Health vs. Wealth

My family never had health insurance growing up. In fact, I never had health insurance until I graduated from college, and got my first professional job. We only saw a doctor if we were really, really sick and even then we just went to a clinic. Now I work at a place that pays 100% of my health insurance costs, and I try never to forget just how fortunate I am.  Medical debt is one of the top causes of bankruptcy in America. People can work their entire lives, and then just like that – one medical crisis can put them into staggering debt.

So because of my experience, I supported the Affordable Care Act (commonly referred to as ObamaCare).  The Affordable Care Act prevents those with pre-existing medical conditions from being denied health insurance, eliminates co-pays for preventative care, and allows young adults to stay on their parents’ coverage until 26 years of age. 

The Affordable Care Act also mandates that people who don’t have insurance pay a fee called the individual shared responsibility payment.  When non-insured people get sick, they often visit the emergency room, and that drives up costs for the rest of us who DO have insurance.  The fee is a way to offset those costs – it makes people who don’t have insurance “share responsibility” for higher costs. Individuals who have health insurance will no longer have to indirectly pay for emergency visits from individuals who aren’t insured.

I never thought too much about this fee until I did my taxes last week.  That’s when I discovered that if I didn’t have health insurance for any month throughout the year, I would need to pay the fee.  The fee is determined either by person - $695/per person, or by income – 2.5% of your income.  The kicker is that you pay whichever fee is higher.  So a person making $50,000/year would pay $1,250 for not having health insurance for the entire year.  I don’t know about you, but 2.5% of my income seemed kind of high to me – until I saw that my health insurance costs for the year were over three times that amount!  All of a sudden, the fee didn’t seem that bad.

Still, the Affordable Care Act has not been without controversy. Republicans feel it hurts employers because it requires companies with over 50 employees to provide health insurance to their employees.  Opponents to the new law also feel it amounts to over-reaching by the federal government – essentially saying it is not the federal government’s job to mandate healthcare for all citizens - hence, the "socialist" label we discussed in class last week.

So my question to you this week is, “What do you think of the Affordable Care Act?  Do you support or oppose it and why?”  You must answer both questions for full credit.  Whether you like it or not, this issue directly affects you – and one way or another you will soon be paying for healthcare costs, if you’re not already.  Answers are due no later than Wednesday, February 17, 2016. 

Just for fun, check out this Jimmy Kimble video in which he goes to the street to find out if people support the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare (hint: they’re the same thing). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx2scvIFGjE