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Year-end LinkFest
Year-end LinkFest

Sliding in just under the wire:■ Given this:"According to the Obama administration, more than two million people have enrolled in health insurance plans through the federal and state exchanges"Here's the $64,000 question: How many have actually, you know, paid for their coverage?Here's a hint:"[O]ff…

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31Dec2013


Year-end chat with DOI
Year-end chat with DOI

In an InsureBlog exclusive, we present a year-end wrap-up of some of the ACA-related issues being dealt with by the Ohio Department of Insurance. Public Information Officer Robert Denhard was kind enough to answer some of our questions:What are you hearing from insurers regarding receiving data on …

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30Dec2013


Hasta la VISTA, baby!
Hasta la VISTA, baby!

Perfect:"The Obama administration has told Vista volunteers and other AmeriCorps workers that their government-provided health coverage does not measure up to the standards of the [ObamaTax], and that they may be subject to financial penalties unless they obtain insurance elsewhere."So the governmen…

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27Dec2013


My new article is up...
My new article is up...

at Answers.com:"When a business must temporarily close its doors due to damage to or destruction of business property, Business Interruption insurance coverage pays for business income lost while the property is rebuilt. This coverage is intended to help keep the company in business while recovery i…

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27Dec2013


Overseas ObamaTax Conundrum
Overseas ObamaTax Conundrum

So, had a client stop by yesterday with a very intriguing question:His daughter is a US citizen, but is a full time student in, and permanent resident of, Italy. He is himself Italian, but has lived in the US for over 40 years. He's also retired and on Medicare, so she can't be on his plan.He came b…

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27Dec2013


Interactive ObamaTax Premium Map
Interactive ObamaTax Premium Map

While Ms Shecantbeserious & Friends continue flailing around with the train-wreck of a website, and keep extending deadlines like there's no tomorrow [ed: heh], the folks at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have produced an interactive map of actual premiums. As they note in email:"In just over half of …

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26Dec2013


Thoughts about the President's enrollment in Obamacare
Thoughts about the President's enrollment in Obamacare

The Washington Post reported that on Monday, December 23 President Obama enrolled in a Bronze-level Obamacare plan.  Obama promised early on that he would enroll in Obamacare, and apparently expects the public to view his enrollment as an act of leadership.  But keep in mind Obama a…

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26Dec2013


Attention Obamacare Shoppers
Attention Obamacare Shoppers

Having difficulty signing up for #Obamacare? You aren't the only one.“Somebody who’s not waiting in line to enroll is the president of the United States. We learned today from the White House. Initially, they said he signed up for what they called a bronze plan, paying about four hundred dollars a m…

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26Dec2013


Merry Christmas from InsureBlog
Merry Christmas from InsureBlog

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24Dec2013


Still Sneaky
Still Sneaky

So the stealth deadline extension was apparently put in place to facilitate the President's own enrollment:"According to a White House official, the president enrolled in the District of Columbia marketplace and selected from among the lowest-cost options available."Well of course: it's his money, n…

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23Dec2013


Import from The Sceptered Isle?
Import from The Sceptered Isle?

Last Friday (Dec 20) David Prior,  the chairman of the NHS Care Quality Commission, said NHS quality and patient service are “wholly unsatisfactory.”   Among other things, Prior emphasized that NHS can no longer be treated as a “national religion” in which service reached the brink of crisis because…

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23Dec2013


Sneaky (as usual) [UPDATED]
Sneaky (as usual) [UPDATED]

Even when they're doing something "good," the Obamastration just can't do things honestly. To wit:"...without any public announcement, Obama administration officials have changed the rules so that people will have an extra day to enroll"If it's such a great, altruistically-driven idea, then why the …

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23Dec2013


Deadline Day
Deadline Day

 [Click picture to embiggen] [Hat Tip: FoIB Holly R] …

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23Dec2013


Obamacare Pitchman?
Obamacare Pitchman?

Obamacare is ailing. Young invincibles are not signing up. Old and sick are opting for coverage in droves. Michelle is promoting Obamacare in your Christmas stocking instead of candy.Talk about getting a lump of coal.Now comes word about the latest push for #Obamacare enrollees.Washington’s new heal…

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23Dec2013


My new article is up...
My new article is up...

At Answers.com:"Buy-sell agreements are tools businesses use to ensure that there is a smooth transition should one of the owners die: an orderly transfer of ownership, a mutually agreed upon sales price and terms of sale, and stability for customers, staff and creditors." …

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22Dec2013


Stupid Government Tricks [UPDATED & BUMPED]
Stupid Government Tricks [UPDATED & BUMPED]

[Please scroll down for update]From the Now-They're-Just-Making-(Stuff)-Up Department:So yesterday, with 4 days to go until "The Deadline" (until they change it again, natch), the folks in Capital City have declared that those sub-par plans are okay, after all, at least when they're bought through t…

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20Dec2013


Trick Question below
Trick Question below

Q: When is a subpar plan not a subpar plan?A:  When I change my mind. …

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20Dec2013


Exchange Nightmare
Exchange Nightmare

Anyone remember Phil Conners? You know the weatherman in the movie Groundhog Day. He's a guy I can relate to.Loyal readers may remember my post about Jane. She was the lady who is a cancer survivor, exhausted her COBRA, then had to go bare for six months before PCIP would begin. However, the Governm…

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20Dec2013


CavRisk 2013/2014 Transition
CavRisk 2013/2014 Transition

For the first time in its 7 1/2 year history, the next Cav would fall on Christmas Day. So we'll be skipping that edition, and picking back up on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 at Michael Stack's place.May your Holidays be warm and wonderful, and we'll see y'all next year! …

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20Dec2013


Sugar Daddy - Part II
Sugar Daddy - Part II

Last month, Bob posted on the "news" that some hospitals, looking to bolster potential losses, have begun considering "supporting premium payments and cost-sharing obligations with respect to qualified health plans purchased by patients in the Marketplaces." The idea is that the hospitals (or other …

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19Dec2013


Yes, Virginia, there IS a Health Wonk Review
Yes, Virginia, there IS a Health Wonk Review

Julie Ferguson hosts this year's final round-up of health care bloggetry, with a wonderful Christmas-themed HWR. Come for Jolly Ol' St Nick, stay for the terrific insights. …

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19Dec2013


Annnd...They fold
Annnd...They fold

Like cheap furniture:"Members of America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) have agreed voluntarily that insurers will extend the payment deadline for exchange plans that start Jan. 1 to Jan. 10."Of course this wasn't "voluntary" at all:"They can't even give this stuff away and now they are attempting …

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18Dec2013


Wednesday Afternoon Linkfest
Wednesday Afternoon Linkfest

As I observed to a friend this morning, the silver lining (such as it is) to the ObamaTax is an embarrassment of riches, blog-fodder-wise.  To wit:■ First up, looks like 'staycations' will be the new normal going forward:"As Americans realize they must pay for all non-emergency medical care when the…

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18Dec2013


Widespread Panic
Widespread Panic

Way back in the 60's the question was posed, "What if they gave a war and nobody came?". That was then. This is now.HHS wakes up this morning asking, "What if we gave away free health insurance and nobody bought?".As The New American reported, however, of the nearly 365,000 who have selected plans o…

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18Dec2013


My new article is up...
My new article is up...

At Answers.com:"Finding adequate disability income insurance if one is in a high risk field or has a serious but non-disabling health condition can be challenging. Fortunately, there are plans available to fit almost every need, and can be structured to be affordable." …

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18Dec2013


Real, or PhotoShop?
Real, or PhotoShop?

[No fair clicking through before guessing] …

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17Dec2013


Cheese, Louise
Cheese, Louise

Via The Corner at NRO, here are some results of two polls that aren’t likely to get much  attention in the media – at least, not side by side.One poll was conducted by Washington Post/ABC News [WAPO] and was released Tuesday December 17, 2013.  The other poll was conducted by Public Policy Polling […

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17Dec2013


#Obamacareinthreewords
#Obamacareinthreewords

The White House tweeted this little gem today and used the hashtag #obamacareinthreewords. The three words they used...Saving People Money. Many of us have seen our premiums increase by 30% to 50% since 2010. If I paid $10,000 in premiums back in 2010 and now pay $15,000 in 2014, under the MLR rule …

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17Dec2013


Riddle me this...
Riddle me this...

So someone plays "Stump the Navigator" (admittedly a very low bar), and then, using her Google-fu, tracks down an online copy of the Navigator's Handbook. So far, so good.Turns out, though, that the document in question - a training manual for folks who will have access to your most private health a…

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17Dec2013


Proceeding apace... [UPDATED]
Proceeding apace... [UPDATED]

So you may have seen this story floating around the 'net:"[A] House Oversight and Government Reform Committee ... has found that Obamacare Navigators have been giving Americans misinformation and, in some cases, actively encouraging enrollees to commit fraud in order to raise their subsidies."Of cou…

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16Dec2013


Gaming the system: We *may* have a winner
Gaming the system: We *may* have a winner

Last month, FoIB Dr Stuart Fickler posed a challenge:"It appears to me that a system as complex as Obamacare is vulnerable to a vast range of gaming.  To be clear, I am not referring to just the computer aspects of the system, but the entire system, from applying to delivery of the care itself ...  …

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16Dec2013


This Sceptered Isle, Part MMXIII
This Sceptered Isle, Part MMXIII

Warning - this is not easy reading.  These are some findings contained in three reports released in Britain December 11th, together with other reports released earlier,  regarding the performance of Britain’s NHS:(1)  a quarter of new mothers were abandoned by their midwives during labour, with some…

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15Dec2013


Healthcare.flub
Healthcare.flub

Actual photo, Saturday, 12/14/13 …

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14Dec2013


Unsurprising
Unsurprising

This is not a photoshop:Top. Men. And, of course, Ms Shecantbeserious. …

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13Dec2013
 
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