Working 32-36 hours/week? Obamacare might nail you.

[Quick Enough]

Originally Posted by cometclear

I sometimes forget this, but can someone help me out? I know overhead in the Medicare system is like 3%. What is overhead within private insurance companies? Does anyone have that figure? Also, in Medicare, much like with private insurance plans, someone tells which doctors you are supposed to see, right? Finally, Medicare doesn't cover pre-existing conditions, just like private insurance companies were fond of doing, right?

Why in the world would we ever want to move away from private health insurance towards Medicare-style socialism?

"I know overhead in the Medicare system is like 3%."

Not saying you are wrong but, do you have data to support it?

"How high are Medicare overhead costs? by Tyler Cowen on September 1, 2012 at 5:54 am in Economics, Medicine, Uncategorized | Permalink

Yuval Levin makes a few points of relevance:

…many of Medicare’s most significant administrative costs are just covered by other federal agencies, and so don’t appear on Medicare’s particular budget, but are still huge costs of the program. The IRS collects the taxes that fund the program; Social Security collects many of the premiums paid by beneficiaries; HHS pays for a great deal of what you would think of as basic overhead, but doesn’t put it on the Medicare program’s budget. Obviously private insurers have to pay for such things themselves. Medicare’s administration is also exempt from taxes, while insurers pay an excise tax on premiums (which is counted as overhead). And private insurers also spend a great deal of money fighting fraud, while Medicare doesn’t. That might reduce the program’s administrative costs, but it greatly increases its overall costs. Some administrative costs save money, after all: The GAO has estimated that a $1 investment in pre-payment review of claims, for instance, would save $21 in improper Medicare payments.

My original source is this Reihan Salam post. I also would add the deadweight cost of taxation. Arguably that does not count as a cost of “overhead,” but very often it runs 20% or more and still it is a cost.

"Waste of funds and abuse of the health care programs also cost taxpayers billions of dollars. In fiscal year (FY) 2009, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) estimated that overall, 7.8 percent of the Medicare fee-for-service claims it paid ($24.1 billion) did not meet program requirements."
Reducing Fraud, Waste and Abuse in Medicare

[elan]

Originally Posted by carolac

I can see employers cutting their employees to 30 hours so they don't have to pay the $2000 fine and engage in job sharing for clerical, trade jobs, hospitality workers, and similar type jobs. Employers will be able to find people willing to work part time and will be able to save a lot of money, particularly with the older employees--they won't have to insure them and they won't even have to pay them for 40 hours.

Spot on, that's exactly what they will do. We needed health care reform for things like pre-existing conditions, being able to move plans to another state, the absurd rate hikes, pools for people under 40 hours, etc.. Instead, we got hosed and a lot of those who could have benefited won't. ER's get no relief, while the poor stay poor, the middle class only gets poorer and mom and pop businesses go under.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by marcopolo

Robert Samuelson: Obamacare’s rhetoric vs. its reality - The Washington Post

Based on your link, I think this is the real problem:

"As first reported in the Orlando Sentinel, Darden Restaurants — owners of about 2,000 outlets, including the Red Lobster and Olive Garden chains — is studying ways to shift more employees under the 30-hour ceiling. About three-quarters of its 185,000 workers are already under, says spokesman Rich Jeffers. The question is “can we go higher and still deliver a great [eating] experience.”"

And from about a year ago: Walmart's Cuts To Health Care For Part-Time Workers Mirror Larger Trend