Obamacare's impact on Bay Area? (San Mateo: health insurance, living in, marketplace)

[countofmc]

What kind of changes, if any, do you think we'll see here in the Bay Area? People are saying longer waits for doctor visits and such, but at least here in San Mateo County I don't think that will be the case. I would think the majority of people here already have health insurance through their employers, and illegal immigrants are exempt from the mandate to carry health insurance, so I"m guessing most will just go without.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Independent primary care providers are joining larger groups. Some are abandoning general practices to become specialists. Older ones are expediting retirement.

Generally the impacts have to do more with supply than demand.

[countofmc]

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

Independent primary care providers are joining larger groups. Some are abandoning general practices to become specialists. Older ones are expediting retirement.

Generally the impacts have to do more with supply than demand.

These are changes that were going on even prior to Obama taking office, much less Obamacare. I personally have not seen an "independent" primary care provider in about 15 years. And this is despite having a PPO for a lot of that time and having the freedom to choose my own provider. This could be a product of living in a big city though, not sure.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by countofmc

These are changes that were going on even prior to Obama taking office, much less Obamacare. I personally have not seen an "independent" primary care provider in about 15 years. And this is despite having a PPO for a lot of that time and having the freedom to choose my own provider. This could be a product of living in a big city though, not sure.

^ Yep, this has been happening for awhile now, even before Obama was even known on a national level.

[Caltovegas]

I think many people will finally understand they can design their own benefit plan and start more businesses.

[charbo]

Fewer doctors, more people...and an imbalance.
But I'm almost thankful that the exchanges have access to limited doctor networks. Without that, those of us already on healthcare with practitioners would suddenly find it incredibly hard to get an appointment.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by countofmc

These are changes that were going on even prior to Obama taking office, much less Obamacare. I personally have not seen an "independent" primary care provider in about 15 years. And this is despite having a PPO for a lot of that time and having the freedom to choose my own provider. This could be a product of living in a big city though, not sure.

Well I know a couple of GPs who specifically cited the changes coming at the end of the year as the reason for rolling up practices and joining large groups.

[bmw335xi]

The Healthcare Marketplace is now OPEN!

I'm curious to see if it is cheaper or not than my current health insurance. There is a lot of volume right now, so the servers are very slow. I will try again tonight and let you know how it compares to traditional coverage. Some of my coworkers said they entered their information and the rates were incredibly low.

If you want to give it a try, here is the link for California residents:
coveredca.com

All other residents:
healthcare.gov