Not really Temp
They are just health insurance policies written by private insurers. Once people settle into a plan, Republicans look like the bad guys for trying to take it away
If that is all the GOP has for 2014 they are in trouble
You may be right, but it's likely that the following will also happen in 2014 as a result of the ACA:
- The predictable dumping of millions of employees into the ACA system will create considerable ill will towards the plan as many of these employees will see sharp increases in net premiums because they may not qualify for subsidies and they're no longer having their employer pay most of their premiums
- Medicaid patients -- now millions more of them -- will have significant difficulty finding doctors and other providers because Medicaid reimbursements are so low and providers are already reacting by trimming their Medicaid censuses
- Patients who are stuck with these incredibly high deductibles will receive large bills for payment due and many will either stiff the providers or have to scrape up the money to pay them
- Providers will see a sharp increase in delinquencies because so many patients will not be able to afford their deductibles
- Many providers will choose not to accept any of these plans so that they can avoid the above, and change their practices to private pay and supplemental pay only, all at a time when demand for their services is exploding
I wouldn't even go so far as to call those predictions - they're just observations based on how this law is set up and on what is already happening.
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By November, people will have had almost a year in their policies. They will have paid premiums, filed claims and been reimbursed. Some will be happy with their plan, others will switch to a more expensive or cheaper plan. That is the way insurance has always worked
But people will be covered. Republicans will not be running on making peoples coverage better....they will be running on cancelling that coverage and replacing it with nothing
Good luck with that in 2014
"Replacing it with nothing" has essentially been the GOP's approach from the beginning, so they're just as responsible for this law as are the Democrats. Why they've been unable and/or afraid to offer a clear alternative and push it at every opportunity is a mystery.
Indeed, by November of 2014 the events on my list will have taken place, and I'd guess it'll be pretty clear in one direction or the other. I'm pretty sure that list is accurate, I suppose the variable will be how effective the PR departments of each party will be. "Having coverage" and "being covered" are two different things in insurance.
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