***ACA Commentary*** (Washington, benefits, conservative, household)

[NSHL10]

Will we see the individual mandate delayed a year via one day at a time delay by the Clueless Leader?

Funny he said there was no ability to negotiate on Obamacare, yet since the end of the govt shutdown, he has made many changes to mandate dates and is even allowing reinstatement of "junk, worthless" plans as he previously described them regardless of the financial impact on the program.

Looks more and more like amateur hour at the White House.

[freightshaker]

My understanding is that the site is still not secure and anyone who uses it runs the risk of identity theft.

[TempesT68]

Originally Posted by JimRom

Care to share a link that delves into this claim? Anecdotally, I haven't met very many people who oppose the ACA because it "doesn't go far enough." The majority of those I've talked to about it are opposed to it because it's a terribly written law which does nothing to make health care "affordable" for anyone. I find it hard to believe that "most" people want more government intrusion into their personal health.

Absolutely. Poll Debunks Media Claims: Most Americans Back Obamacare or Want It Expanded | The Nation

[JimRom]

Originally Posted by TempesT68

Absolutely. Poll Debunks Media Claims: Most Americans Back Obamacare or Want It Expanded | The Nation

From your link:

And, lo and behold, it turns out that fully 12 percent of those opposed feel the law doesn’t so far enough.

This doesn't back up your claim that "most" people oppose it because it doesn't go far enough. What it does back up, however, is that most people are opposed to the ACA for some reason or another. Those who support the ACA are still in the minority.

Now look at the date of the article in your link: October 21, 2013. This is an article that was written - and a poll that was taken - over 2 months ago, before many aspects of the law were common knowledge. Considering the steady decline in Obama's approval rating over the last few months as more and more information about the Unaffordable Care Act has been disseminated, as well as polling which directly asks about the "A"CA, your claim is still pretty unbelievable.

[Rakin]

Originally Posted by freightshaker

My understanding is that the site is still not secure and anyone who uses it runs the risk of identity theft.

Hey... Target put together this website.

[ntwrkguy1]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Over 1 million visitors on the site just today. The state sites too are seeing very large traffic volumes. One would think that a large percentage today are buyers not lookers anymore.

When these 1 million visitors -- and honestly, there's no way I believe any numbers from ANYONE associated with this colossal train wreck -- see what their "total cost of ownership" is going to be, there's going to be a lot of really angry people.

Let's hope that the clusterf**k that is Obama....oops, Obamacare.....is enough to awaken the ignorant to the con game that is being foisted up on them. There is no defending the indefensible, and Obamacare is as indefensible as any shell game I have ever witnessed.

[Hoonose]

Originally Posted by ntwrkguy1

see what their "total cost of ownership" is going to be, there's going to be a lot of really angry people.

I know what you're saying, but with any insurance there are future unknowns. And even comparing premiums, deductibles and out of pockets can't be apples to apples with many people since with Obamacare there are new and additional coverages and inclusions.

[Crossfire600]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Over 1 million visitors on the site just today. The state sites too are seeing very large traffic volumes. One would think that a large percentage today are buyers not lookers anymore.

You realize that number isn't even 1/2 of 1 percent of the total population of the US right? Now, compare that number to the folks who will suffer as a result of this piece of garbage. I've heard anywhere up to 90 million once it's all said and done. Do you see a problem here?

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by Crossfire600

You realize that number isn't even 1/2 of 1 percent of the total population of the US right? Now, compare that number to the folks who will suffer as a result of this piece of garbage. I've heard anywhere up to 90 million once it's all said and done. Do you see a problem here?

As they have already amply demonstrated from the very beginning they are completely blind to any problems with the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010.

[KaraG]

This is from the hearing:

http://democrats.energycommerce.hous...2-2013-9-9.pdf

c. Income Verification

Eligibility for the advanced premium tax credits made available through the marketplaces
depends upon the applicant’s income. Additionally, the size of the tax credits and the
availability of cost-sharing reductions vary along with the applicant’s income. When applying
for tax credits or cost-sharing reductions, applicants will be required to input their projected
annual household income so that the marketplace can determine the amount of financial
assistance, if any, they are eligible for.

There are numerous protections in place to ensure that individuals only receive financial
assistance for which they are eligible. If the individual’s actual income makes them ineligible
for the assistance they received, the IRS will recoup excess payments when the individual files
his or her taxes. Additionally, when applicants provide information in their applications, they
attest under penalty of perjury that they are not providing false or fraudulent information. The
Affordable Care Act also sets out additional financial penalties if individuals negligently or
deliberately provides false or fraudulent information on their application.

In addition to these robust safeguards on the back-end, CMS also takes significant steps to
verify accuracy of the individual’s projected annual income during the application process.
When applicants submit projected annual household income to the marketplace, that information
is compared with IRS and Social Security data as well as current wage data in Equifax’s
database. If the information in these databases do not match up with the information provided by
the applicant, the Marketplace will request an explanation or additional documentation.


If Equifax data is not available for a given applicant, and the applicant’s attested income is
more than 10% below IRS or SSA data, and the individual cannot provide a reasonable
explanation of the discrepancy, the Marketplace will request additional documentation from the
applicant. CMS has said that while it will allow state marketplaces to request this additional
documentation from a statistically representative sample of applicants, the federal marketplace
will request additional documentation from 100% of applicants meeting this criteria.
___

I can't find any reference that HHS will not verify income or that the IRS will not require overpaid subsidies to be paid back. This is the only change I could find after the budget deal:

The only provision of the budget resolution that directly addresses the ACA requires the HHS Secretary to certify to Congress that the exchanges verify eligibility for premium tax credits and cost-sharing reduction payments consistently with the requirements of section 1411 of the ACA. By January 1, 2014, HHS must submit a report to Congress as to how the exchanges are verifying eligibility, and by July 1, 2014, the HHS Office of Inspector General must submit a report to Congress as to the effectiveness of the eligibility procedures and safeguards in place for preventing inaccuracies and fraud.