I just read that pre-Affordable Healthcare Act 48 million Americans (approx 15% of the population) had no health insurance.  According to the CBO by 2023 ( ten years) there will still be 31 million uninsured people. 

    From Huffington Post: “In the first year of the Obamacare coverage expansion, 14 million people will gain health insurance, the Congressional Budget Office projected in May. By 2023, there will be 25 million fewer Americans without health insurance than if the law had not been enacted, although 31 million will remain uninsured, according to the CBO.”

I believe everyone should have access to health coverage and limiting preexisting conditions is a good idea. Could there have been a better way?  According to the Census Bureau the number of people who lost coverage because of the ACA  is about 4 percent of Americans, which comes to about 11 million people. Some claim these lost policies are all cheap lousy policies that offered little or no protection. Not true for us and our 7 employees. We are losing our 90/10 copay policy with $500 deductible and maximum out-of-pocket of $2500. Don’t see anything close to that on the exchange.

So again I ask why? Why did we turn everything upside down for the benefit of approx 6% of the population. It seems there could have been a better way.  Why not put the requirements on Insurance companies to eliminate pre-existing conditions, why not limit profits or better yet why aren’t insurance companies non-profitable.

It is just sad to see some in Washington DC calling people liars when they (the People) say they are losing very good insurance policies, that their premiums, their deductibles and out-of-pocket maximum are doubling.  It is true.  I know many people it is happening to.  Once again the burden is going to fall to the middle-class: low income people are going to get coverage for near nothing, the rich don’t really care what they have to pay (doesn’t affect them), but the middle class are seeing their premiums reach unaffordable levels and many are just going to pay the fine and roll the dice.

I have some friends that immigrated from another country with a national health program.  They have told me they were appalled when they came here and they would see collection jars in stores to help people pay for their serious health issues.  After all this,  with still 31 million people uninsured in 10 years,  those jars aren’t going away anytime soon.

I don’t have all the answers but it seems this whole mess has everybody’s knickers in a twist for a net-gain of insured people that amounts to 6% of the population.