OBAMACARE

luv4lacrosse
luv4lacrosse Member Posts: 1,410 Member

Has anyone here had their insurance cancelled, modified, ETC in a negative way? I have not yet, but my Oncologist says the ACA will definitely make it hard to stay profitable.

Hope you are all doing well.

So far so good with me, scans show tumors continue to shrink, but the long term side effects of the Taxotere are starting to stack up.

BEST

Mike

Comments

  • debbiejeanne
    debbiejeanne Member Posts: 3,102 Member
    mike, i haven't read about

    mike, i haven't read about any changes to date.  i'm sure they'll will be some but no sense in worrying, can't do anything.  i hear obama care will make it hard on all.

    sorry the side effects are stacking up on u.  i pray you have all u r go'n 2 get.  i pray the tumors continue to shrink and you feel well.  take care and God bless you.

    dj

  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    Good2Go

    I'm good to go to date... But I work for a municipality that is self insured...

    Glad to hear from you bro...

    JG

  • TracyLynn72
    TracyLynn72 Member Posts: 839
    Obamacare nightmare

    see, it rhymes.  I have signed up twice for the website that has crashed numerous times.  Even if you get a name/password, you can't access it.  It's been horrible.  I had one friend who actually got through and said that the pricing is NO different than if you just go to BCBS or another insurance's website and sign up there.  I have my one year of Medicaid (ends in March) and we have until March 31 to sign up.  Not sure if we are going to pay the penalty and not sign up or if they will even have the site up and running so that we CAN sign up.  Frustrating and scary. 

  • hrowe
    hrowe Member Posts: 57
    Wall St Journal article

    I read in the journal where a prostate cancer patient had his policy cancelled and the replacement policy through the California exchange does not have coverage for his current providers Frown

    Aetna is pulling out of California and will no longer provide individual policies.

    I'm in Cincinnati and have United Healthcare (at work) and Cigna as a secondary (wife). No issues with United Healthcare always paying for follow up CTs and PETs.

  • phrannie51
    phrannie51 Member Posts: 4,716
    I'm still being covered by

    my workplace, at least till my HSA runs out.  However, they did change insurance companies and I hear we have to take paperwork into all our Drs. because none of them are on the "list" of PPO's.  All I can do is hope they sign up and take this new company. 

    I tried to sign up for Obamacare, too....just to check the prices....after 12 or 15 attempts per day for a week, I finally got in far enough to know that I didn't want all that information on a site that didn't work, JUST TO SHOP.....so I quit trying.

    Too bad the gov'ment didn't just pick up the 15 or 20% uninsured, and leave the rest of us the hell alone....it's going to be damn scary come the first of the year, and people are suddenly uninsured and unable to get any either.

    p

  • connieprice1
    connieprice1 Member Posts: 300 Member
    First responder

    Hi Mike,  I will always be grateful to you for being the first to respond the first time I posted on CSN. I was worried sick when Connie (my wife) was diagnosed with stage IV cancer at the base of her tongue with 2 lymph nodes involved. Our lives were changed as soon as we got her diagnosis and it is not perfect today but I knew from that very first post that we would not be alone. I hated to hear that you are fighting round 2 with this sneaky back stabbing disease. I will say a prayer for you Mike but I wanted you to know when I first posted here, I didn't know if anyone would respond and just how excited I was when the responses from everyone here started rolling in. I don't know how I would haved coped with my wy wife's disease and my new job as a caregiver without all the HOPE that this network's members offered. You really look to be in great shape and I am hoping you deliver a KNOCKOUT punch this round!

                                                                                           Wishing you the Best, Homer & Connie

  • donfoo
    donfoo Member Posts: 1,771 Member
    hey mike!

    Glad to see your post and hear the cancer is in check. As to ACA in Calif, I just see that CA has a million of the 4 million cancellations. Seems awful high but no idea why. Tonight I saw a covered california TV ad, so the CA site must be holding up or they would have pulled the ad.

    Take care, don

  • debbiejeanne
    debbiejeanne Member Posts: 3,102 Member
    hrowe said:

    Wall St Journal article

    I read in the journal where a prostate cancer patient had his policy cancelled and the replacement policy through the California exchange does not have coverage for his current providers Frown

    Aetna is pulling out of California and will no longer provide individual policies.

    I'm in Cincinnati and have United Healthcare (at work) and Cigna as a secondary (wife). No issues with United Healthcare always paying for follow up CTs and PETs.

    hey, hrowe, i'm n cincinnati

    hey, hrowe, i'm n cincinnati too!!  we're neighbors.  just thot it was cool to have someone close to home....lol.

    God bless u.

    dj

  • Ladylacy
    Ladylacy Member Posts: 773 Member
    Obamacare

    Since both my husband and myself are on Medicare we are not affected so far.  But I'm sure that is coming down the road.  One thing I heard on TV was that in order to get the credit to help pay for your Obamacare health policy you have to do it thru Obamacare.  There are so many things out there that no one really knows what is going on.  I have read and heard of those who are loosing their health insurance at the end of Demember who are being treated for major illnesses like cancer and are loosing their doctors and cancer centers.

    What Obamacare has done is caused millions to lose their health care that they like and put millions on the taxpayer's dime.  Why not just bring down the cost of healthcare and make it more affordable to individuals to have healthcare.  All those that sign up for Obamacare, from what I have read, have a big deductible before their Obamacare policy will pay anything.  So while some may afford to have the healthcare policy they still can't afford to go to the doctor, have surgery, etc. because the deductible will have to be paid first.  My DIL told me that their deductible went up to $1,000 per person before insurance will pay.  Something they can't afford.  She is a school teacher and hasn't had a raise in several years but the cost of her health insurance went up along with the deductible.  One son says he can't afford to put his new wife on his company health plan because it would cost over $1,000 a month for the both of them. 

    I know I have to think about dropping my supplemental plan because the premium is getting out of hand.  People think that when you are on Medicare you get it for free.  What a laugh.  We have to pay for Medicare, a supplemental plan (if you want something to pick up what Medicare doesn't pay or else you have to pay it yourself) and the prescription drug plan.  I pay, for me alone, right at $400 a month.   Yes there are the Medicare Advantage Programs but you have a co-pay for everything and many doctors don't like them just like many don't like the HMO plans and are turning away patients who are on HMO's/Medicare.  I know during my husband's cancer fight, we have paid out of pocket a lot of money for his radiation, chemo, surgery, doctor visits, etc. because he is on a Medicare Advantage Program.  I am just thankful that I took out an AFLAC cancer policy before I retired and he was diagnosed.  That policy has been the difference for us. 

    Sharon

  • jim and i
    jim and i Member Posts: 1,788 Member
    I have no healthcare so I am

    I have no healthcare so I am looking forward to some affordable Healthcare. Jim is on Medicare, so far no problems other than Most of his doctors have quit accepting United Healthcare so we have changed to Humana. All his doctors are on there. I don;t have that problem, being self pay, I any doctor takes cash, if I can afford their rates.

    Debbie

  • hwt
    hwt Member Posts: 2,328 Member
    jim and i said:

    I have no healthcare so I am

    I have no healthcare so I am looking forward to some affordable Healthcare. Jim is on Medicare, so far no problems other than Most of his doctors have quit accepting United Healthcare so we have changed to Humana. All his doctors are on there. I don;t have that problem, being self pay, I any doctor takes cash, if I can afford their rates.

    Debbie

    Mike

    Thanks for posting...been thinking of you. My husband is retired and I am on his company plan. No changes announced yet. 

    Stay strong!

    Candi

  • Lisams
    Lisams Member Posts: 4
    Mike - Obamacare

    Hey Mike,

    Great news on the shrinking tumors! Keep working out and stay strong.  

    My nightmare with California obamacare will begin soon. My employer cancelled my coverage effective January 1st. After 20 years !  

    I just found out last week my cancer is back... Here we go, round three! I am setting up second treatment opinions with UCSF and Mayo clinic, when all is set I am going to find coverage, thanks for opening up the discussion. I need all the info I can get :)

    Take care,

    Lisa

  • Duggie88
    Duggie88 Member Posts: 760 Member
    Mike

    Our government just plain F’d up. When people make up rules they don’t have to follow and can’t comprehend situations they may have created and ones they will never suffer through,  creates a scratch your head scenario for them.  Kinda like when some college grad gets a job with a company over seeing truck drivers and he never drove a truck before but because he is self-proclaimed educated in the field he f’s the whole system up. I feel the whole ACA thing was set up to fail. That being said , who will suffer? Not the bone heads that created it. That’s all I gotta say about that because it is too early in the morning to get my blood pressure so high.

    Enjoy the day

          Jeff

  • donfoo
    donfoo Member Posts: 1,771 Member
    Duggie88 said:

    Mike

    Our government just plain F’d up. When people make up rules they don’t have to follow and can’t comprehend situations they may have created and ones they will never suffer through,  creates a scratch your head scenario for them.  Kinda like when some college grad gets a job with a company over seeing truck drivers and he never drove a truck before but because he is self-proclaimed educated in the field he f’s the whole system up. I feel the whole ACA thing was set up to fail. That being said , who will suffer? Not the bone heads that created it. That’s all I gotta say about that because it is too early in the morning to get my blood pressure so high.

    Enjoy the day

          Jeff

    Damn Jeff

    >>That’s all I gotta say about that because it is too early in the morning to get my blood pressure so high.<<

    You are something. You just couldn't resist cutting the gas line and lighting a stogie. Between the technology problems and likely structural issues, it is like an elephant being propped up by some bamboo struts. LOL

  • Mikemetz
    Mikemetz Member Posts: 465 Member
    The good side of Obamacare

    I have read the horror stories about the website, and understand that many people will be negatively effected with changes in providers and costs, but there are two parts of Obamacare that are big pluses.  First, insurance companies can't turn people down for past or current conditions, which all cancer patients/survivors now have.  So, if you move or change jobs, you can be covered as before.  Second, Obamacare eliminates the caps on paid benefits.  My cap was $1 million and I reached that amount in just the first three years of my HNC treatments.  I am looking at a jaw replacement early in 2014.  6-8 doctors, 10-12 hours in the OR, 1 week in intensive care, another week or so in the hospital, and another year of added treatments to follow.  Who knows what the bills are going to be for that, and they would be out of pocket for me and my wife if my policy's cap was still in place.  Until I am eligible for Medicare in four years, I can easily see my bills adding up to another $1 million.

    Obamacare is far from perfect, but it ain't a complete disaster, either--as far as I'm concerned.

    Mike

  • jtl
    jtl Member Posts: 456
    Expensive

    I spent way too much time trying to get into the site and get a quote for my wife.  I finally succeeded after 3 weeks and many attempts.  She currently has a BCBS policy and they increased her rate by $80 to $495.  She has never been sick and just turned 58.  I figured there may be a cheaper alternative.  What I discovered is the cost depends a lot on where you live and FL is not cheap.  For a comparable policy albeit a much higher out of pocket limit she would pay a $100 more per month.  We don't qualify for any subsidies and from what I have been reading that is where people are finding some decent rates.  Although if you are not paying anything currently even with subsidies it ain't cheap.  A recent poll of MD's showed that an alarming number are very concerned about Obamacare to the point of considering whether it is worth accepting patients.  It is a combination of rates and the burdensome paperwork.  Some are also considering not accepting Medicare and Medicaid.  I am on Medicare with a very good supplement underwritten by United Healthcare.  This is what they refer to as "Medi-gap" not to be confused with a Medicare Advantage Plan which I will never purchase.  The latter is basically an HMO and in most but not all cases you must use their network.  None of my Docs are even in the plans offer in this area.  A Medi-gap policy is nothing more than insurance for the copays and deductibles that are included in all Medicare policys.  They do not make any medical decisions, that is all up to Medicare and if Medicare pays, they pay.  As long as the provider accepts Medicare everything is fine. 

    Personally, I think Obamacare is a disaster and will possibly increase the number of uninsured not to mention the cost to taxpayers.  My reasons are numerous and lengthy so I won't bother with details.

  • Crazymom
    Crazymom Member Posts: 339 Member
    good news

    glad the tumours are still shrinking...my next scan is on the 18th....Ann