When U.S. President Barack Obama sought the presidency in 2008 he promised Americans their health care premiums would drop by $2,500 a year – during his first term.
“In an Obama administration, we’ll lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year,” Obama said during a June 2008 campaign swing through Virginia. “We won’t do all this twenty years from now, or ten years from now. We’ll do it by the end of my first term as President of the United States.”
Well, Obama’s first term ended this week … how’d he do on this promise?
Not well … not well at all. Not only have health insurance premiums in the United States not declined by $2,500 (or $1), they’ve actually moved in the opposite direction. According to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation, premiums for the average family with an employer provided plan increased by $2,400 during Obama’s first term.
In other words, the exact opposite of what he promised. Wait … why wasn’t this a huge issue during the 2012 campaign? Two reasons: First, Republicans nominated Mitt Romney – who previously championed the same same sort of socialized medicine plan pushed by Obama.
Second, the mainstream media simply gave Obama a hall pass on the subject … as it did on many other subjects.
So … what’s Obama’s second term promise?
According to the White House, premiums will be reduced by $2,000 annually per family … by 2019.
Do we believe that will happen? Of course not … “free” coverage cannot be extended to millions of new beneficiaries while simultaneously lowering premiums for the rest of us (and reducing the deficit). It just doesn’t work that way.
No matter what Obama promises, expect health insurance premiums to continue climbing in the years to come … making it that much harder for American workers, employers and families to make ends meet.
***
28 comments
Can’t speak for all America, but my premium is $1265 per year for health care, about 5% more than it was four years ago.
Our company did elect to have higher deductibles.
Healthcare cost increases are virtually uncontrollable as long as:
1) Employees have little or no skin in the decision making process. (I’ve never once heard one of my employees complain of the actual cost of a visit or a procedure. I’ve only heard them speak of the cost of the co-pay). As consumers of company sponsored health care few are impacted by their decisions.
2) Medical entities (doctors, hospitals, labs, pharmacies, etc.) are paid on the quantity of services provided, not the quality or efficacy.
3) Insurers hold the political clout in Washington presently manifested by their grip on Federal and State lawmakers.
4) And until publicly known, acknowledged, and advocated wellness practices are standard daily habits of the insured.
“3) Insurers hold the political clout in Washington presently manifested by their grip on Federal and State lawmakers.”
Yea, if I might add a little to your statement they’ve successfully used gov’t force on a STATE level to do a lot of harm(SCDOI for example)…they basically have snuffed out competition for the most part(Blue Cross/Blue Shield) by spreading around money to limit in state competition.
The kneeslapper is the high level BCBS execs justification(and implicit acknowledgment) of doing so by claiming that competition wouldn’t lower prices…LMAO!
Those are some real capitalists(crony) for ya.
Once again, the rich corporations and the rich doctors are robbing the middle class so that can buy a 3rd or 4th Cadilllac Escalade.
The GOP has spearheaded class warfare in the USA, and uses GOP legislators to do their dirty work.
It is not about wellness. It is about doctors getting richer and richer, and blaming malpractice lawyers for high malpractice premiums. Yes, Dorothy, in 2013, doctors still commit malpractice but Grover Nordquist wants you think its those “greedy” lawyers who are the real problem.
America is less and less a land of opportunity not because of government or Obama but because of the great wealth disparity between the GOP/Koch Brothers/Fortune 500, and folks like Mitt Romney who hide their money offshore, and the rest of us out here struggling.
So we hatin’ on “rich doctors” now because they went to school for 8 years plus internship and have the intellect to do a difficult job and expect to be paid in accordance with their skills/investment?
Oh yea man, that’s just great. You’re a real ‘merican.
If only we forced all the doctors to be pariah’s(in the Indian sense) everything would be fine and dandy in this utopian “land of opportunity” scenario you’ve created where the stupid keep their money available to the gov’t to waste on wars & welfare.
Really, I’m doing everything in my power right now to keep the discussion genteel.
Hey, stupid, I have a brother who is a doctor who is a teacher at a medical school. I am not against doctors. I am against a system stacked against the middle class.
And please, don’t keep it genteel for my sake.
Great fuck face, let’s take off the gloves then. Most of your comments are so fuckin’ borderline retarded I don’t bother to respond because they are so obviously stupid.
I’m sorry I took the time to try to point out the obvious to someone that’s clearly impervious to it.
The “I have a brother that’s a doctor” defense, while compelling, just shows why he’s a doctor and you are not.
Hey, health care is a right, not a privilege!
Why don’t we tax luxuries like movies, and apply those funds to healthcare?
Hollywood stars make more money than is morally acceptable.
I propose a $1 dollar tax on all movies–rentals, down-loads, theater tickets, etc., to pay for healthcare costs of “The Affordable Healthcare Act.”
After all, Hollywood received hundreds of millions in tax credits this past year, and actors and producers make more money in America than in any other country in the world.
Shameful that David Geffin lives in a $53,000,000.00 townhouse yet received millions in tax breaks.
It’s time for the TAX MAN to pay those billionaire producers a visit!
Another thing douchebag, since you’ve got me on this rant now:
“I am not against doctors.”
and
“rich doctors are robbing the middle class so that can buy a 3rd or 4th Cadilllac Escalade.”
Yeah, Yeah…sure thing pal.
Tell you what, I see a lot more welfare queens/kings rolling in Escalades with 24″ rims on them than doctors…which just goes to show you have no class if you think that doctors are aspiring to buying Escalades.
$10 says the closest relationship you have to a doctor is “How much is my bill so I know whether to pay it or not?”
“I see a lot more welfare queens/kings rolling in Escalades with 24? rims on them than doctors”
Nice. Do they have fried chicken in their rides, too?
In any event, Obamacare hasn’t been fully implemented yet. Kind of a big caveat, don’tcha think?
The Affordable Healthcare Act might be bad policy and it might be ineffective at driving down costs. However, getting people to buy insurance, wait for it, from the PRIVATE SECTOR is not socialism. Additionally, regulation of commerce is not socialism either. See Article I Section 8 Clause 3.
Okay, back to work. Some of you sock puppets should do the same. The economy needs to productive workers, not innerweb trolls talking about the virtues of the market.
“However, getting people to buy insurance, wait for it, from the PRIVATE SECTOR is not socialism. ”
I didn’t say that did I? That being said, if gov’t is regulating what insurance you buy(from whom, what it covers, etc., or the choice as to buy it all) than we all know that’s not a free market.
“Nice. Do they have fried chicken in their rides, too?”
Do tell mph, why would they be eating fried chicken?
This is Obama’s fault, how?
Yes, yes, I know, the latest Republican meme is that Obama has been so nasty to the poor Republicans that their only recourse has been to stomp their little feet and prevent passage of any meaningful legislation in DC.
Of all the states that have refused to implement the ACA exchanges, how many are controlled by Republicans?
But since Obama overpromised a little regarding time and expense, he has totally failed, right?
“But since Obama overpromised a little regarding time and expense, he has totally failed, right?”
lol…give it a little more time Tom…the party is just starting.
Btw, your quoted statement also answers your first question.
Um, Mr. ?,
ObamaCare kicks in next year. The Obama administration passed legislation meant to address the costs of insurance and healthcare, giving the insurance companies millions of new mandatory customers, IN THEORY leading them to lower their premiums.
That private insurers have seen fit to raise their premiums in advance of legislation meant to deliver them millions of new customers is not only the shittiest thing they could do, but utterly predictable as well. That Republicans would blame Obama for the insurers raising premiums when they’re the ones that have worked the hardest to block implementation of ObamaCare is not only the shittiest thing they could do, but utterly predictable, as well.
Set up the exchanges, stop blocking everything and holding your collective breath until you get your way and DEMAND that insurance companies lower their premiums in response to the influx of new customers they’ll receive. Right now, you’re just blowing smoke.
Blowing smoke?
First of all champ, I’m not a Republican.
You guys don’t even realize the insurance lobbyists have crashed your Obamacare party.
Hell, they took over the writing process after they realized the mob was on board.
It’s a gov’t run mess already and they haven’t even started substantially yet.
I suppose it’s better to be “blowing smoke” rather than a crack pipe.
Short of government regulation of the prices for services rendered the mathematical model simply doesn’t work.
Since I’m not a doctor and my physician sees about 10 patients per hour and of the 6 minutes we have together he wastes 2 minutes telling me he should have been a dentist because they are making the real money,
I say,
Uncle Sam, own his ass. If you can’t beat em, join em baby!
On another note, talk about a golden parachute, a long-time family doctor in the upstate announced two years ago that he was converting to private pay only and would accept 1000 of his patients to “come along with him”. He had to turn down about 300. A year later, he retired. Feed em fish eyes.
Ahhh, class warfare…ain’t it grand?
SHHHH!…the quickest way to become a millionaire is to become a member of congress.
Ask Joe Biden. Ask Harry Reid.
But don’t let the secret out…
Fish eyes…what a delicacy!
E–Personally, my life has been saved at least twice thanks to doctors.
I suggest you find a new doctor.
It sounds like you really resent him/her/it, and the feeling may actually be mutual.
econ-1o1-We need more info before we crucify this doctor. How old was he? Did he have any health problems? Did he lose his license? Was he burned out by mountains of paperwork? It’s easy to parrot some anecdotal story but there may be a lot more to the story than the side you present.
The pricing mechanism for health care is completely effed up. That’s all I’ve really got so far.
However, getting everyone insured (assuming you don’t have nation policy of letting people die in the streets) does seem like a good starting point
Whenever you let gov’t run a market you lose all pricing signals.
Ludwig von Mises & later Nobel prize winner Hayek have written on this and it has been demonstrated over and over again.
It’s the major reason socialism eventually fails.
That’s why ObamaCare is more akin to fascism, which is the merger of state and corporate power, and not like socialism at all. Government isn’t running healthcare now or next year under ObamaCare. It is placing requirements on the people to purchase private insurance from corporate interests and setting up a few ground rules that the industry can now employ attorneys to circumvent. The American Way.
“That’s why ObamaCare is more akin to fascism, which is the merger of state and corporate power, and not like socialism at all.”
No, you’re wrong there. There is tremendous commonality between fascism and socialism. Again, when gov’t is running a market the pricing signals go away.
Further, “Nazi” was a shortened acronym for “National Socialist Party” in German….though considered “fascist”.
The mix between elements of Socialism and Fascism is rife throughout history.
The closest thing to fascism was probably Mussolini’s PNF.
“ObamaCare is more akin to fascism, which is the merger of state and corporate power..”
Hilarious.
I think the posters on this board need an 11th grade class in political ideology.
Add this to Obama’s promise to not raise taxes on the middle class that was broken even BEFORE his first term ended!
BWWWAA HAAA HAAA
The po mo fo lo info libtards proclaim:
YES WE CAN!
When did Obama “raise taxes on the Middle Class?”
Obviously you can see that wasn’t me asking the question(no “gravatar”)…just for clarity.
If you think healthcare is expensive now…wait ’til the doctors unionize!