Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I can't get ACA insurance. It all depends on knowing how much money you will make per year. And you need to be able to estimate it well. That's all fine for many but I never know how much money I will make per year because part of my income is royalties. Just for example, 2014 was a banner year and I made 60K. I was shocked. 2016 I made .08, yup, eight cents.
I had high hopes for the ACA and supported it fully even though it didn't help me.
All the kinks were not worked out for people who have variable incomes. I went round and round with representatives from the ACA by asking how it would work when I retire and my income drops dramatically. They kept stating it is based on prior year income. I explained prior year income is based on our salary when we worked jobs. They kept stating the same thing over and over.
Seems the work around was to pay the full premium and you get the refund/subsidy when you pay your taxes the next year. Most people do not have the extra money to fund in advance nor should we. What about people who lose their jobs?
Some people wrote the ACA a letter stating their situation and their subsidies were approved months after their effective day of January 1 for health coverage. So in the meantime they would receive letters from the ACA stating they could lose coverage or subsidies while waiting for approval.
All the kinks were not worked out for people who have variable incomes. I went round and round with representatives from the ACA by asking how it would work when I retire and my income drops dramatically. They kept stating it is based on prior year income. I explained prior year income is based on our salary when we worked jobs. They kept stating the same thing over and over.
Seems the work around was to pay the full premium and you get the refund/subsidy when you pay your taxes the next year. Most people do not have the extra money to fund in advance nor should we. What about people who lose their jobs?
Some people wrote the ACA a letter stating their situation and their subsidies were approved months after their effective day of January 1 for health coverage. So in the meantime they would receive letters from the ACA stating they could lose coverage or subsidies while waiting for approval.
I accepted the fact it was a work in progress. A step in the right direction. What we really need is single payer like every other developed country in the world. Medicare works well. It would be great to see it available to all.
I can't get ACA insurance. It all depends on knowing how much money you will make per year. And you need to be able to estimate it well. That's all fine for many but I never know how much money I will make per year because part of my income is royalties. Just for example, 2014 was a banner year and I made 60K. I was shocked. 2016 I made .08, yup, eight cents.
I had high hopes for the ACA and supported it fully even though it didn't help me.
You would have qualified for ACA in 2014, but not in 2016 since you would have been Medicaid eligible.
There are strategies to produce income without royalties/salary if you have tax deferred retirement savings. Just do a Roth IRA conversion to get your income up above the minimum threshold for Medicaid, since the conversion amount counts as income with ACA. For a single person in 2016 that was about $12k, if you have at least $12k in an TradIRA/401k/etc. and in December 2016 realize your income is too low just do a Roth conversion to make up the difference. Knowing you had at least that much in tax deferred you could confidently estimate your income knowing you can get over Medicaid line, any subsidies based on actual income will even out at the end when you pay taxes.
If your income is that low a Roth Conversion might be a good idea regardless of ACA participation goals since you don't want to waste the $0 tax tiers for personal exemption and standard deduction. A $0 income year should be avoided at all costs, do some gains harvesting anything to not waste the free tax tiers.
Medicare works well. It would be great to see it available to all.
Do you have any idea how much that would cost? You're looking at jacking the HI Payroll Tax from 1.45% for employer and employee to 12+% for employer and employee.
This is a 'loop hole' that bothers me a bit.
Younger retired people that could easily pay for their insurance but since only income is counted, they are subsidized.
Quote:
Originally Posted by aquietpath
It's not Uncle Sam that is paying your health insurance; it's taxpayers....most of whom do not have a million dollars or more in assets. It's time your 'sweet deal' ends.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewbieHere
It bothers me too but not the 50s something. Younger bums in their 30s and 40s, who are capable of working, but know how to milk the system. Not good for the economy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TwoByFour
I personally don't think that retiring early while getting government subsidies is an ethical use of such a program. It might be legal, but it is questionable in my mind.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Larry Siegel
aquietpath, in contrast, is getting a really sweet deal at other people's expense. The subsidy is intended to help the poor.
So I have another hypothetical given what we know about the GOP replacement plan. They are leaning towards refundable tax credits based on age (not income), since older people generally have higher premiums due to age multiplier in policy pricing. Call them what you want, but a refundable tax credit, especially one where unused portions can be put into a HSA, is a subsidy. We use different labels for political reasons but bottom line an ACA subsidy is a refundable tax credit, and a GOP replacement plan refundable tax credit is a subsidy.
Say you get retire (or get laid off) at 60 and have fortunately accumulated enough wealth to not need to patch together employment until 67. But hey lucky you, you fall into the higher age bracket for refundable tax credits to offset healthcare insurance! Do you turn it down? You're basically getting the same thing, money from other taxpayers that you don't necessarily need to help offset healthcare costs. Your magic bullet is your birthday, not your ability to live off investment income that stays within 400% of FPL. Remember that you CAN still work, you just choose not to since you've got enough in the piggy bank and have already put in your 40 years.
It would be interesting to know how many with feelings like above would turn down this evil loophole that they don't need and how many would accept this sweet deal that the other taxpayers with less money are paying for.
Do you have any idea how much that would cost? You're looking at jacking the HI Payroll Tax from 1.45% for employer and employee to 12+% for employer and employee.
And how much does the average employee and employer pay for their premiums, copay's and deductibles now? Almost all of the studies show that the average person would save money under a UHC program.
"It's kind of like when you are born with a silver spoon and inherit the family farm or business is that fair?"
First, yes. life's not fair. And what about the people who were born into poverty or lower middle class, and ended up loaded... Personally know dozens of the latter. That's not fair either? Geez... stop complaining
"Is it fair that if you come from a wealthy family your parents can send you to best colleges enabling you to get the job opportunities that don't exist for most people?"
You can do the same when virtually destitute. My friend from Vietnam came to the US with literally $20, and now she is a top plastic surgeon at Mass General... a rarity, but if driven and smart enough, there is a way. Richest self-made Americans without a college degree: William H. Gates III William H. Gates III Harvard University, dropout Net worth: $43 billion Source: Microsoft Paul Allen Paul Allen Washington State University, dropout Net worth: $21 billion Source: Microsoft; Charter Communications Larry Ellison Larry Ellison University of Illinois, dropout Net worth: $15.2 billion Oracle Michael Dell Michael Dell University of Texas Austin, dropout Net worth: $11.2 billion Dell.
The average net worth of Forbes 400 members without a college degree is 6.6% higher than members with a degree.
Geez... stop complaining
?
you do know that in the USA upward mobility is lower than most of those nasty "socialist" countries in Europe that so many Americans seem to attack.
let me spell that out. if you are born poor in the USA it is harder to become rich than it is in the UK and many others.
ie the myth of work hard and you can be a winner, is a lie. you have a better chance of doing that in the EU than the USA!!! I have to admit I was shocked when I learned it, I was raised to believe the USA was the land of opportunity. however having returned home to the USA after being away for a couple of decades I was stunned to see the lack of competition, the protected markets, like Real estate. cable, power, cellphones carriers...shocked to see they hardly have to compete at all ISPs are the worst of all, they charge two or three times many other countries...why? well they have entire cities counties and states where they are the only one allowed to lay cable...
you do know that in the USA upward mobility is lower than most of those nasty "socialist" countries in Europe that so many Americans seem to attack.
let me spell that out. if you are born poor in the USA it is harder to become rich than it is in the UK and many others.
ie the myth of work hard and you can be a winner, is a lie. you have a better chance of doing that in the EU than the USA!!! I have to admit I was shocked when I learned it, I was raised to believe the USA was the land of opportunity. however having returned home to the USA after being away for a couple of decades I was stunned to see the lack of competition, the protected markets, like Real estate. cable, power, cellphones carriers...shocked to see they hardly have to compete at all ISPs are the worst of all, they charge two or three times many other countries...why? well they have entire cities counties and states where they are the only one allowed to lay cable...
Quotes taken from 'The Millionaire Next Door':
Quote:
Only 19 percent [of America's millionaires] receive any income or wealth of any kind from a trust fund or an estate.
Quote:
Fewer than 20 percent [of America's millionaires] inherited 10 percent or more of their wealth.
Quote:
More than half [of America's millionaires] never received as much as $1 in inheritance.
Quote:
Ninety-one percent [of America's millionaires] never received, as a gift, as much as $1 of the ownership of a family business.
Quote:
Nearly half [of America's millionaires] never received any college tuition from their parents or other relatives.
Quote:
Fewer than 10 percent [of America's millionaires] believe they will ever receive an inheritance in the future.
Quote:
America continues to hold great prospects for those who wish to accumulate wealth in one generation. In fact, America has always been a land of opportunity for those who believe in the fluid nature of our nation's social system and economy. More than one hundred years ago the same was true. In The American Economy, Stanley Lebergott reviews a study conducted in 1892 of the 4,047 American millionaires. He reports that 84 percent "were nouveau riche, having reached the top without the benefit of inherited wealth."
I can't get ACA insurance. It all depends on knowing how much money you will make per year. And you need to be able to estimate it well. That's all fine for many but I never know how much money I will make per year because part of my income is royalties. Just for example, 2014 was a banner year and I made 60K. I was shocked. 2016 I made .08, yup, eight cents.
I had high hopes for the ACA and supported it fully even though it didn't help me.
Anyone can get ACA insurance. It isn't very good and it is very expensive but "guaranteed issue" means anyone can get it. If you are not eligible for a subsidy because of your prior year's income, you have to pay the full premium and then get the subsidy when you file your taxes. You can charge the premium on a credit card, and pay it off when you get the subsidy.
I find it very amusing that an avowed conservative would jump to take advantage of state sponsored insurance.
Conservatives also use publicly funded roads and bridges. We live in reality, not a college libertarian discussion group.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
