<p>“The so-called “insurance” they had before ACA is not available any more because it is junk.”</p>
<p>“Some of the insurance was junk.”</p>
<p>Just caught up with the thread and I noticed these two canards. At least we are going from all to some of the insurance prior to Obamacare. I would take my pre-Obamacare insurance over the exchange-neutered policies in a NY minute. A stunted network and formulary which cost a fortune and limit your choices are my definition of junk. </p>
<p>I love how the examples of people getting screwed by Obamacare are almost causing a nervous breakdown on this thread. Fasten your seatbelt because there is a lot more coming.</p>
<p>GP, why are you having a breakdown about the tales? Nearly all end with insufficient info, no clarity. We keep making that point. A couple of really good examples would give us something serious to chew on. Vetted stories.</p>
<p>I don’t think telling people, who think they are worse off today than they were pre-Obamacare, that they are liars or don’t know what they are talking about is an effective way of defending Obamacare. This is a surefire way of creating even more dissent.</p>
<p>Federal law requires that Medicaid be honored across state lines, and that physicians who accept medicaid in one state submit billings to and accept payment from the patient’s home state.</p>
<p>I know because I had to research this in December. My son and I were planning to travel to Texas to spend the holidays with my father, but my grandson broke his leg four days before the scheduled flight. My son got clearance to travel from the orthopedist, but was concerned about what would happen if my grandson needed medical service for any reason while we were traveling – and my grandson is on Medicaid. So I checked – I found at least 3 urgent care clinics that were located near my father’s home and said that they accepted Medicaid – and I found the law that made it clear that they would have to accept my grandson’s Medicaid from Washington. (Of course, it didn’t; really matter - if my grandson had needed medical help, my father and I would have handed over our credit cards if necessary – no way would we let grandson suffer! But it definitely was reassuring to my son to know that grandson was covered.)</p>
<p>Now of course none of that means that a given doctor or facility is required to accept Medicaid. I had been worried at first that maybe it would be hard to find doctors who took Medicaid in Texas, but that turned out not to be a problem at all-- at least based on info on the internet. Of course I have no idea in practice what it would have meant to visit any one of those urgent care clinics, since we never actually had to use them. (Obviously we could have encountered long wait times or been frustrated with the quality of care – but that’s an issue that would exist for travelers with or without Medicaid). </p>
<p>It may be, I don’t know. If it is, I suspect it’s more that it’s illegal for a physician to charge money to a Medicaid patient.</p>
<p>However, it is certainly not illegal to decline to enroll in Medicaid, and to either buy insurance instead, or pay cash for medical care instead. If this family of seven didn’t want to enroll in Medicaid, they could have bought insurance or paid cash, if they could afford to do either of those things. Where did this family live?</p>
<p>Let’s be frank . It’s just us. There are some stupid people out there. </p>
<p>I dont know which is my favorite. I think this is…</p>
<p>"Jeff and Victoria Haidet of North Carolina had been in a high risk pool, an expensive form of coverage for those with serious health problems, but found ObamaCare even more expensive.</p>
<p>“We were a little shocked to see that one come back at even higher rate than what our high risk insurance pool was. That rate came back at$950 a month for the policy, which had higher deductibles than what we had in the high risk pool,” Jeff said."</p>
<p>Explain the above to me GP…
First off they have to buy a high risk policy. Didn 't those plans exist because of the government?</p>
<p>Then they complain because one plan came back with a higher price? </p>
<p>What about other plans? There is just one. ;)</p>
<p>It’s illegal for a doctor who accepts Medicaid to demand cash or extra payment from a patient who is on Medicaid.</p>
<p>The legal restrictions are tied into the contract to accept Medicaid: that is, if the doctor wants to be able to bill Medicaid for 1 patient, he has to abide by the Medicaid rules for all. </p>
<p>It is not illegal for a doctor who does not accept Medicaid to be paid cash to see a patient who is on Medicaid. </p>
<p>However, under the old, asset-based rules for qualifying for Medicaid, it is possible that a patient who had the ability to pay cash for a large medical bill could have been guilty of Medicaid fraud. That is, if the patient walked in and wanted to pay $10,000 for cosmetic surgery – questions would come up as to where that $10K came from.</p>
<p>For someone who gets Medicaid under income-based rules of ACA, probably not an issue. It is quite plausible that an older individual might have significant reserves in savings, but have an income small enough to qualify for Medicaid. I’m using the example of cosmetic surgery because that is also the type of setting where a Medicaid-eligible patient might end up paying cash for a procedure that isn’t covered – and I certainly can see the possibility of some semi-retired 62 year old deciding she wants to [fix</a> her droopy eyelids.](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1618829-blepharoplasty.html]fix”>Blepharoplasty? - Parent Cafe - College Confidential Forums)</p>
<p>“She needed affordable health insurance but there was none available. There was no Affordable Care Act at that time.
Undoubtedly, had it been available, she would have applied. She would not have been denied access because of a pre-existing condition. She would have then had an insurance plan that covered her needs, not a wee fraction of them.
Perhaps she would still be alive.
Perhaps.”</p>
<p>This Chico, California newspaper article details the problem with very low reimbursement rates from Medicaid and Obamacare plans.</p>
<p>"Obamacare is counting on the doctors to say, “Oh, screw it. I’ll see them. The costs are going up, up, up, and they’re going to stick it to the docs and hospitals.”</p>