Now that Ted Cruz has finished wasting nearly 22 hours of his life discussing green eggs and ham and Whitecastle, let’s talk about the bomb the Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS) dropped today.
According to a new report from the DHHS, premiums will be even lower than recent predictions which were already low.
via ThinkProgress
In the 36 states where the federal government supports or fully runs the Health Insurance Marketplace, a 27-year old who does not qualify for tax credits will pay, on average, $163 for a plan that covers approximately 60 percent of health care expenses (a so-called bronze-level plan), while a 27-year-old with an income of $25,000 could pay $83 dollars per-month after subsidies. Individuals up to 30 years old will also have the option of buying cheaper catastrophic coverage outside of the marketplaces, though they will not qualify for subsidies. A family of four in Texas with an income of $50,000 would pay as little as “$57 per month for the lowest bronze plan after tax credits,” the report finds.
It will vary on a person to person basis, but there’s a very high chance that if you currently purchase insurance for yourself or your family, you will be able to find similar or equal coverage on the exchange for significantly less money.
The only bad news is that a significant number of states have refused to expand Medicaid which will leave some of the poorest among us without a viable option.
I expect pressure will mount on these states shortly after the new year when coverage for millions of previously-uninsured people begins and Obamacare is officially the status quo.
Some governors and state legislators may still be holding out a faint hope that Senator Mike Lee and his Coalition of the Willing will be able to stop Obamacare.