<p>Ending spousal benefits could actually benefit the spouses if they would then qualify for subsidies.</p>
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<p>What we think of John Galt.</p>
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<p>There are a lot of working families making $100k who want their babies to get government help through financial aide. They don’t seem to mind.</p>
<p>That is a big if. </p>
<p>[Why</a> your boss is dumping your wife - MarketWatch](<a href=“http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-your-boss-is-dumping-your-wife-2013-02-22]Why”>Why your boss is dumping your wife - MarketWatch)</p>
<p>Financial aid and Medicaid aren’t exactly the same things.</p>
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<p>More than it cost last year, you mean? Presumably the rise in premium to cover the spouse would be the same as the rise to cover the employee. So does this mean that employer-based insurance for employee only is going up $1500 this year? That’s a higher number than I had heard, but it’s not an astounding number given increases in previous years.</p>
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<p>1/3 of families making between 30k and 65k are on some form of government assistance. It wouldn’t surprise me that Medicaid would be a better option for some children than private insurance. It was for me (but that was before you couldn’t not accept people for pre-existing conditions)</p>
<p>Medicaid is a program for the poor and not many doctors around here take it, those who do accept it do so grudgingly. Financial aid has problems obviously but it’s not the same thing.</p>
<p>No they aren’t. However, there is a definite stigma attached to getting Medicaid (and all things welfarish) that is obvious on these boards. Rather than a stigma attached to getting college welfare, there is more of an attitude of entitlement. If one is a government handout, the other one is too.</p>
<p>No, more than spouse coverage for year. So if covering employee is say, $6000, adding spouse will add an additional $1500 to premium costs for employer contribution (not employee additional contribution). </p>
<p>That is how I read it.</p>
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<p>but that is the point if ACA: effective next year, all workers 32+ hours/week will be offered coverage (or employers will pay a penalty). And singles can then go to the exchange. Spouses, too, if the husband’s company drops them from coverage.</p>
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<p>Huh? Not sure how they got to that number, which flies in the face of reason. </p>
<p>Our carrier charges an extra $500+/mo – $6k/yr – for spousal coverage. Addition of a spouse is slightly more than 1x the employee coverage. In other words, the total premium for a single employee is $6000/yr and ee+sp = $13k.</p>
<p>My employer has intentionally kept me below threshold each year. Also, I work for an employer that has excellent benefits for full time employees. </p>
<p>The simple thing would be to apply to a full time position within company, but they have not hired anyone full-time for my position for years. They have been cutting back since 2009, any my job may disappear in 2014, altogether. </p>
<p>I have not seen many part time jobs that offer 32 hours per week. That would be great.</p>
<p>Lerkin, I read the Fountainhead. Loved it. I owned Atlas Shrugged. Never read it. </p>
<p>I was a big Ayn Rand fan in my early 20’s. but then I got a job working at a stock exchange. ;)</p>
<p>I am a strong believer in individual rights, but there are societal rights too. Sometimes these rights conflict. I look at each issue and decide or I dont decide.</p>
<p>But you are right. I cant stand Ayn Rand. :)</p>
<p>A lot of people say that doctors don’t accept Medicaid, but if you ask the doctors it’s a different story. In Michigan, 95% of family medicine practitioners who are accepting new patients and 94% of internal medicine practitioners who are accepting new patients anticipate accepting new patients on Medicaid.</p>
<p>[More</a> on ?conventional wisdom? about Medicaid | The Incidental Economist](<a href=“http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/more-on-conventional-wisdom-about-medicaid/]More”>http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/more-on-conventional-wisdom-about-medicaid/)</p>
<p>Won’t having multiple plans (husband and kids, wife) also ratchet up the total family out of pocket? </p>
<p>“Family” (haha) policy OOP max of $12,700 PLUS wife policy of $6,350? Another way this mess is going to be unaffordable to middle class families - at least ours.</p>
<p>^absolutely…</p>
<p>My H’s employer fortunately still covers me as a spouse of a retiree. I’m hoping it will continue. My S finally is no longer on our plan, as he aged out at age 26. D is still covered until she turns 26 in slightly less than 2 years. H has not been charged anything extra for the kids being on the policy, other than we are on the ‘family’ plan, not the self plan. There is no plan specifically for employee or retiree and spouse, only self or family.</p>
<p>Our out of pocket max has gone from $2500/7500 to 3000/9000 (person/family). In the scheme of things, it still is quite reasonable and we are grateful.</p>
<p>Have heard docs are getting very tired and frustrated with Medicare AND all the EHR (electronic health records). Quite a few have said it is pushing them to retire sooner than they would have otherwise. My favorite allergist is NOT adopting electronic health records and will be not accepting Medicare or Medicaid patients because of it and will just accept the lower reimbursement from insurance. She says it is a major pain in the neck and she can never keep up with all the paperwork NOW–can’t see adding to it! She works past 8pm every night, trying to catch up with her charts NOW.</p>
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<p>Aren’t all Ayn Rand fans boys in their teens and early 20’s? It is a condition that people grow out of I’m told.</p>
<p>Electronic Health Records are bad for the doctors now, apparently because the same kind of incompetents who implemented the exchange websites also implemented EHR.</p>
<p>But Electronic Health Records are so good for patients. I love having my records online and accessible to me. I hope the people purchasing the EHR systems can get their acts together and demand good systems. If some UPS driver can use electronic records smoothly and flawlessly, so can doctors.</p>
<p>Yeah, you would think. But the incompetence is frightening.</p>