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ObamaCare-what a deal-eh?
From today's Chronicle: Basically, ObamaCare penalizes smokers by allowing insurance companies to charge a 50%premium "penalty" for smokers.
A glitch involving President Barack Obama's health care law means smokers may get at least some relief next year from tobacco-use penalties that could have made their premiums unaffordable.
In yet another health care overhaul delay, the administration has notified insurers that a computer system problem will limit penalties that the law says the companies may charge smokers. A fix will take at least a year.
Older smokers are more likely to benefit from the glitch, experts say. But depending on how insurers respond to it, it's also possible that younger smokers could wind up facing higher penalties than they otherwise would have.
'Temporary' problem
Some see an emerging pattern of last-minute switches and delays as the administration scrambles to prepare the Oct. 1 launch of new health insurance markets for people who don't have job-based insurance.
Last week, the White House unexpectedly announced a one-year postponement of a provision in the law that requires larger employers to offer coverage or face fines.
The smokers' glitch is "a temporary circumstance" that won't delay the Oct. 1 opening of the marketplaces, Health and Human Services spokeswoman Joanne Peters said in a statement.
Starting in 2014, the law requires insurance companies to accept all applicants regardless of pre-existing medical problems. But it also lets them charge smokers up to 50 percent higher premiums - a way for insurers to ward off bad risks.
For an older smoker, the cost of the full penalty could be prohibitive.
Premiums for a standard "silver" insurance plan would be about $9,000 a year for a 64-year-old nonsmoker, according to the online Kaiser Health Reform Subsidy Calculator. That's before any tax credits, available on a sliding scale based on income.
For a smoker of the same age, the full 50 percent penalty would bring it to nearly $13,600. And new tax credits available to help pay premiums cannot be used to offset the penalty.
Age range a factor
The underlying reason for the glitch is another provision in the health care law that says insurers can't charge older customers more than three times what they charge the youngest adults in the pool. The government's computer system has been unable to accommodate the two.
The administration is suggesting that insurers limit the penalties across all age groups, using the example of a 20 percent penalty for young and old alike.
Smokers in the two age groups can still be charged different penalties, but if the total of premiums and penalties is more than three times greater for older smokers, the system is set up to kick it out.
NICE HOW OBAMACARE TREATS SMOKERS-WHAT ABOUT CANCER PATIENTS-CAN THEY INCREASE THEIR PREMIUMS TOO SO THEY ARE NOT AFFORDABLE, THEN GET HIT WITH THE IRS TAX/PENALTY? OBAMA AND HIS POLICIES ARE CORRUPT AND HE SHOULD BE IN PRISON.
A glitch involving President Barack Obama's health care law means smokers may get at least some relief next year from tobacco-use penalties that could have made their premiums unaffordable.
In yet another health care overhaul delay, the administration has notified insurers that a computer system problem will limit penalties that the law says the companies may charge smokers. A fix will take at least a year.
Older smokers are more likely to benefit from the glitch, experts say. But depending on how insurers respond to it, it's also possible that younger smokers could wind up facing higher penalties than they otherwise would have.
'Temporary' problem
Some see an emerging pattern of last-minute switches and delays as the administration scrambles to prepare the Oct. 1 launch of new health insurance markets for people who don't have job-based insurance.
Last week, the White House unexpectedly announced a one-year postponement of a provision in the law that requires larger employers to offer coverage or face fines.
The smokers' glitch is "a temporary circumstance" that won't delay the Oct. 1 opening of the marketplaces, Health and Human Services spokeswoman Joanne Peters said in a statement.
Starting in 2014, the law requires insurance companies to accept all applicants regardless of pre-existing medical problems. But it also lets them charge smokers up to 50 percent higher premiums - a way for insurers to ward off bad risks.
For an older smoker, the cost of the full penalty could be prohibitive.
Premiums for a standard "silver" insurance plan would be about $9,000 a year for a 64-year-old nonsmoker, according to the online Kaiser Health Reform Subsidy Calculator. That's before any tax credits, available on a sliding scale based on income.
For a smoker of the same age, the full 50 percent penalty would bring it to nearly $13,600. And new tax credits available to help pay premiums cannot be used to offset the penalty.
Age range a factor
The underlying reason for the glitch is another provision in the health care law that says insurers can't charge older customers more than three times what they charge the youngest adults in the pool. The government's computer system has been unable to accommodate the two.
The administration is suggesting that insurers limit the penalties across all age groups, using the example of a 20 percent penalty for young and old alike.
Smokers in the two age groups can still be charged different penalties, but if the total of premiums and penalties is more than three times greater for older smokers, the system is set up to kick it out.
NICE HOW OBAMACARE TREATS SMOKERS-WHAT ABOUT CANCER PATIENTS-CAN THEY INCREASE THEIR PREMIUMS TOO SO THEY ARE NOT AFFORDABLE, THEN GET HIT WITH THE IRS TAX/PENALTY? OBAMA AND HIS POLICIES ARE CORRUPT AND HE SHOULD BE IN PRISON.
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