Walmart's New Health Care Policy Shifts Burden To Medicaid, Obamacare

[Lakhota]

By Alice Hines

Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, plans to begin denying health insurance to newly hired employees who work fewer than 30 hours a week, according to a copy of the company’s policy obtained by The Huffington Post.

Under the policy, slated to take effect in January, Walmart also reserves the right to eliminate health care coverage for certain workers if their average workweek dips below 30 hours -- something that happens with regularity and at the direction of company managers.

Walmart declined to disclose how many of its roughly 1.4 million U.S. workers are vulnerable to losing medical insurance under its new policy. In an emailed statement, company spokesman David Tovar said Walmart had “made a business decision” not to respond to questions from The Huffington Post and accused the publication of unfair coverage.

Labor and health care experts portrayed Walmart’s decision to exclude workers from its medical plans as an attempt to limit costs while taking advantage of the national health care reform known as Obamacare. Among the key features of Obamacare is an expansion of Medicaid, the taxpayer-financed health insurance program for poor people. Many of the Walmart workers who might be dropped from the company’s health care plans earn so little that they would qualify for the expanded Medicaid program, these experts said.

“Walmart is effectively shifting the costs of paying for its employees onto the federal government with this new plan, which is one of the problems with the way the law is structured,” said Ken Jacobs, chairman of the Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley.

More: Walmart's New Health Care Policy Shifts Burden To Medicaid, Obamacare

 

[Lakhota]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

 

[Clementine]

Or Walmart could just lay off workers like thousands of other companies across the states. Isn't this what the liberals want? Now the Dems can raise taxes on the wealthy and make them pay for everyone's health care.

 

[Wacky Quacky]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

And you're saying you didn't see this coming? Sit back and watch how many employers drop health insurance thanks to Obamacare. It should come as no surprise.

 

[bucs90]

Im heading to Cosco today to get a membership. And I only buy food at Whole Foods.

Fuck WalMart. Im done with them for good.

 

[bucs90]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

And you're saying you didn't see this coming? Sit back and watch how many employers drop health insurance thanks to Obamacare. It should come as no surprise.

Let the free market speak. Shop at places that dont do that.

But...the end result? If fewer people can go to the doctor, the medical system will start losing money. Supply v. Demand. Eventually, they'll lower their damn prices.

 

[Rat in the Hat]

By Alice Hines

Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, plans to begin denying health insurance to newly hired employees who work fewer than 30 hours a week, according to a copy of the company’s policy obtained by The Huffington Post.

Under the policy, slated to take effect in January, Walmart also reserves the right to eliminate health care coverage for certain workers if their average workweek dips below 30 hours -- something that happens with regularity and at the direction of company managers.

Walmart declined to disclose how many of its roughly 1.4 million U.S. workers are vulnerable to losing medical insurance under its new policy. In an emailed statement, company spokesman David Tovar said Walmart had “made a business decision” not to respond to questions from The Huffington Post and accused the publication of unfair coverage.

Labor and health care experts portrayed Walmart’s decision to exclude workers from its medical plans as an attempt to limit costs while taking advantage of the national health care reform known as Obamacare. Among the key features of Obamacare is an expansion of Medicaid, the taxpayer-financed health insurance program for poor people. Many of the Walmart workers who might be dropped from the company’s health care plans earn so little that they would qualify for the expanded Medicaid program, these experts said.

“Walmart is effectively shifting the costs of paying for its employees onto the federal government with this new plan, which is one of the problems with the way the law is structured,” said Ken Jacobs, chairman of the Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley.

More: Walmart's New Health Care Policy Shifts Burden To Medicaid, Obamacare

First off, congrats on earning another 25 cents for posting a HuffyPuffy link.

Secondly, why would anyone be upset by WalMart (or any other company) following a provision of the ACA as it was written. Don't you want everyone to follow the law?

 

[Wacky Quacky]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

And you're saying you didn't see this coming? Sit back and watch how many employers drop health insurance thanks to Obamacare. It should come as no surprise.

Let the free market speak. Shop at places that dont do that.

But...the end result? If fewer people can go to the doctor, the medical system will start losing money. Supply v. Demand. Eventually, they'll lower their damn prices.

Barely anyone shops with their conscience anymore. In the past people wouldn't shop at places like Wal-Mart, but today everyone has a "get mine" attitude. Wal-Mart can and will do whatever it wants within the confines of the law, because everyone and their grandma will keep shopping there anyways.

The free market has spoken. Wal-Mart can do whatever they want to their employees, so long as they keep prices low.

 

[healthmyths]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

And you're saying you didn't see this coming? Sit back and watch how many employers drop health insurance thanks to Obamacare. It should come as no surprise.

WE TRIED to tell the Obamatrons ... Obama wants to put health insurance companies OUT of business!!

"The result ObamaCare which today McKinsey & Company commissioned a survey of 1,329 U.S. private sector employers to measure their attitudes about healthcare reform concluded that 30% of all companies would stop providing health coverage once Obamacare kicked in in 2014.
http://www.mckinsey.com/features/us_employer_healthcare_survey

And any of you idiots who think the "insurance exchanges" will replace this??? You know NOTHING about how health insurance works!

It was NEVER the insurance companies fault... they just passed the costs on by raising premiums!
Then Obama care does away with "pre-existing conditions" and NOW insurance actuaries are telling us they have to take that in account and therefore the actuaries that calculate the premiums are saying the following for private insurance not employer!

A nationwide study conducted by Milliman Inc. for the Society of Actuaries found that nationwide the premiums in the individual market would increase from 8 to 37 percent in 2014
with a cumulative increase of as much as 122 percent between 2013 and 2017!!!

Take the time like I did download from the Society of Actuaries SOA - Society of Actuaries - Design and Implementation Considerations of ACA Risk Mitigation Programs

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

This is what you wanted. Why are you complaining?

 

[tyroneweaver]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

I thought you thought that barry could do no wrong. Therefore, how could shifting employees to obamacare be such a bad thing. I thought obamacare was the cats meow

 

[whitehall]

Well duh, every business will shift the burden of health care to Obamacare. What do you expect?

 

[Lakhota]

Walmart had the government subsidizing its workers before Obamacare.

 

[whitehall]

Walmart had the government subsidizing its workers before Obamacare.

Why not? You gotta understand that the private sector is smarter than the fools who make the rules in big government. Of course the fools are smart enough to exempt themselves from the rules they set for everyone else but entire industries are created to get around government regulations and red tape and the Treasury Secretary even testified that he cheated on his taxes. The 3,000 page mess that government created and nobody read is so full of holes that you can drive a Prius through it and let's hope it doesn't doom the US before we get a chance to throw the junk out.

 

[Lakhota]

Walmart, one of the richest corporations in the world, refuses to pay its employees a livable wage or provide any form of decent healthcare, increasing reliance on government assistance, and the need for a social safety net.

Walmart has become the number one driver behind the growing use of food stamps in the United States with "as many as 80 percent of workers in Wal-Mart stores using food stamps."

More: Walmart: America's real 'Welfare Queen'

Hidden Taxpayer Costs | Good Jobs First

 

[RDD_1210]

Costco is a great company. Walmart is shit.

And you're saying you didn't see this coming? Sit back and watch how many employers drop health insurance thanks to Obamacare. It should come as no surprise.

WE TRIED to tell the Obamatrons ... Obama wants to put health insurance companies OUT of business!!

"The result ObamaCare which today McKinsey & Company commissioned a survey of 1,329 U.S. private sector employers to measure their attitudes about healthcare reform concluded that 30% of all companies would stop providing health coverage once Obamacare kicked in in 2014.
US employer healthcare survey | McKinsey & Company

And any of you idiots who think the "insurance exchanges" will replace this??? You know NOTHING about how health insurance works!

It was NEVER the insurance companies fault... they just passed the costs on by raising premiums!
Then Obama care does away with "pre-existing conditions" and NOW insurance actuaries are telling us they have to take that in account and therefore the actuaries that calculate the premiums are saying the following for private insurance not employer!

A nationwide study conducted by Milliman Inc. for the Society of Actuaries found that nationwide the premiums in the individual market would increase from 8 to 37 percent in 2014
with a cumulative increase of as much as 122 percent between 2013 and 2017!!!

Take the time like I did download from the Society of Actuaries SOA - Society of Actuaries - Design and Implementation Considerations of ACA Risk Mitigation Programs

Great point! And there is no better way to put health insurance companies out of business than by giving them more customers. It's brilliant!

 

[Lakhota]

This is funny...

Walmart Wants You To Know That Their Workers 'Love Their Jobs'

 

[Lakhota]

1. Walmart
> U.S. workforce: 1,400,000
> CEO compensation: $18,131,738
> Revenue: $446.95 billion
> Net income: $15.70 billion
> No. of U.S. stores: 3,868

The 12 Companies Paying Americans the Least - 24/7 Wall St.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

By Alice Hines

Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, plans to begin denying health insurance to newly hired employees who work fewer than 30 hours a week, according to a copy of the company’s policy obtained by The Huffington Post.

Under the policy, slated to take effect in January, Walmart also reserves the right to eliminate health care coverage for certain workers if their average workweek dips below 30 hours -- something that happens with regularity and at the direction of company managers.

Walmart declined to disclose how many of its roughly 1.4 million U.S. workers are vulnerable to losing medical insurance under its new policy. In an emailed statement, company spokesman David Tovar said Walmart had “made a business decision” not to respond to questions from The Huffington Post and accused the publication of unfair coverage.

Labor and health care experts portrayed Walmart’s decision to exclude workers from its medical plans as an attempt to limit costs while taking advantage of the national health care reform known as Obamacare. Among the key features of Obamacare is an expansion of Medicaid, the taxpayer-financed health insurance program for poor people. Many of the Walmart workers who might be dropped from the company’s health care plans earn so little that they would qualify for the expanded Medicaid program, these experts said.

“Walmart is effectively shifting the costs of paying for its employees onto the federal government with this new plan, which is one of the problems with the way the law is structured,” said Ken Jacobs, chairman of the Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley.

More: Walmart's New Health Care Policy Shifts Burden To Medicaid, Obamacare

Damn, I was right, corporations are going to prefer to pay a low "tax" rather than provide health care insurance that will continually spiral costs upwards out of control. Yet, somehow, you think I am stupid for seeing the inevitable result of central planning.

 

[Lakhota]

No, Windbag, you're stupid for your "selective" outrage. Walmart was milking Uncle Sam long before Obamacare.