Let. It. Go.
Longtime readers may recall the sorry saga of California insurance agent Glenn Neasham, whose conviction on apparently trumped-up fraud charges was recently dismissed.Not content to lick her wounds and take the loss as an appropriate repudiation, Deputy Attorney General Hanna Chung is petitioning th…
Avoiding the Thanksgiving ObamaTax Rush
So it's come to this:"White House officials, fearful that the federal health care website may again be overwhelmed this weekend, have urged their allies to hold back enrollment efforts so the insurance marketplace does not collapse under a crush of new users."Which reminds me:Did y'all see that plea…
Thanksgiving Risk Parade
There's wild turkey (for the roaster, fryer or smoker) and then there's Wild Turkey (for the shot glass or the tumbler). While most of us are quite aware of the risks involved in preparing the former (salmonella, fire, etc), we shouldn't overlook the risks inherent in serving the latter.Margarita (h…
Health Co-Ops Never Had a Chance
"[T]hese co-ops, started as a great hope for lowering insurance costs, are already in danger, says the Washington Post." (Tip o' the hat to John Goodman at NCPA.)But wait. I sense something, a presence I've not felt since . . .. . . since January 4, 2013: "Turns out, the CO-OPs are now taking the…
Cavalcade of Risk #197: Happy Thanksgiving edition
Louise Norris hosts a very special Thanksgiving edition of the Cavalcade. She's done a terrific job of adding her own thoughts and context to each post. Kudos, Louise!! …
Government Motors Meets Obamacare
Our fleet of company vehicles is due for a major overhaul so today I am out car shopping. I’m looking at several different options because come January the prices of the cars are going up by 40%-80% and the selection of options for the vehicles will become extremely limited.Lucky for me President Ob…
![How many millions... [UPDATED]](http://sightspeople.com/data_images/pinocchio/pinocchio-06.jpg)
How many millions... [UPDATED]
Will lose their current plan? Turns out, those who thought that their employer-based coverage was sacrosanct are about to find out - the hard way - that it's not:"Almost 80 million people with employer health plans could find their coverage canceled because they are not compliant with [the ObamaTax]…
My new article is up...
At Answers.com:"Gap Filler insurance plans are a way to help mitigate the additional out-of-pocket expenses one may accrue due to co-pays and deductibles. They are often reasonably-priced, but it's important to compare different plans to see which, if any, fit your particular needs." …
Told ya so
As we pointed out nearly 2 weeks ago, it's one thing for Our Betters in Capital City to magnanimously proclaim that, despite what the ObamaTax law actually mandates, "if you like your policy you can keep it." T'is quite another to make that a reality:"It's one thing if an insurer erroneously cancels…
Monday Exchange Blues
Submitted by an anonymous reader:[Click to embiggen]Your tax dollars at work.UPDATE: Timing is everything. Here's the latest from Ms Shecantbeserious, courtesy of our friends at Cornerstone:All brokers – update on changes to ACA Individual Deadlines INDIVIDUAL ACA ANNOUNCEMENTS – DEADLINE CHANGES…
A simple solution for one of ACA's many problems...
Everybody that I've led through a CoveredCA application stumbles when they get to the subsidy section. The problem lies in the estimation of next year's income. The law asks you to predict the future and that's not possible to any degree of accuracy. California addresses the issue by requiring en…
$58, same as in town
In which we offer these two ObamaTax stories. Any perceived relationship is purely coincidental:"Dana Howard, the deputy director of California’s Healthcare Exchange program ... revealed that enrollment counselors are paid $58 for each individual they successfully enroll in the California’s insuranc…
My new article is up...
At Answers.com:"As with any insurance policy, a Critical Illness plan is a risk management tool. In this case, the risk is that one may suffer a major, life-threatening illness or condition and need additional funds to pay for unexpected costs associated with it." …
An Early Gift From The Obamacare Clan
After (or in spite of) all the "fumbling" and "glitches" the citizens of Obamanation have been granted a gift in the form of an extra 8 days to sign up for your new Obamapolicy.The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services — a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the parent of…
Cavalcade of Risk #197: Call for submissions
Jay Norris hosts next week's Cav. Entries are due by Monday (the 25th).To submit your risk-related post, just click here to email it.You'll need to provide:■ Your post's url and title■ Your blog's url and name■ Your name and email■ A (brief) summary of the postPLEASE remember: ONLY posts that r…
What's the rush?
Or to put it another way, "if you like your accounting rules, you can keep your accounting rules."Or maybe not.As we've been saying, the HC.gov train-wreck and the "Keep Your Policy" debacle are only the two most visible manifestations of the ObamaTax. Here's another (or three) to keep you up at nig…
A Modest Increase...
I was just looking over the list of my Anthem ACA plan replacements and came across this gem...Current Plan - Clear Protection Plus 5000 $548/mo.Replacement Plan - Anthem Core DirectAccess - CAAE $1563.63/mo.That's right. Their family premiums are going up by almost 300%...over $1000 per month. …
Health Wonk Review: Pre-Thanksgivukkah edition
Here's an interesting fact about this particular edition of the venerable HWR: it won't happen again for 78,000 years (at which time Julie will still be looking great, BTW).How's that, you ask?This year (2013/5774), the first night of Chanukah falls on Thanksgiving, and that happy (if confusing) con…
ObamaTax goes to the dogs (Literally!)
From the "You Can't Make This Up Department:"Fort Collins resident Shane Smith told KDVR he received a letter last week informing his dog,Baxter, that a health insurance account had been opened for the pup through Connect for Health Colorado."It seems that Mr Smith used his pet's name for one of the…
Unclear on the Concept
From the official Exchange Certification curriculum:Protecting InformationThere are three key elements to protecting information:Confidentiality: Protecting information from unauthorized disclosure to people or processes.In addition to protecting your computer and related systems, it is critical tha…
![One step forward, one step back [UPDATED]](http://blog.ketchum.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/1-forward-2-back.jpg)
One step forward, one step back [UPDATED]
For a certain value of "forward," of course:Thanks to FoIB Jeff M, we learn that the Tar Heel State Blues are willing to extend an olive branch to current policyholders:"Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) has fiIed the necessary documents with the North Carolina Department of Insu…
Got Cancer?
Got cancer? You may not want #Obamacare. Much has been said about "If you like your health insurance plan, you can keep it. Period".Not so much about "If you like your doctor, you can keep them. Period."Until now . . .Since March 2007 United Healthcare has paid $1.2 million to help keep me alive, …
My new article is up...
At Answers.com:"Annuities can be an effective cash accumulation tool, and offer tax advantages during both the accumulation and payout stages. They also offer the unique ability to provide a lifetime income stream." …
Sugar Daddy
With all the talk about high #Obamacare health insurance premiums (and subsidies offered then taken away), what if you had a sugar daddy to pay your premiums.Not the grand wealth redistribution taxpayer scheme dreamed up by DC, but a twist in the usual premium payer system.You may or may not know it…
![Success = Failure [STUNNING UPDATE]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/735f1c05796fe6f86b23e9c90ff938dc/tumblr_mp3coxSsfg1rgzhe0o1_500.jpg)
Success = Failure [STUNNING UPDATE]
[Scroll down for update - you won't might be sorry] Tthe ObamaTax and its chief enabler are having a no good, very bad week. The chief enabler's vaunted sidekick TOTUS was nowhere to be found, leaving the President to sob inconsolably continue to communicate his message of Hope and/or Change:"Repeat…
Substandard?
Although the original Evil Mandate meme was predicated on the (long discredited) comparison to mandatory auto insurance, perhaps the latter may serve as a useful tool for comparison to the latest drivel from Our Betters in Government©.The latest to weigh in on the matter is California Governor Mr Li…
The 80% Solution
So according to the Obamastration, up to 80% of those who try will succeed in signing up for their shiny new "metal" plan.That is, their metric for success is 80%.You know what had a better than 80% success rate?Our now extinct health care system.Exit question: so according to ObamaMath, if 80% of a…
The ObamaTax Coast-to-Coast
Say what you will about the ObamaTax "fix" - no, wait, that's not right: don't say one word about it, unless it's "kudos," as the (now former) DC Insurance Commish has learned:"Commissioner William P. White was notified Friday ... that his services are no longer needed ... White issued a press state…
Customer Service: How to do it right
So last night, the Better Half and I were shopping at our local Kroger's (grocery store) when two things happened:Her phone went off with a weather update - a Tornado Warning had been issued for our immediate area.And as we started to exit the store, the tornado sirens started going off.At that poin…
Calling All Agents
Anyone listening to the news over the last several years would think that the only way to buy your #Obamacare health insurance plan is through Obama's website.Yes, that would be the healthcare.guv we hear so much about.You can also visit with a #navigator that may be hanging out in the parking lot o…
Some additional thoughts on this past week
I share Bill's frustration, which is why I've been noodling two areas of concern regarding the current state of the train-wreck:First: while all the oxygen in the room is currently being sucked up by the disastrous roll-out of Healthcare.gov and the world-class ineptitude of the administration vis t…
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