Yes, I know Hank posted on this a few days ago but reading this from ABC just drove home how incredibly stupid the folks in DC really are.
Not only will premiums be reduced by 40% in some states, but "people who would like to enroll in the program, the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP), no longer need to provide a letter from an insurance company denying them coverage. Instead, they just need a letter from a doctor saying they have a medical condition."
How hard is it to get a rejection letter from a carrier if you really have a serious medical condition? I have referred people to PCIP and it took them all of 5 minutes to get a declination letter.
Since it began last summer, only 18,000 people have enrolled. The Congressional Budget Office estimated 200,000 people would sign up each year.
Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies for the libertarian Cato Institute, said the lack of enrollees shows that the program was never popular to begin with.
"They're giving away health insurance, and people don't want it," he said.
I beg to differ, but they are not "giving it away". If it were free (as most expected it would be) no doubt they would have hit their numbers and then some.
The problem is, even though you can buy a standard issue policy at rates less than what tobacco users pay for comparable plans, the participants are required to pay a premium that is more than $0.
Of course when it is free the problem won't be getting people in to the system it will be finding a way to pay for it while at the same time saving Medicare and paying off our friendly Chinese bankers.
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