If you believe that Obama care will help any one I have some ocean front property for sale in Iowa
I guess getting old is a precondition so it is not covered and everything that goes along with it.
I wish your friend all the best and hope everything works out for him

I am well aware the sole purpose of the ACA is to destroy the US healthcare system so it can be rebuilt into some kind of utopian service. People need to know that one of the biggest pluses touted for the ACA is pre-existing condition coverage - and it's all a big lie.

So he is looking into insurance. He says that under the pre-existing clauses of obamacare, they will give you insurance, BUT NOT cover or pay for anything involving the pre-existing condition.
According to the info from the link below, that doesn't appear to be true.

Starting in 2014, health insurance plans can't refuse to cover you or charge you more just because you have a pre-existing health condition.
Being sick doesn't keep you from getting coverage

Starting in 2014, being sick won't keep you from getting health coverage. An insurance company can't turn you down or charge you more because of your condition.

Once you have insurance, the plan can't refuse to cover treatment for pre-existing conditions. Coverage for your pre-existing conditions begins immediately.

This is true even if you have been turned down or refused coverage due to a pre-existing condition in the past.
One exception: Grandfathered individual health insurance plans

The only exception is for grandfathered individual health insurance plans -- the kind you buy yourself, not through an employer. They do not have to cover pre-existing conditions.

If you have one of these plans you can switch to a Marketplace plan during open enrollment and immediately get coverage for your pre-existing conditions.
Be sure not to miss open enrollment

You can apply for Health Insurance Marketplace insurance now. Coverage starts as soon as January 1, 2014.

Open enrollment ends on March 31, 2014. Outside of open enrollment, you can't enroll in Marketplace coverage unless you have a qualifying life event.

I would suggest your friend shop around.

Here is a link that might be useful: What if I have a pre-existing health condition?

I signed up through the website and I never saw a single question about cancer diagnosis. There may have been one or two questions about current medications but they were general and never asked about cancer. The whole process took less than an hour and cut my insurance bill to a fifth of what I normally pay.

Best of luck to you, trianglejohn. I hope it works out for you. It's all about taxes. US citizens being forced to sign up for any government run thing is just a sign of bad things to come.

Being overweight is an illness. Gambling is an illness. Alcoholism - illness. Type 2 diabetes. Etc. Are all going to collectively increase the price of premiums for all.

It's a shame. What about those who HAVE NO pre-exisiting? Who are healthy? Eat well. Exercises. ETC? Great Health is their main objective - they choose better food than a smart phone bill or cable TV?
Will they get lumped into the pool because of age and perhaps be told in order to avoid jail they must have every vaccination (which are known to cause disease - not prevent), every 50+ drug in order to remain covered? Just wait.

Good luck. With your health. Most people were NOT as lucky as you and are paying ALOT more because they have young children.

oh well...US is home of the what? Personally, I don't like being told I HAVE to have this. NO CHOICE or say so at all - or pay fines? Really?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2012/03/22/how-obamacare-dramatically-increases-the-cost-of-insurance-for-young-workers/

I am guessing that triangle john is one of the few low income people that will benefit from this plan. For each trianglejohn there are hundreds if not thousands of middle income people/families that are being screwed or can't afford insurance at all anymore. I also venture to say his out of pocket deductibles are thousands of dollars every year.

This post was edited by splais on Tue, Dec 10, 13 at 15:06

I don't have the numbers in front of me but I think my annual deductible was either $1000 or $2000. The plan I selected matched what my job offered - or used to offer. They decided to cut my hours and remove my benefits a month ago.

Isn't the penalty for not signing up something like $250. Far less than signing up. They have no way to collect this fine. If you hate all this so much just accept that risk.

Personally I wish there was a bigger movement to get everyone to stop paying their health insurance payments. Collapse the system. Start over with something that doesn't make a bunch of suits and ties a bunch of money.

That is what runs this country: the bottom line. Medical, manufacturing - whatever it may be. Allowed such atrocious freedoms (think Monsant0 and what is happening with poisons/foods) in exchange for millions to fund the next campaign. For it isn't about the person him/herself: it's all about the money.

My son once told me on his first leave from AF boot camp - "this country is run by a bunch of really rich people."

It's true. A bunch of people with a lot of money. They are the ones that determine who we, the don't haves, will take executive orders from and like it. :)

Well, I have had it explained to me - the only way they can collect the fine for NOT buying health insurance is to take it out of any refund owed to you on your income taxes. So if you aren't getting a refund they will have no way to collect. It starts out at $250 and goes up every year after that.

My complaint is that this whole issue is talked about as if this is solving healthcare when all it is doing is making more money for health insurance companies. Health insurance is not health care. We don't need insurance, we need affordable health care.

It all makes me remember an old Tracy Chapman song -

Don't you know. They're talkin' bout a revolution
It sounds like a whisper

Poor people gonna rise up and get their share
Poor people gonna rise up and take what's theirs

If everyone became there own doctor and studied natural medicine. They would become healthy and the medical system would become very humble

Since there are some lies and some truths, do any of you know if I have insurance coverage and am 76 years old will I get to keep what I have. I have been told it won't affect me, not sure now.

Emma, are you on Medicare? The ACA will not affect Medicare.

Thank you I was sure at first but you hear so many rumors.

EmmaR, that is not entirely correct. The ACA does impact Medicare. There are $700million of Medicare cuts in the ACA. Unfortunately, I don't think anyone really knows what they are. That is partly where all the talk of "death panels" comes from. Whether you believe it or not; there are going to be some kind of reductions in Medicare services - who knows what they are.

Unless you are VERY poor, or in one of the privileged groups getting exemptions you are going to be paying more, much more, for your healthcare for a number of reasons. You can't add millions of people to the free healthcare rolls without the money coming from someplace. Additionally, not near enough young healthy people will ever sign up to pay for this program. As of today, some 5 million people have LOST there healthcare and only about 300,000 have signed up. So right now there are several MORE million people without healthcare than before all this started. Just the opposite of what was intended.

Anyone, and I mean anyone, who is not in a privileged group and makes more than about $25K a year will not be able to afford the new costs or will be paying much more.

You can go to a several sites to see rates and costs now. One of the easiest to use is healthsherpa.com. You just put in your zip code, age, and income and see all the plans with there costs, subsidies, out of pocket expenses and co-pays. If you are a middle income person/family the costs are scary.

None of this even addresses the fact that the federal system to actually pay your premiums is not yet useable or even in place. So no matter what you have signed up for, unless you are making payments, you don't have insurance.

I don't even want to get into the doctor shortage issue that will become painfully clear as time passes; or the fact that millions more will lose insurance when there companies drop them next year.

I am one hoping "good" triumphs over evil. Praying. It doesn't look too good, tho.

This health care bill is not going to help anyone. We will pay more in taxes, prices on everything will go sky high to pay for it. The people who pay their way in life will be hit the hardest.

People without insurance have managed just fine and will continue to do so. I have heard they will fined and it will be taken from their refunds checks. That won't affect them at all, as long as there are no debtors prisons. They will just keep going to the ER, they will not just let them die. That may change, you die in England waiting on care.

When I was in England I was told that is the most expensive city in the world to live in. Death taxes are 98%. They have socialized health care and it is all free. They will let you die over there, I know personally of that happening. Maybe that is what the death panel is about.

The rich people in the world will buy their own doctors and set them up in private offices somewhere.

I have always defended this country/government, but can't anymore. It really won't effect me much because of my age. It makes me sad, but I am not going to worry about it.

well, if there is any type of protest - I'll be in the front. it's way past the time we--US citizens--start taking our power back. and we can. if we can just.get.out.of.the.don't.care.anymore.mode. for we must start caring again. for ourselves and each other.

we must get mad as hell and not take it anymore. before it's too late and we find ourselves without any freedoms at all

it always begins small--for our own good. the aca is just the tip of the iceberg that is going to sink us all unless we wake up and do something. sign a petition, voice concerns - send old white house an email!! call legislatures. on and on.

I have and will continue to let those "we" elected into office know that they better start changing soon or no more votes!!

United, we do have the power to change them. They're like out of control brats. But we are the parents. :)

This post was edited by worriedone on Sat, Dec 14, 13 at 14:29