The Conservatives (with the Insurers help) attack on affordable health care in MN is at it again.

[glinda]

My husband and I pay for my HC Insurance from his retirement account Right now it is roughly $90 less than it was before the Affordable Care Act but of course has crept up every year! It used to be nearly $200 less! Well here we go again! They, along with a few other insurers want to raise individual and some group rates as much as over %50. %50!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF! So we will have to try to find $1000/mo?????????????????????????
This State is getting strong armed by the low lifes that rode in on minimal votes. I am just about to scream.
Anyone else maybe affected by this here?

http://bringmethenews.com/11950879/


and
http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/06/03/health-plan-rate-hikes?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+MPR_NewsFeatures+%28News+%26+Features+from+Minnesota+Public+Radio%29

[progree]

1. My ACA rate went up 12.4% from 2014 to 2015,

from $373 to $419/mo (those are unsubsidized rates). For a single individual. I don't know what 2016 will bring, but the articles on coming rate increases are frightening

[glinda]

2. I went from $300 something upon to nearly $500 and had to have a $7000 deductible.

It is obvious to me that the intention is pressure on the ACA and greed.

[dflprincess]

4. Except the companies that have made the request are the non-profits that are on the MN Sure exchange

Not that their corporate officers don't make nice livings but they are no where in the Stephan Hemsley (UnitedHealth's CEO) range and these companies have no shareholders to appease.

I think they all low balled their costs in 2014 expecting that a lot more healthy, young ones would sign up for individual policies but that didn't happened and they wound up with a population that was older and/or sicker than they expected. (These rate increases don't affect employer group policies).

The only good thing is, they have to justify their rate increases to the Commerce Departments (for profits don't have to do this). It is expected that they increases are going to be awful but that the Commerce Department won't give them everything they want.

In the end though, this is just another argument for single payer.

[glinda]

5. The people affected are people that already have no company HC and usually are not old enough for

Medicare. BCBS is one of those Companies demanding a large increase. As they raised mine they also forced me onto a higher deductible. They are also trying to force me onto the other part of BCBS that is notorious for not covering prescriptions or procedures. I have no sympathy for them or their CEOs. None. Nada. I have no job. I am old and unemployed. The money to buy our health insurance some from my husband's retirement fund investment. It actually is not even enough to cover my monthly Premium. So someone tell me how singling out people like me, stuck having to pay my own way, does not hurt me or anyone in my position.

[dflprincess]

7. I was not implying they needed our sympathy

the CEOs at the non-profits are making very healthy livings but I've worked at both for and non-profits and there is a very big difference not only in the work environment but in how they view the customers --- not that the products are not still over priced at the non-profits.

In the end both the for profits and non-profits are slitting their own throats as they are going to leave the states with no option but to look at more public programs (meaning single payer) and that can't happen too soon.

[glinda]

8. They are slitting the throats of people more than they will feel any pain.

I have lost all hope in humans as of late. I watch as they are greedy and swirl around on minor issues while the species turn to gelatin in the oceans. I really have reached the end of any compassion for certain ones. I hear what you say but they really don't give a shit.
I am done making excuses for them.

[the_sly_pig]

3. predators. profiteers.

Making money on the sick. Doctors and surgeons are also complicit.

[glinda]

6. yup