The obumbler Tells another Healthcare Whopper-Muscatine IA-Muscatine

Obama: Enough people have joined to make ObamaCare 'stable'

By Justin Sink

President Obama said Friday enough people have already signed up for ObamaCare that he is “confident” his signature legislative accomplishment will function properly.

“At this point, enough people are signing up that the Affordable Care Act is going to work,” Obama said in a WebMD interview. “The insurance companies will continue to offer these plans. We already have 4 million people, over 4 million people, signed up."

The president said he expects “a larger number” still to be enrolled by March 31.

“The pool is already large enough, the number of people who have signed up is large enough; I’m confident the program will be stable,” Obama said.

Obama’s confidence in the program comes despite indications the administration will fall short of its initial enrollment targets.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had originally projected that 7 million individuals would enroll in ObamaCare plans in the first year, although it backed away from those predictions after the early troubles with HealthCare.gov. The most recent CBO report projected that 6 million Americans would enroll, while the administration now declines to set a specific enrollment goal.

“The impact in terms of the program has always been more based on the mix of people who sign up,” Obama said in the WebMD interview, adding that insurers needed a mix of “gray-haired” enrollees like himself, as well as young, healthy consumers.

An analysis from consulting firm Avalere Health completed earlier this month projected that about 1.2 million people would sign up over the final weeks of the ObamaCare enrollment period, bringing the total to 5.4 million enrollees.

The administration is looking to boost that number as much as possible with a media blitz, including the president’s interview with WebMD. Administration officials said they were eager to tap into the "enormous reach" of WebMD. The website sees more than 156 million unique visitors per month, and 60 percent of those users are women — a target demographic for the administration.

A third of those users are aged 18-34 — the younger, healthier potential enrollees the administration wants to sign up for insurance to keep premiums low. Nearly four out of every 10 of younger WebMD users is without health insurance.

In the past week, the president has also participated in a town hall on health insurance with Hispanic broadcasters, and an interview with comedian Zach Galifianakis on his “Between Two Ferns” Web talk show. On Friday, the White House released a video featuring first lady Michelle Obama and the mothers of celebrities, including Jennifer Lopez and Jonah Hill.

“With only 18 days left to get health coverage this year, it’s never been more important for moms and women around the country to make sure that they are benefiting from the Affordable Care Act, which offers families more affordability, more options, and more peace of mind,” said a White House official.

In the WebMD interview, Obama argued that consumers who are wary of purchasing health insurance because of the cost “may end up being pleasantly surprised” after finding out which tax subsidies they qualify for.

Many of the questions in the interview, which were submitted by users of the website, focused on costs of insurance under the plan. Obama said that some of the issues raised were the byproduct of the U.S. tradition of private-based insurance.

“Obviously, there are other countries who have government run healthcare or have a single-payer plan in which case, the government really controls much more tightly how healthcare distributed,” Obama said.

“There are pluses and minuses with having a private healthcare system.”

Still, the president defended many of the plans available on the exchanges and said, ultimately, they were worth purchasing.

“Good solid insurance with some deductibles and co-pays is better than no insurance at all,” he said. (really?)

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/200810-obama-enough-people-have-joined-to-make-o-care-stable#ixzz2w9anuwZx
Follow us: @thehill on Twitter | TheHill on Facebook

Health insurance premiums will soar during the coming months, right as the 2014 election season gets underway, as insurers grapple with the failed rollout of Obamacare, according to an explosive article in The Hill.

Insurance industry officials tell the newspaper that premiums will double in some parts of the country, harming Democrats’ chances and hampering the next round of enrollment efforts in 2015.

The worries from the industry come less than a week after HHS Secretary Sebelius downplayed the problem, telling Capitol Hill that increases would grow more slowly than in the past.

From the piece:

“The increases are far less significant than what they were prior to the Affordable Care Act,” the secretary said in testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee.

Her comment baffled insurance officials, who said it runs counter to the industry’s consensus about next year.

“It’s pretty shortsighted because I think everybody knows that the way the exchange has rolled out … is going to lead to higher costs,” said one senior insurance executive who requested anonymity.

The spikes are a direct consequence of the delays and changes the White House made during the rollout, indicating the administration’s moves to calm political storms will backfire:

(Insurers) point out that the administration, after a massive public outcry, eased their policies to allow people to keep their old health plans. That kept some healthy people in place, instead of making them jump into the new exchanges.

Federal health officials have also limited the amount of money the government can spend to help insurers cover the cost of new, sick patients.

Perhaps most important, insurers have been disappointed that young people only make up about one-quarter of the enrollees in plans through the insurance exchanges, according to public figures that were released earlier this year. That ratio might change in the weeks ahead because the administration anticipates many more people in their 20s and 30s will sign up close to the March 31 enrollment deadline. Many insurers, however, don’t share that optimism.

These factors will have the unintended consequence of raising rates, sources said.

Amazing. Truly incomprehensible. We were told we would save money – in the realm of $2,500 per family. And yet, it’s going to cost more. And that’s before insurers start cutting services and coverage in order to make up the money they are losing.

The probable response here, given the Obama White House mindset, will be government mandates to force insurers not to raise rates. And then when the companies start to go out of business, calls for government to take them over.

And eventually – particularly given that Obamacare is failing at its core mission of covering the uninsured – demands for a single-payer program.

Uhh boy, she’s at it again, demanding that everyone call Obamacare the Affordable Care Act. She’s done it before, but this was so weird, I just had to post it.

Boy, liberals do love to police speech:

It’s called the Affordable Care Act. It’s called the Affordable Care Act. I know you didn’t intend any compliment or derogatory – it’s called the Affordable Care Act . . . affordable, affordable – there’s a reason – affordable, affordable, affordable, affordable, affordable.

You’ll notice she goes on with some more mumbo jumbo about people needing to find out what’s in Obamaca – the Affordable Care Act.

She doesn’t seem to understand the political blowback that will occur as a result of calling this scheme the Affordable Care Act.

BECAUSE IT’S NOT AFFORDABLE.

Not as a federal expenditure or as a cost to consumers. People’s premiums are going up all over the place and Democrats plan to call this the Affordable Care Act.

How about we just call it The Republican Senate Takeover Act?

hiroad Respected Neighbor The Hilltop 5055 Posts	How could he possibly know this since MS Sebellius said just three days ago that she had no idea how many had signed up and paid and that she also did not know how many were previously insured and had lost insurance because of Obamacare? Which one is lying? Can we not trust anyone in this administration? Oh, sorry. I guess we DO know that answer already. click on the link and read the commets! March 14, 2014, 09:06 am Obama: Enough people have joined to make ObamaCare 'stable' By Justin Sink Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/200810-obama-enough-people-have-joined-to-make-o-care-stable#ixzz2w9bGlaAp President Obama said Friday enough people have already signed up for ObamaCare that he is “confident” his signature legislative accomplishment will function properly. “At this point, enough people are signing up that the Affordable Care Act is going to work,” Obama said in a WebMD interview. “The insurance companies will continue to offer these plans. We already have 4 million people, over 4 million people, signed up." The president said he expects “a larger number” still to be enrolled by March 31. “The pool is already large enough, the number of people who have signed up is large enough; I’m confident the program will be stable,” Obama said. Obama’s confidence in the program comes despite indications the administration will fall short of its initial enrollment targets. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had originally projected that 7 million individuals would enroll in ObamaCare plans in the first year, although it backed away from those predictions after the early troubles with HealthCare.gov. The most recent CBO report projected that 6 million Americans would enroll, while the administration now declines to set a specific enrollment goal. Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/200810-obama-enough-people-have-joined-to-make-o-care-stable#ixzz2w9b50skQ Follow us: @thehill on Twitter \| TheHill on Facebook “The impact in terms of the program has always been more based on the mix of people who sign up,” Obama said in the WebMD interview, adding that insurers needed a mix of “gray-haired” enrollees like himself, as well as young, healthy consumers. An analysis from consulting firm Avalere Health completed earlier this month projected that about 1.2 million people would sign up over the final weeks of the ObamaCare enrollment period, bringing the total to 5.4 million enrollees. The administration is looking to boost that number as much as possible with a media blitz, including the president’s interview with WebMD. Administration officials said they were eager to tap into the "enormous reach" of WebMD. The website sees more than 156 million unique visitors per month, and 60 percent of those users are women — a target demographic for the administration. A third of those users are aged 18-34 — the younger, healthier potential enrollees the administration wants to sign up for insurance to keep premiums low. Nearly four out of every 10 of younger WebMD users is without health insurance. In the past week, the president has also participated in a town hall on health insurance with Hispanic broadcasters, and an interview with comedian Zach Galifianakis on his “Between Two Ferns” Web talk show. On Friday, the White House released a video featuring first lady Michelle Obama and the mothers of celebrities, including Jennifer Lopez and Jonah Hill. “With only 18 days left to get health coverage this year, it’s never been more important for moms and women around the country to make sure that they are benefiting from the Affordable Care Act, which offers families more affordability, more options, and more peace of mind,” said a White House official. In the WebMD interview, Obama argued that consumers who are wary of purchasing health insurance because of the cost “may end up being pleasantly surprised” after finding out which tax subsidies they qualify for. Many of the questions in the interview, which were submitted by users of the website, focused on costs of insurance under the plan. Obama said that some of the issues raised were the byproduct of the U.S. tradition of private-based insurance. “Obviously, there are other countries who have government run healthcare or have a single-payer plan in which case, the government really controls much more tightly how healthcare distributed,” Obama said. “There are pluses and minuses with having a private healthcare system.” Still, the president defended many of the plans available on the exchanges and said, ultimately, they were worth purchasing. “Good solid insurance with some deductibles and co-pays is better than no insurance at all,” he said. (really?) Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/200810-obama-enough-people-have-joined-to-make-o-care-stable#ixzz2w9anuwZx Follow us: @thehill on Twitter \| TheHill on Facebook March 16th 2014 Report Reply

hiroad Respected Neighbor The Hilltop 5055 Posts	DOWD: Dems in Distress... Obama Factor Adds to Midterm Fears... WH in desperate 'March Madness' Obamacare play... Guarantees: No Delay on Individual Mandate... War on Obamacare cancer victims who speak out... CURL: All this to insure 4 million people? March 17th 2014 Report Reply
hiroad Respected Neighbor The Hilltop 5055 Posts	Obamacare Premiums to Skyrocket by Keith Koffler on March 19, 2014, 9:45 am Health insurance premiums will soar during the coming months, right as the 2014 election season gets underway, as insurers grapple with the failed rollout of Obamacare, according to an explosive article in The Hill. Insurance industry officials tell the newspaper that premiums will double in some parts of the country, harming Democrats’ chances and hampering the next round of enrollment efforts in 2015. The worries from the industry come less than a week after HHS Secretary Sebelius downplayed the problem, telling Capitol Hill that increases would grow more slowly than in the past. From the piece: “The increases are far less significant than what they were prior to the Affordable Care Act,” the secretary said in testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee. Her comment baffled insurance officials, who said it runs counter to the industry’s consensus about next year. “It’s pretty shortsighted because I think everybody knows that the way the exchange has rolled out … is going to lead to higher costs,” said one senior insurance executive who requested anonymity. The spikes are a direct consequence of the delays and changes the White House made during the rollout, indicating the administration’s moves to calm political storms will backfire: (Insurers) point out that the administration, after a massive public outcry, eased their policies to allow people to keep their old health plans. That kept some healthy people in place, instead of making them jump into the new exchanges. Federal health officials have also limited the amount of money the government can spend to help insurers cover the cost of new, sick patients. Perhaps most important, insurers have been disappointed that young people only make up about one-quarter of the enrollees in plans through the insurance exchanges, according to public figures that were released earlier this year. That ratio might change in the weeks ahead because the administration anticipates many more people in their 20s and 30s will sign up close to the March 31 enrollment deadline. Many insurers, however, don’t share that optimism. These factors will have the unintended consequence of raising rates, sources said. Amazing. Truly incomprehensible. We were told we would save money – in the realm of $2,500 per family. And yet, it’s going to cost more. And that’s before insurers start cutting services and coverage in order to make up the money they are losing. The probable response here, given the Obama White House mindset, will be government mandates to force insurers not to raise rates. And then when the companies start to go out of business, calls for government to take them over. And eventually – particularly given that Obamacare is failing at its core mission of covering the uninsured – demands for a single-payer program. March 19th 2014 Report Reply
hiroad Respected Neighbor The Hilltop 5055 Posts	Hillarious!!!! Pelosi: “It’s Called the Affordable Care Act” by Keith Koffler on March 20, 2014, 1:53 pm Uhh boy, she’s at it again, demanding that everyone call Obamacare the Affordable Care Act. She’s done it before, but this was so weird, I just had to post it. Boy, liberals do love to police speech: It’s called the Affordable Care Act. It’s called the Affordable Care Act. I know you didn’t intend any compliment or derogatory – it’s called the Affordable Care Act . . . affordable, affordable – there’s a reason – affordable, affordable, affordable, affordable, affordable. You’ll notice she goes on with some more mumbo jumbo about people needing to find out what’s in Obamaca – the Affordable Care Act. She doesn’t seem to understand the political blowback that will occur as a result of calling this scheme the Affordable Care Act. BECAUSE IT’S NOT AFFORDABLE. Not as a federal expenditure or as a cost to consumers. People’s premiums are going up all over the place and Democrats plan to call this the Affordable Care Act. How about we just call it The Republican Senate Takeover Act? March 20th 2014 Report Reply

Muscatine

The obumbler Tells another Healthcare Whopper

Obama: Enough people have joined to make ObamaCare 'stable'

Obamacare Premiums to Skyrocket

Pelosi: “It’s Called the Affordable Care Act”

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