Democrats Souring On Obamacare

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

And they deserve everything they're getting.

In May, just 6% of Democrats said Obamacare hurt them. Now, 15% of Democrats polled said Obamacare hurt them.

Equally troubling for Democrats, the poll found that only 27% of Democrats say Obamacare has helped them, a slight 4% increase since May. Overall, more than one in five Democrats (21%) said in the long run Obamacare will "make things worse."

Nationally, Americans remain sour on Obamacare. When Gallup asked, "In the long run, how do you think the healthcare law will affect the healthcare situation in the U.S.?" 46% of Americans said Obamacare would "make things worse" versus 36% who said it would "make things better."

Gallup concluded: "Americans' views toward the law overall and its effect on the U.S. healthcare situation in the long run continue to be more negative than positive."

Gallup Number of Democrats Who Say Obamacare Hurt Them More Than Doubles

 

[waltky]

Obamacare Patients Can't Find Doctors...

Some doctors wary of taking insurance exchange patients
October 28, 2014 ~ Now that many people finally have health insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchanges, some are running into a new problem: They can't find a doctor who will take them as patients.

Because these exchange plans often have lower reimbursement rates, some doctors are limiting how many new patients they take with these policies, physician groups and other experts say. "The exchanges have become very much like Medicaid," says Andrew Kleinman, a plastic surgeon and president of the Medical Society of the State of New York. "Physicians who are in solo practices have to be careful to not take too many patients reimbursed at lower rates or they're not going to be in business very long."

Kleinman says his members complain rates can be 50% lower than commercial plans. Cigna and Aetna, however, say they pay doctors the same whether the plan is sold on an ACA network or not. United Healthcare spokeswoman Tracey Lempner says it's up to their physicians whether they want to be in the exchange plan networks, which have "rates that are above Medicaid." Medicaid rates are typically below those for Medicare, which in turn are generally lower than commercial insurance plans.To prevent discrimination against ACA policyholders, some insurance contracts require doctors to accept their exchange-plan patients along with those on commercial plans unless the doctors' practices are so full they simply can't treat any more people. But lower reimbursement rates make some physicians reluctant to sign on to some of these plans or accept too many of the patients once they are in the plans. "I definitely feel like a bad person who is leeching off the system when I call the doctors' offices," she says.Shawn Smith of Seymour, Ind., spent about five months trying to find a primary care doctor on the network who would take her with a new, subsidized silver-level ACA insurance plan.

Last week, Smith found a practice that would accept her as a patient. Caroline Carney, chief medical officer of MDwise, Smith's insurer, says some doctors "might be participating with us, but just not able to take on new patients. It's at the doctor's discretion." Jon Fougner, a recent Yale Law School graduate, sued Empire Blue Cross this month because he couldn't find a primary care doctor in his new ACA exchange plan. Fougner's experience underscores how important it is for consumers to check out doctor and hospital networks for plans before they purchase them -- and to call doctors to make sure they are accepting new patients with their policies.

Among 30 doctors he called, Fougner said, they either weren't taking new patients, weren't in the plan or didn't return calls, or the contact information proved incorrect. "It's absolutely their right to take whatever plan they want to take," Fougner says of doctors. But he says he found Empire's records are often "erroneous about whether the doctor takes the plan and/or other information essential to seeing the doctor." Empire declined to comment as the litigation is pending. Insurers are also moving to smaller networks of doctors and hospitals in their exchange plans. These "narrow networks" help them reduce costs, but they can also lead to problems when consumers look for doctors who will take them.

Among complaints from doctors about how the whole system is working:

 

[francoHFW]

Any links at all? lol

Of course, with all the BS Pub propaganda and fear mongering, and our crap media reporting it with a straight face, it's not surprising people are misinformed, including doctors....

Breaking: It will take a little time, especially with competition and Medicaid being blocked in red states and areas by mindless Pubs and their crony insurers. By 2016 ACA will be part of the Hillary bandwagon. Sorry about your luck, chumps of the greedy rich GOP.

 

[Vandalshandle]

I'm seriously disappointed that this board does not include an icon for "beating a dead horse".

 

[Politico]

Of course the numbers are going up. The changes are being implemented over time.

 

[Politico]

Of course the numbers are going up. The changes are being implemented over time.

 

[bigrebnc1775]

I'm seriously disappointed that this board does not include an icon for "beating a dead horse".

after obamacare it's more like beating a dead jackass.