Almost every day lately, there has been a new article about Obamacare in which some Obamacare proponent tries to confuse and mislead the public so the public can’t see what this jerk-off plan is going to cost them. There are several tactics being used in this regard and they are all fraudulent:
● You Can’t Compare: Now that the rates are coming out, people have noticed that these rates are much higher than what they have been paying. The response to this has been to tell people that no matter how bad the rates may appear compared to what you pay now, you really can’t compare the rates under Obamacare to the rates you currently pay because “you’ll be receiving so much more coverage.” Hurray! Isn’t that wonderful?
No. To the contrary, forcing someone to buy more than they want and then bragging about how much more they got is obnoxious bullsh*t. It’s like arguing that yes, you were raped, but we bought you dinner afterwards with your own money! Isn’t that great?!
The truth is that it is perfectly valid to compare what you are being forced to pay against what you were paying the prior year because you didn’t ask for the additional coverage being forced upon you. The claim that we really can’t compare because of this different levels of coverage is pure propaganda.
● It Doesn’t Really Cost That: With people suffering from sticker shock, another tactic is to tell people that the rates aren’t what you’ll really being paying because you’ll get a subsidy! Wee! This claim typically goes something like this: “While the rates may appear higher than some people are paying now, most will get significant subsidies to help them pay for it. For example a typical subsidy is $2,672.”
This is bunk. To back up the claim that most will get a subsidy, they point to a Kaiser study which concluded that 48% of people who currently buy their own insurance will be eligible for tax credits that would offset these premiums. 48% is not “most.” Moreover, this study only talks about people who buy their own insurance. That’s only 16% of the population. So they are basically saying that 8% of the public is “most.” Further, this study was just based on income and it ignores a key factor: if you are offered insurance through work, then you aren’t eligible for a subsidy. So forget it McDonald’s worker if you think Obamacare is going to give you a penny to cover your costs.
Additionally, the subsidy numbers are bait and switch. Pay careful attention: remember that the promise is that 48% of the individuals who currently buy their own insurance will get the subsidy. But the subsidy amount they keep citing is for an average family of four on the sliver plan. That’s apples and oranges. So how much is the subsidy for individuals? They don’t tell you. They never tell you. And the reason is that it’s really, really low. So essentially, these articles are saying this: “Here are the costs, but don’t worry because some people will get a large appearing subsidy, but that won’t be you and we won’t tell you what you’ll get.” Moreover, the subsidies they are talking about are for the silver plan, which is a lot more expensive than the basic plan, yet the costs they cite to are always the cheapest (bronze) plan.
● Low Ball The Estimate: Always citing the cheapest plan is another tactic they use. And not only that, but the cheapest of the cheapest, whether or not it is widely available. Colorado just came out with their estimates and the numbers ranged from $177 a month to $774 per month for individuals (over $1,000 for individuals on group plans). Immediately, Obamacare propagandists began using the $177 figure. Only, no one is going to get that. The rate varies according to where you live and the $177 rate is in Greeley (pop 92,000). In rural Grand Junction, you will be paying a minimum of $237.
What you pay will depend on who your provider is. And for most people, you are looking at $250-$400 a month. That's a far cry from $177. And when you realize that you also will be responsible for more than you'll ever incur as a deductible and co-pay, this becomes a rotten deal.
Interestingly, the fine for not playing along with Obama is 1% of your income. If you somehow got the magic rate of $177, then you would pay $2,124 for the year. Doing a little math, that means that your breakeven point, where it makes economic sense to buy insurance rather than pay the fine is if your income exceeds $212,400.
● IchtsNa on the EductibleDa: Speaking of the deductibles... last week, Obama delayed yet another part of his law. This is the part that caps the out-of-pocket costs the policy holder must pay at $6,350 for individuals and $12,700 for families. Without that provision, many people will face a “double cap,” under which the insurance company imposes one cap for doctor and hospital services and another for drugs. In effect, the above numbers could well be doubled.
Putting all of this together, they are lying to you about being incapable of comparing plans across years, they are low-balling the estimates, they are inflating the subsidies and pretending that everyone will get them, when they won’t, and they won’t tell you how to calculate them. They aren’t telling you that the deductibles are so high that you’ll pretty much pay anything you are likely to incur unless you end up in the hospital for an extended stay... and they aren’t telling you that if that happens, you can get massive discounts and have charities pay for large chunks of it in any event. Essentially, they aren’t tell you that you are a fool if you buy this.
So why do this? Won’t people find out the truth when they apply? Yes, but the goal of the bait and switch is to get you into the store so the salesman can pressure you to make a bad decision. At that point, they have different kinds of misinformation, false logic and pressure they can use to trick you into parting with your money:
“You know, you’re getting a better deal than other people...”That’s why they want you to know nothing at this point. Misinformation and confusion is part of the plan.
“You know, it wouldn’t cost much more to step up to a higher tier plan...”
“You know, if you leave that employer, you could get subsidies...”
“You know it’s a crime not to have insurance...”
“Why pay a fine and get nothing when you can pay just a little bit more and getnext to nothinginsurance...?”
45 comments:
BTW, Montana is $200 to $300 a month for a single 30 year old.
Obamacare is his single piece of "achievement," and it disgusts me how it all came to pass (lies, Harry Reid trickery, the "cornholer compromise," and the sell out of John Roberts. But, this sums up everything one needs to know about the Obama presidency. Just lie your butt off, because there is no independent respected media left to call you out on it.
The country should all get together and nobody buy insurance until you are sick. Put all insurance companies out of business and crash the system. That would be fun!
Koshcat, That's my article for next week! LOL! I was going to publish it tonight, but did this one instead. Next week I'm going to recommend ways to undermine the system.
Jed, Yep. That just about sums it up. This thing was an abomination in the creation and now it's being sold like a used car by a crooked dealer.
It's a train wreck and the public is slowly catching on.
But remember guys.....If the repubs defund this program then they are wild-eyed fringer right-wing conservatives who are racists.
I'm afraid it will end up like Soc Sec and Medicare. Once its "law" then any attempt to "fix it" will be decried and the fix will be the reason for the excessive costs and failure to provide. Hell, Reagan (pbuh) couldn't even shrink/eliminate the Dept of Education like he ran on and look at that Dep't now!
Nope, we're screwed.
I would like some assurances that the "cornholer compromise" refers specifically to Fmr. Sen. Ben Nelson and not to the state as a whole. His compromise was so unpopular, he didn't even throw in for re-election afterwards.
Oh, come on you neigh-sayers and party-poopers and obviously OLD people. It's gonna be FUN! Why look there are even CONTESTS to earn money for making the best propagan...er...ad to sell Obamacare to the kids! See JOBS, JOBS JOBS! Of course, not one with a pension or healthcare or steady or anthing like that, but HEY it's for OBAMA!
Hey I say that we put together and send in our OWN entry with the real story...
Hmm, this just occurred to me: Don't Ask, Don't Tell didn't end under Obama. It just got transferred to the healthcare law.
But Tryanmax - It kind of morphed into "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, or We'll Drone You".
LL, If they aren't now, they will soon. Actually, I think a huge chunk of the public will find out when they do their taxes for 2013.
Patriot, The public isn't buying the line about the Republicans being jerks for trying to defund. The problem is they are engaged in a stupid way to do it. Symbolic votes and pointless shutdowns will only make them look stupid.
This is one where you need to keep saying, "As long as the Democrats hold the Senate and the White House, there is nothing we can do."
tryanmax, We can assure nothing. LOL!
Bev, How cool would that be to win their contest and then reveal we faked the whole thing. LOL!
TV Anchor: "So what inspired you to tell your story?"
US: "Well, Dear Leader had me brainwashed and I wanted to lie to sell his horrific program to the mindless proles who make up the population."
TV Anchor: "Uh."
tryanmax, Hardly. We will ask and you will tell.
Bev, LOL! I forgot the drones. "We will ask and you will tell... or we will drone you."
Patriot, The public isn't buying the line about the Republicans being jerks for trying to defund. The problem is they are engaged in a stupid way to do it. Symbolic votes and pointless shutdowns will only make them look stupid.
This is one where you need to keep saying, "As long as the Democrats hold the Senate and the White House, there is nothing we can do."
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So what should the Repubs be doing?
What I just said: keep telling the public that unless they vote for more Republicans, there is nothing they can do.
Acting insane and shutting down the government over things that can't succeed only makes us look stupid and extreme. The key is to make the other guy look extreme. You go out there and you pound away on how bad this law is... jobs lost, every switches to part time, people losing insurance, you will be fined, doctors leaving profession, etc. etc. And then you tell the public: "This is what you get when you vote for the Democrats. Vote for us so we can save our healthcare system."
They also need an alternative. They need something they can sell in a few sentences that hits all the points people worry about (skip the details for now). Just saying, "we're gonna stop this" or "insurers across state lines" will never work.
Those salesmen you speak of ought to add another, far more effective pitch: "Go to work in government and we'll give you a much better deal."
T-Rav, Yeah, until they find out that the government doesn't hire that many people and the pay stinks unless you live in DC.
Andrew....Th repubs should state at every opportunity "We will vote to spend more and more money, borrow more, put our grandchildren more and more in debt because as long as the dems are in power in government, this is their answer to everything. We repubs would like to address the abuse, fraud and outright misuse we hear is going on in this X program, but the dems will not let us even question if there is abuse of this. So, until you elect repubs, your taxes will continue to rise, you will be fined more, your liberties will be taken away and you will have the gov't involved in every decision you and your family used to make on your own. Welcome to the glorious democrat fascist state! "
Then, once the repubs have the senate and white house, they can go about with wholesale change and fixes.
Oh...and they should always be prepared to address what they want whenever they are on talk shows with msm. When a stupid question is asked of them, do what the dems do....state "that's a great question David. Let me tell you how the repubs would address that." and then go to their prepared talking points of what they want to get across. Do not let the msm steer the talk.
(But who am I kidding right?)
Patriot, Three problems. First, that means they need an agenda. To do that, they first need to face down the nutjob wing who want them to stand for nothing except anger at Obama. Secondly, it's angry and anger doesn't sell with the general public. Third, don't say "fascist" because that marks you as a nut and people tune out.
That said, they absolutely need a sales pitch of why the public is screwing themselves voting for Democrats and they would be better off voting for the Republicans.
Andrew...What's your bottom line on how the repubs should handle ocare going forward? If you've already addressed I apologize.
Basically, use it as a selling point.
1. Point out all the parts the public doesn't like... constantly. Fill the airwaves with stories of people losing their insurance, losing their jobs, being made part time. Talk about people who are being forced to buy and can't afford it, talk about people who will be fined and can afford it. Doctors leaving the profession, etc.
2. Tell the public they (1) want to repeal the bad parts (list a couple, like the mandate and the fines), (2) give a broad-stroke plan to replace it that addresses the things that worry the public -- affordability and access. Avoid the details however because you want to keep the focus on Obamacare, not the replacement plan... it's enough to talk about "a voucher plan that costs less and guarantees coverage to everyone without forcing anyone to buy anything." And when asked for the details, shrug your shoulders and say, "there's no point in talking about it because the Democrats won't let Obamacare go. It's an obsession of theirs."
3. Tell the public that unless they elect more Republicans, they are stuck with Obamacare because the Democrats are ideologically bound to it, no matter what damage it does... "This is all Obama and Harry Reid have to show for the last six years... that an massive unemployment, falling incomes, and growing debt." Sorry, there is nothing we can do unless you support us.
4. Stop trying to do the pointless things like shutdowns because they only blow up in our faces. They wrongly promise that the Republicans can change things. They bring out the mouth-foaming crazies who then freak out when the impossible doesn't happen. And they come across as stupid and extreme. Play the adult in the room... let Obama look like the child holding his breath.
That would be my plan.
But keep in mind, Obamacare isn't what the public cares about. They care about this:
1. Jobs.
2. Jobs.
3. Jobs.
4. Jobs.
5. Jobs.
6. Obamacare, education, environment, consumer issues, retirement.
7. National debt
8. Personal freedom.
9. Foreign stuff
10. What they think of Obama.
As an update on yesterday's conspiracy theory about "Obamacare defunding" being a RINO plot to distract Tea Party people from stopping the Mexican hoards from staying here, there are now a group of articles in which Tea Party people are blasting the Republicans for not having Town Halls so they can blast them about not defunding Obamacare.
Clearly, the diversion has worked! Nicely done, Senor Cruz.
Andrew....When you reference 'Tea Party' people, who are you pointing to? Is there anyone or group that speaks for the "Tea Party?" I know Bachmann tried to stake out that mantel and looked how that worked out? Is it Glenn Beck? I don't think too many people listen to him, regardless of his following. Is it Limbaugh? He speaks for "conservatives" whoever self-identify with that term.
See, I think this is a problem that our culture has fallen in to. Lump a group of people under a label, throw down the worst aspects or ideas they might have as their all encompassing policies and then proceed to lather, rinse and repeat until the identification has no more cachet.
BTW....Yes to your approach to Ocare for the repubs. Now for the spokesperson.......Cruz? Rubio? Paul? McCain? Limbaugh? Perry? We need a credible, serious, media aware and telegenic face for this (heck for all things repub) if this is ever going to work. And the search continues.....
Oh, and this was ALL a big distraction by Teddie Boy, as he renounced his Canadian citizenship which he never denied because of his very public Canadian birth certificate...oh, and his father was a Commnist..Cruz' that is, not Obama's. Well, that's what they are saying at HufPo anyway. That's probably why Father Of Cruz left Cuba...Castro wasn't Commnist enough for him. Funny the things that one reads on HuffPo.
Patriot, Here's the link to the story making the rounds on Yahoo right now: LINK. This is the third such story I've seen.
In this article, "Tea Party" means the self-appointed leaders of some of the groups. In this case, that means the leaders of Tea Party Patriots, Freedom Works, and a group called For America. Add to them the identical rhetoric all over the blogosphere from self-described Tea Party people.
BTW, according to someone in the article, there are 250 town halls scheduled. So Congress isn't really avoided them.
As for spokesmen, we need a group. They need to be smart, sane and capable. They also need to be on the same page -- so you exclude the people who won't go with the team. And beyond that, you want to get as many people as possible repeating the same line whenever they speak in public.
I would never include Rush or anyone else from talk radio. Their goals are inconsistent with helping the cause.
Bev, What's sad is that you'll probably be reading the same comments at Breitbart soon. :(
I actually think it's asinine that he would renounce his Canadian citizenship. Talking about playing to the xenophobic fringe... "He's a secret Canadian!! He's a dirty foreigner!! He's going to put Molson on tap in the White House!!" Seriously, grow the f* up people.
Bev, I didn't read the HuffPo thing, but from what I understand, Papa Cruz fought to put Castro in power and, as thanks, the new regime persecuted him, so he fled.
Any word on whether Cruz every visited Chicago? If so, we can put him in the same city as Alinsky. Then it all starts to make sense.
Senor, Do not speak of the connection to Senor Alinsky. Senor Cruz is a good Canadian immigrant. He would never consort with communists, other than Castro and Che Guevara, who once sent him a bicycle for Christmas.
You are thinking of Senor Rubio, the man who had an aide who was once wrongly accused of having worked for George Soros. Clearly, that was a false rumor promoted to hide Senor Rubio's real associates... Boehner, Romney, the Miami Mafia, Dexter. That is where you should be heaping your blind scorn.
Yes, but does he know Carlos Danger?
Oh, who doesn't know Carlos Danger? ;-)
Ted Cruz is a plant sent here at the behest for Castro and traded in secret by the Clintons for Elian Gonzalez (Cruz' real brother) in the '90's. And the "Canadian" "birth" "certificate" is a "fake". He's really Cuban. AND I bet he's been to Chicago on his way to "Canada"...don't you see it? "Canada" "Cuba" and "Chicago" ALL start with a "C". That's how I know this is all "fact".
T-Rav, LOL! Yeah.... yeah. :(
Bev, Hmm. He actually kind of looks like Elian Gonzalez. Now I'm suspicious! I wonder if Mickey Kauss knows this? Has anyone called Mark Levin yet? :P
Carlos who?
Doesn't "danger" translate into Spanish as "Rubio?" Carlos Rubio......That's the ticket!! Probably his cousin.
You know who he is! He's a big weiner!
Oh great, we've blogged our way into a family feud.
Patriot, I thought "Danger" translated into "Idiot Who Texts Naked Pictures" in Spanish? :P
BTW, am I the only one who is starting to wonder if Cruz and Rubio aren't the same man? Have we seen them together yet?
BTW, am I the only one who is starting to wonder if Cruz and Rubio aren't the same man? Have we seen them together yet?
Oooooh, you may be right! AND MarCo has a "C" in it. Another clue that will lead us to the "truth"!
Bev, I think we're onto something with MarCruzo Rubiosoros!
Truth... yep! Sort of. :)
MarCruzo Rubiosoros
I think I saw the fossils for one of those at the natural history museum.
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