White House to allow insurers to continue canceled plans, says official

[OhioChick]

Source: CNBC

Published: Thursday, 14 Nov 2013 | 10:34 AM ET

A senior Democratic source told NBC News that President Obama will say that people with insurance policies that are being canceled because they do not meet Obamacare's standards will be allowed to renew them, but that insurance companies will be required to tell people re-enrolling about alternative options and the benefits they will lose.

Obama is scheduled to make an announcement at 11:35 am.

Read more: http://www.cnbc.com/id/101128765

[gvstn]

1. Dumb.

Just prolongs the adjustment period.

[frazzled]

2. Oh yippee, all the people who love those crap plans

can keep them. It's amazing that anyone would want to. But there you go.

The big benefit of this is that the insurers will have to inform people of the other (far better)options available to them.

[renate]

23. my aunt was told by her insurer that they didn't cover her inhalers any more "because of Obamacare"

Sounded like bullshit to me, so I called the state agency that handles insurance problems and complaints and they said that Obamacare (which hasn't even kicked in yet, so WTH?) requires coverage of prescription medications, which includes inhalers. So my aunt's insurance company is cutting benefits (though not premiums) and getting away with it because there are people who will believe anything bad they hear about Obamacare. It's absolutely contemptible.

[Mysterysouppe]

31. Are you saying the Obama Bronze plan isn't a crap plan?

'Cause it is. High deductible, high co-pay, limited benefits.

[TwilightGardener]

3. I hope they limit that to existing policyholders continuing on, and not selling the same policies

to new consumers in violation of ACA standards.

[Dopers_Greed]

4. Seems like a decent solution

Other than offering single-payer of course

[Mass]

5. Allow, but not force. OK, this fixes about as many things as the Upton plan.

These plans have already been cancelled. How many companies do they think are going to reissue them.

[TwilightGardener]

6. I don't know that anyone has had a break in coverage yet, therefore I don't know why

a policyholder couldn't request continuation.

[Mass]

7. They received cancellation notice. If the company decides not to renew the policy,

the fix will not help.

The Landrieu bill was better.

[TwilightGardener]

9. Do you know that this ISN'T roughly the Landrieu plan? I hadn't heard that yet.

[Mass]

10. If the reporting above is correct, it is not.

Of course, we may all be talking on a bad reporting. It would not be the first time.

[former9thward]

13. The policies no longer exist.

That is why someone can't ask for them to be continued. It takes months for insurance companies to negotiate rates with doctors, hospitals and other medical suppliers. Then the state insurance regulator weighs in. There is no time to do all that before 2014. The 'fix' will fix nothing.

[TwilightGardener]

14. If they no longer exist, and there was no way to renew, I'd think they'd be looking at other

fixes, like subsidizing the difference between old and new coverage for everyone who had their plans cancelled, regardless of current subsidy eligibility.

[former9thward]

16. That fix has also been suggested.

Whether it could pass Congress is debatable.

[joeglow3]

18. The issue isn't with negotiations

Unless the company dropped health insurance altogether, this is NOT an issue.

The crux of the plans being dropped had to do with the coverages people wanted. For instance, United already has negotiated with all their medical providers. They just need to remove pregnancy coverage from the plan of the the 25 year old male who doesn't want it.

That said, this severely weakens the healthcare plan. The crux of it working was spreading the costs among those who don't need those coverages. Without the influx of people subsidizing pregnancy care, expect the plans offering it (to both males and females) to shoot up. This could be the beginning of the end for Obamacare.

[peace13]

21. It is my understanding that the current policies were good at least until the end of 2013.

My insurer tried to threaten cancellation unless I renewed before my anniversary date at a premium +300. Taking three people back to a total premium of $2900.00 per month. Next stop....ACA! Don't know why anyone would pay more for less. It is pretty clear that this is MSM making Obama jump a hoop and bark like a dog!

[RobinA]

26. Absolutely

And he's doing it again.

[BlueCaliDem]

8. These junk policies won't be canceled until January 1, 2014.

Just thought I'd mention that little known fact.

[Major Hogwash]

17. Damn fax!

I hate it when that happens.

[Hoyt]

11. Hopefully a lot of folks will look at what they have and opt for better coverage.

I hope there is some disincentive to folks keeping their cruddy policy and changing to an exchange policy when they find out just how cruddy it is when they get sick.

[joeglow3]

19. Why would a single male opt for pregnancy coverage?

[leftynyc]

22. Because it's cheaper

than what he has. And probably covers more stuff he will use.

[joeglow3]

24. But, he could still get those things and leave out pregnancy coverage

Making it even cheaper. The reality is that system in contingent upon spreading costs to those less likely to use the coverage (and cases like pregnancy care, NEVER use it). If you remove that, you are undermined the entire system and doomed it to failure.

[leftynyc]

25. Look at it like this

When you spread out the risk, I (a non-drinker) am paying for liver transplants, I don't drive yet I'm still going to be paying for all the schmucks who drive drunk or recklessly and get hurt (and their victims) - everybody winds up paying for everyone else. Since the woman didn't get pregnant all by herself (the assumption this is not IVF related), why shouldn't men have to contribute?

[joeglow3]

33. I agree completely with you

However, when given the choice, you honestly think a young male barely scraping by will choose to spend a few thousand more on health care he doesn't need? I certainly don't think he will.

[leftynyc]

36. If he's barely scraping by

he'll be eligible for subsidies. There are plans for as little as $20/month. If he can't afford that, he should look into medicaid.

[christx30]

43. I think smokers should pay

far more for insurance than non-smokers.

[leftynyc]

45. They do

Even when they're not using the ACA.

[Hoyt]

28. For the same reason a woman pays for one's erectile dysfunction.

We are all in this together, and I don't mind paying a buck or two for someone to have a healthy baby. Jeeeeez.

[joeglow3]

32. Do you think we should be paying more for taxes?

How much do you opt to send in extra each year. The reality is that for 99.999% of the population, you need to mandate it. You can appeal to people's good senses. I will choose to live in reality.

[Hoyt]

44. Actually you are jus. Nitpicking. Try looking at big picture and what is important.

[

[leftynyc]

46. Nobody gets screwed more

in our current tax code than single people. Why on earth should I have to pay for the public schools if I don't have children? Why don't I get a loophole for not contributing to the disgusting overpopulation of this planet? The answer is that an educated population benefits everyone. So does a healthy population.

[joeglow3]

47. I am not debating if we should

I am questioning if people WOULD if given the option not to.

[leftynyc]

48. Now you're just being combative

There are plenty of things I pay for with my taxes I would choose not to. I'm not interested in spinning my wheels.

[warrior1]

12. he should outline that today in his speech

very clearly.

The insurance companies want you to keep your crappy plan, but with the new ACA you'll be covered better.

How hard is that.

[Iliyah]

15. Thank you Mr. President!

[Jesus Malverde]

20. Finally some common sense

Jesus

[Dopers_Greed]

27. Sure, Obama may "allow" insurers to continue the "Beater" plans

But will insurers actually continue them?

[Mysterysouppe]

29. I hope Obamacare collapses. It doesn't deserve to survive.

It's just a bonanza for the insurance companies. Single payer or nothing.

[snooper2]

35. nothing means we go to woo medicine and self treatment right?

I'm pretty good at backwoods stitches if anyone needs a little sewing done!

[Mysterysouppe]

37. That's what happens under the Bronze Plan.

And in the States that refuse the Federal subsidy for medicaid. Poor people will still "get" medicaid, and doctors still will refuse to treat them.

[Joey Liberal]

38. I agree

My health insurance went from great to terrible because of the ACA.

[Beacool]

30. Isn't this what Clinton was suggesting and he got clobbered for it?

So much outrage over something that the WH was probably already planning to do anyway.

[Mysterysouppe]

34. Yes, Hillarycare=Obamacare=Romneycare. A mandatory subsidy for Big Insurance.

I hope Aetna and New York Life choke on it.

[Beacool]

39. We all know that the plans these people want to keep are crappy, but let them keep them.

They'll figure out soon enough that they were being taken for a ride by the insurance companies.

[Mysterysouppe]

40. Lower priced Obamacare plans are crappy plans.

So people are still "being taken for a ride by the insurance companies"

[Beacool]

42. Well, but them are the choices.

Single payer would have been much better, but I don't know if it could have passed Congress.

[alp227]

41. Washington Post report:

Obama announces change to address health insurance cancellations

President Obama announced Thursday an administrative change in one of the bedrock ideas of the new health-care law, allowing insurers to continue offering individual insurance plans for another year even if they do not comply with the law’s rules for minimum benefits.

“This fix won’t solve every problem for every person, but it’s going to help a lot of people,” Obama said in making the announcement. He said that “doing more” would require congressional action.

The White House, responding to intensifying pressure from disgruntled consumers and Congress, decided to make the fix as a part of a strategy to try to ward off more far-reaching changes that are being advocated on Capitol Hill. Under the White House’s approach, the Department of Health and Human Services will notify the nation’s state insurance commissioners that they have federal permission to allow consumers who already have such insurance policies to keep them through 2014. It will be up to each state whether to go along.

The decision runs counter to a central aim of the law, which was to ensure that all people in the United States with private health plans are guaranteed at least certain benefits.

[tomm2thumbs]

49. with the caveat that folks can't start buying fake TeaBagger $1.00 plans now to get out of joining

I hope they are watching the loose ends.... give idiot Tea Baggers a way to play games, and oh but they will.

"I have a plan. It may be a dollar-a-year plan. But it's a plan. I don't have to join ACA"