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Also noteworthy that Congress and Senate aren't required to have Obamacare so its no wonder they passed it. It should be a law that anything they pass should apply to them as well.
Can you cite an accurate source for this statement?
Per factcheck, your belief is inaccurate:
Quote:
Q: Is it true that there are bills in Congress that would exempt members and their staffs and families from buying into “Obamacare”?
A: No. Congress members and staffers will be required to buy insurance through the exchanges on Jan. 1.
President Obama has a Bronze plan bought on the exchange. Many other Congresspeople have appeared on C-Span saying they have purchased insurance through the exchange.
I'm so happy for Escort Rider since he /she/it is rolling in dough.
The interesting point about this discussion is that I am not, in fact, "rolling in dough". I am a retired high school teacher and I have lived below my means for a lifetime including since my retirement, which is the reason that I do not feel any "pinch" from the very mild inflation that we have had over the past six or seven years. I am neither rich nor well-to-do nor wealthy. My lifetime earnings compared to a lawyer or doctor or CPA or middle management type are paltry. The whole point is that I am living comfortably but not at all lavishly despite lifelong earnings which are modest at best.
One area of discussion where it is easy to talk past each other is medical costs. People can be retired before the age of 65 and therefore be struggling with medical costs. But once we hit 65 Medicare covers most of those. I am 71, so I can say that I don't have any concern about medical costs, and that could be very misleading (leading to misstatements such as you made above), but it does not mean I am a fat cat who can afford to pay a lot of medical expenses; rather, it means I am on Medicare and I have an excellent Medicare Advantage Plan which makes it almost impossible to incur significant medical costs no matter what goes wrong with me.
Can you cite an accurate source for this statement?
Per factcheck, your belief is inaccurate:
Also, called a "myth," here:
President Obama has a Bronze plan bought on the exchange. Many other Congresspeople have appeared on C-Span saying they have purchased insurance through the exchange.
My statement about Obamacare exclusions I will look one up and get back with you in a day or so. Its not something I imagined. I'll post asap but have to run for now.
Hmm, I have to wonder what percentage of social security recipients own oil stocks and what percentage of the oil-stock-owning SS recipients would loose their sleep over no COLA ;-)
I got hurt at work and have been on social security disability since, i can't afford to go on a cruise or fly on a plane, if im lucky a greyhound bus and you can forget about owning anything investment wise, im lucky to get groceries and keep the lights on lol
Escort Rider: I'm curious about how you came up with what you said about Medicare. I am 73+ so have been on it longer. When I first got on it, I had BC/BS insurance (supplement) that cost close to $100/month. I still had to pay 20% of doctor bills, hospital bills, tests, etc. Low copays for prescriptions. While I was on BC/BS, I needed several surgeries. A lot of my credit card debt is due to having to pay what Medicare/insurance did not. When you need to see a doctor 3x week at $25 copay each time it adds up. Last December I still had BC/BS and had knee surgery. I have paid some out of pocket expenses for this, over $300 for the rehab stay; just received a hospital bill of $525 (my copay to them). After a phone call to their billing dept., I'm paying $35/month. I'll probably die before the whole thing gets paid.
This year I changed insurances and went with an Advantage plan. Pay $178.50 for the medical and $52.10 for pharmaceutical (had to meet deductible here before seeing any savings) per month.
my wife went on medicare as of aug 1. living in ny an f- plan for medigap is 3200 a year plus the 104 a month for medicare plus a drug plan.
that is about 5k . a year just for her.
sure advantage plans are cheaper but that is only until the day comes when it get you good.
many have no cap on certain out patient events.
my co-worker used to tell me how cheap his advantage plan was until his wife needed chemo as an out patiant and each treatment had a 4500.00 out of pocket .
don't get caught traveling and needing non life threatening care either with an advantage plan . you are restricted to in net work and many times good luck finding someone out of your area .
if you really want to be protected you need an f-plan or g plan .
other wise you can have unexpected gaps all over . you just may not have hit them YET .
Last edited by mathjak107; 08-03-2015 at 06:45 AM..
The interesting point about this discussion is that I am not, in fact, "rolling in dough". I am a retired high school teacher and I have lived below my means for a lifetime including since my retirement, which is the reason that I do not feel any "pinch" from the very mild inflation that we have had over the past six or seven years. I am neither rich nor well-to-do nor wealthy. My lifetime earnings compared to a lawyer or doctor or CPA or middle management type are paltry. The whole point is that I am living comfortably but not at all lavishly despite lifelong earnings which are modest at best.
Living below or within one's means is key. Previous neighbors of ours retired early, he was vp of a well known electronics company. They bought both their daughters Hondas, took some great trips, but ended up on COBRA and taking menial retail jobs while they waited for Medicare to kick in. Good for you, ER!
Escort Rider: I'm curious about how you came up with what you said about Medicare. I am 73+ so have been on it longer. When I first got on it, I had BC/BS insurance (supplement) that cost close to $100/month. I still had to pay 20% of doctor bills, hospital bills, tests, etc. Low copays for prescriptions. While I was on BC/BS, I needed several surgeries. A lot of my credit card debt is due to having to pay what Medicare/insurance did not. When you need to see a doctor 3x week at $25 copay each time it adds up. Last December I still had BC/BS and had knee surgery. I have paid some out of pocket expenses for this, over $300 for the rehab stay; just received a hospital bill of $525 (my copay to them). After a phone call to their billing dept., I'm paying $35/month. I'll probably die before the whole thing gets paid.
This year I changed insurances and went with an Advantage plan. Pay $178.50 for the medical and $52.10 for pharmaceutical (had to meet deductible here before seeing any savings) per month.
It's not the free ride you have presented.
A lot of that depends on where we live. In Southern California there is a lot of competition among Medicare Advantage Plans. Unlike the plan that Mathjak cites his friend had, mine covers me. I pay the following:
Monthly plan premium: zero
Doctor visit co-pay including specialists: $5
Lab co-pay per visit (could be multiple tests): $20
Emergency room visit: $75
Drug co-pay: $9 (some drugs could be more)
Outpatient surgery: $125
Inpatient surgery: zero (is covered if hospitalized)
Hospitalization: can't remember exactly - something like $150 per day for the first 8 days, free thereafter
A lot of that depends on where we live. In Southern California there is a lot of competition among Medicare Advantage Plans. Unlike the plan that Mathjak cites his friend had, mine covers me. I pay the following:
Monthly plan premium: zero
Doctor visit co-pay including specialists: $5
Lab co-pay per visit (could be multiple tests): $20
Emergency room visit: $75
Drug co-pay: $9 (some drugs could be more)
Outpatient surgery: $125
Inpatient surgery: zero (is covered if hospitalized)
Hospitalization: can't remember exactly - something like $150 per day for the first 8 days, free thereafter
That's close to what my husband has in Sacramento for no premium. He has a $15 specialist co-pay but no co-pay for generics. I have a Medicare Supplement through CalPers no premium and my only co-pays or deductibles, my only out of pocket expenses are $10 for 90 days of drugs and $50 ER visit.
When we lived in Nevada, my plan was the same, but my husband's medicare advantage plan was less generous and cost him $90 a month
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