Yes I am asking for Help. Yes, because of FB, and because I am sure someone has answered this

[LaydeeBug]

Before you click, it is a FOX News link, but a pretty reasonable friend posted it. I have not been all that politically astute lately, with Dad being in the hospital (Thank you ObamaCare) recovering from a stroke.

Please help me talk her down from the ledge. I can use my personal story, and already snopesd it...nada.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/04/08/latest-obamacare-surprise-most-wont-be-able-to-buy-health-insurance-until-end/

[LaydeeBug]

1. I kinda feel dirty for it being a FOX link, so i am going to take a shower maybe

it's like "ick" has gotten me

[Warpy]

2. Well, they did blame the insurance companies

for that idiotically short sign up period. People needed to be able to sign up without any stupid time restrictions but the nervous bean counters at the insurance giants wanted hard numbers fast.

So the article is somewhat correct. You snooze, you lose. People who procrastinated will have to wait for the signup period next year. However this does NOT apply to group plans at work. Those can kick in at any time after hiring.

[LaydeeBug]

5. and then, before the shower, I read the link which has this little nugget:

"There is one way consumers can still sign up, but only under limited circumstances.

"If you have a qualifying event, a life qualifying event, which means you get married, you get divorced, you get fired from your job" says Goodman. Or you have a child, or lose a spouse or have a change in income."

I mean, honestly, it's like when all of those 'recount articles' were in the paper and the headline read, "George W Bush WON" and the piece said, "unless you count the votes".

I *knew* it was something.

[Motown_Johnny]

3. Start with the obvious lie

"It is all closed down" is a lie.


The open enrollment period has ended, but not everything is closed down. Medicaid still accepts new enrollees, so anyone who qualifies can still get insurance that way.

There is also a "change of life" clause. So if someone loses insurance because of something like changing jobs, then she/he can gain coverage through healthcare.gov.


Yes, many people can't enroll until November 15th (I think). The idea behind it is to keep people from waiting until they are sick or injured and then buying insurance. They need to do it before then.

If we just had single payer, this would not be an issue. This problem is caused by a far to conservative approach to insurance reform. Obamacare isn't liberal enough to be a good law, it is just head and shoulders above what Nixon signed and we had been forced to live with for so long.

[pnwmom]

4. Obamacare does not prevent ANY insurer from selling policies all year outside of the exchange.

However, if you want to buy a policy on the exchange, and therefore to be eligible for any income-based subsidy, then you can only purchase during the open enrollment period that just ended -- or wait till next November's new enrollment period. Otherwise, if there was continuous open-enrollment, it would encourage people not to sign up unless they got sick or had an accident.

HOWEVER, and this is a big however, Obamacare does require all insurance companies, both on and off the exchanges, to accept new customers without regard to preexisting conditions.

Therefore, many of the insurance companies themselves decided it was too risky to sell outside of the open enrollment periods, because they don't want sick people to come flocking to them because they couldn't buy insurance on the exchange. So the insurance companies are the ones that decided they wouldn't sell policies outside of the enrollment periods. The ACA didn't require this as a matter of law.

And, yes, Motown Johnny is right. Anyone eligible for Medicaid can sign up year around. And if you lose a job, gain a family member, move, or have another qualifying life event, you are also eligible to sign up on the Exchanges outside of the usual enrollment period.