52 a month to $373 a month. I’m having to work a second job to pay for Obamacare.” What the hell kind of coverage do you get for $52/month? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/32 "2014-04-04T17:26:04Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > What the hell kind of coverage do you get for $52/month? A wink and a smile. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/33 "2014-04-04T17:35:48Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > [here’s a video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_o65vMUk5so) of Obama repeatedly stating it would decrease premiums. [Here’s the reality of his program](http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2013/11/04/49-state-analysis-obamacare-to-increase-individual-market-premiums-by-avg-of-41-subsidies-flow-to-elderly/). 41% average increase. > > Not to mention businesses who cap employee hours at 30 to avoid the extra cost of the insurance. Those would be the people at the lower end of the earnings scale who can least afford a cut in their hours. A major flaw in that Forbes article jumps out at me from their methodology page. It says they used the 5 cheapest plans prior to the passage of the ACA as the baseline. That’s going to include insanely low cost plans that cover next to nothing, which is barely insurance anyway. The actuarial data that I’ve read (directly from several insurance companies) does not support the 27% average increase they claim in California. I really have to wonder what they were comparing. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/34 "2014-04-04T17:37:46Z")
Wasn’t there supposed to be an avalanche of horror stories? Huge numbers of enraged citizens, pitchforks and torches, massive rebellion against the dread terror of socialized medicine? Instead, we get carefully packaged anecdotes, half of which prove to be utterly bogus. Lies, in a nutshell. Others are not, they are valuable truths about things which we need to fix. OK, let’s fix 'em. Want a horror story? Howzabout the thousands and thousands of children who could have decent health care tomorrow, if Republican governors would simply get out of the way of Medicaid expansion?. Richest, most powerful nation in human history, and we won’t take care of our kids? Fuck _that_ shit! ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/35 "2014-04-04T17:45:30Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > What the hell kind of coverage do you get for $52/month? The plan was heavily subsidized by her employer and the government ( which for some reason isn’t considered socialism when it applies to an existing plan not an ACA plan) The $52 a month was her out of pocket which is 1/3 of the actual cost One of the above links describes the plan. It’s one of those plans that’s the opposite of catastrophic insurance…it covers a lot of things without a large deductible but it carries a very low annual maximum payout…in her case 25K…it will cover most ordinary medical expenses but if the policyholder were to get seriously ill or hurt she would still be subject to the life-destroying financial devastation that most people think their insurance prevents. Her coverage was still better than a lot of the other non-compliant plans…the Starbridge plans offered by McDonalds, Walmart and other generally low income employers generally cover doctor visits, etc with a low deductible but have an annual maximum payout of between $1000 and $2000. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/36 "2014-04-04T17:52:25Z")
> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#): > > Her coverage was still better than a lot of the other non-compliant plans…the Starbridge plans offered by McDonalds, Walmart and other generally low income employers generally cover doctor visits, etc with a low deductible but have an annual maximum payout of between $1000 and $2000. Sounds like the plan I was offered when I was in telemarketing. The HR person basically said, I have to tell you about this since we offer it, but you’d be throwing your money away to buy it. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/37 "2014-04-04T17:52:32Z")
> [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](#): > > After six months, I’m puzzled by how vanishingly rare this is: someone who had insurance in 2013, learned their plan was ending or their premiums were going up, and successfully accessed the exchange but found only plans that covered less, cost more, or both. Well, let me provide my horror story then. I settled for an increase in deductible from $2000 to $6000 so that I could have a 40% increase in premium. If I tried to maintain my old plan, it would have been an 80% increase. Ultimately, I signed up outside of the exchange because 1) the direct-from-the-insurer version of the same plan was $3/month cheaper and 2) because I make too much money (by about $1,000/year) to get a subsidy/credit anyway. The real kicker, for me, is that I have yet to receive a single dollar in benefit from my insurance. For seven years, it’s been something I keep just in case, but it really does nothing but generate paperwork telling me that I’m not over my deductible. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/38 "2014-04-04T18:16:28Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > Well, let me provide my horror story then. I settled for an increase in deductible from $2000 to $6000 so that I could have a 40% increase in premium. If I tried to maintain my old plan, it would have been an 80% increase. My wife and I saw our deductible increases from $2,000 to $4,000 because my employer shifted to an ACA-compliant plan. Our premiums didn’t change much because we’re young, but the older teachers at my school got massacred on premiums at the same time that their deductibles went through the roof. Because my wife is in continuing treatment after having thyroid cancer last year, we’re nearly certain that we will go through the entire deductible. $2,000 from our pockets thanks to the Democrats. Of course, this thread wouldn’t be complete without mentioning those whose plans were eliminated because their actuarial value was too _[high](http://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2013/12/12/obamacare_is_a_problem_for_much_more_than_the_5_100792.html)_, rather than too low. ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/39 "2014-04-04T18:16:35Z")
How about this? As part of our employer insurance, we have a HSA account they dump $1000 into at the beginning of the year. Due to new regulations that are a part of Obamacare, those funds can no longer be used for eye exams and prescription eyewear/contacts. We have three people who wear glasses in our familes, so our annual eye expenses are about $1200. That’s now all out of pocket for us. This is in addition to the $650 per month we pay, and a deductible of $5000 per person, per year. That’s not an Obamacare problem, but it’s getting a little ridiculous. We are healthy, and spend zero time on medical care. We pay $13000+ for medical care a year, on the off chance someone may need $13001 for medical services in a given year. It’s been maybe seven years since we’ve needed extensive medical care, so lets’s see…that’s $91k lost, or if you just tally up the premiums we pay, that’s $54000 for insurance that is useless to us. That’s two nice cars, or my daughters entire college tuition for the local Purdue satellite campus. I’m seriously leaning toward just paying the penalty - I’m self employed, so our refunds don’t exist anyway. If I stuffed that $7200 a year in a mutual fund, the returns may be worth it. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2014, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307/40 "2014-04-04T18:24:07Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > What the hell kind of coverage do you get for $52/month? My individual plan from last year is $115/month for a $1000 deductible, $20/$40 copay and no coinsurance. It covers just about everything. Good insurance was actually pretty cheap for young healthy people (especially men) before the provisions went into effect protecting everybody else. My broker told me a similar policy will cost about double when it comes time to renew this year, but we’ll see. Personally I don’t mind paying what is to me an insignificant amount of money if it helps millions of others afford insurance. Do you have to be angry for it to be a horror story? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-obamacare-horror-stories/685307.md?page=3)