Healthcare.gov

So I did it.  I went to Healthcare.gov and checked out available "Silver" level plans for my household, an ordinary nuclear family of four (4).  Holy cow.  In Virginia there are seven (7) available choices in that tier, not including dental.  The premiums range from $803/month to $875/month with annual deductibles between $7,000 and $3,000, respectively.  Presently my family, between the two (2) Optima policies (including MetLife or Delta Dental) incur roughly $7,000 in premiums between us.

Consider that my wife and I would be INELIGIBLE for assistance because, well, we make too much money to qualify for a subsidy.  WAY too much.  Even by myself (single-earner income) it would be well above the subsidy cutoff.  So that's good, right?

Not exactly. Obama SWORE that if you liked your plan you could keep it.  Well, nobody has taken my plan from me, but my out-of pocket costs have skyrocketed in the past couple of years, from an annual deductible of $100 to $500.  My wife's plan has gone from a $300 deductible just four years ago to a $1,000 annual deductible.  These numbers are not sustainable for families or small businesses.  If our children get sick we have to decide whether or not to get them the urgent care they may need, based solely on cost.  That is unfair both to us and especially to our children.

I get it.  He wanted to provide for people who didn't have healthcare available through their workplace.  That's fine.  But to violate the free-market economy by price-fixing and gouging, well that's not just disingenuous, it is criminal.  My wife and I would LOVE to make it so she doesn't have to work anymore, but there is no way we could afford healthcare for ourselves (much less our children) if she decided to take some time off.  Absolutely no way.

This healthcare debacle has jeopardized America's ability to get quality care at reasonable prices.  Instead of being able to visit a doctor and get qualified medical advice WHENEVER someone feels like it, they will have to balance that decision against their financial situation and decide whether a roof over their head or food on their table is more important than medical care.

I urge anyone who may read this to go to the government-run website and see for yourself.  You can shop plans without entering any critical personal information (it asks for the ages of household members and estimated income; no names, no ID numbers) and come to your own conclusions.  My conclusion is that for the cheerleaders out there still touting this as some kind of magic potion that will cure the ills of society, it isn't.  It will certainly level he playing field - by making health insurance yet another "graduated" tax which punishes producers and rewards consumers.