Today on ATC Robert Seigel spoke with a guy named Robert Call in Chillicothe to whom he'd previously spoken a while back. This was a guy who seemed generally sympathetic to the President's goals. Seigel asked the guy about health care reform, and the guy said he was glad it was sinking because he liked what he had.
President Obama, if you want reform to pass, you've got to keep stressing to people (as you have before) that "If you like what you've got, you won't have to change it." The fact-checkers keep adding caveats which are perfectly true: your employer might choose to pick a different plan based on what's on offer after reform. Guess what? Your employer has that option every year when it chooses a health care plan for you as things are without reform. So, Mr. Call, your fears are misplaced.
Posted by Linkmeister at January 28, 2010 12:58 PM | TrackBackExcept that this ("if you like what you've got, ...") is an abject lie.
If you have a health care plan over whatever arbitrary limit the Pres. and his pals have decided for you, you'll lose some of it in taxes.
If you have an individual plan that you contract directly from Blue Cross, you could lose that too, because of cost increases that WILL occur (see New York, where they have guaranteed issue and community rating).
Posted by: Rob McMillin at January 28, 2010 04:05 PMAre you talking about a situation where your employer's plan might be considered a "Cadillac" plan, thus taxable? If so, it would probably be a pretty small bite from the individual.
I've got an individual plan. I'd jump from Kaiser in a minute if I got a reasonably comparable option for less money through an exchange. In June of 1998 I was paying $151.42 per month for Kaiser coverage; it's now, eleven-plus years later, $402 per month. My co-pay for drugs and visits has doubled.
Posted by: Linkmeister at January 28, 2010 07:50 PM