5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT OBAMACARE FOR 2013-PART 1

                                             5 Myths about Obamacare:

1. Obamacare will save you money.

2. Health insurance exchanges are good programs.

3. You will have access to your Doctor and keep your present Doctor.

4. Obamacare looks out for seniors.

5. Obamacare is good for the youth.

 

Obamacare and its onerous regulations will have a devastating effect on our country. It will negatively affect all Americans, at every age and social status, whether poor or wealthy or middle class. The fifth and deciding vote by Chief Justice Roberts of the Supreme Court,   asserting that the mandate to force Americans to buy health insurance or be fined is a "TAX", upheld Obamacare as law in our land. There will be other legal challenges to Obamacare that the Supreme Court will hear in the future. There are companies that are suing because of the mandate to insure their employees or be fined and there are Catholic institutions that are suing because they are being forced to provide contraception/abortion even though it is against their religious beliefs. Even if one of these cases wins in the Supreme Court, it is likely that Obamacare will remain as law for the foreseeable future.

As a physician advocate for healthcare and the patient; I was compelled to speak out and do my best to help inform Americans of the many unintended consequences of this terrible piece of legislation. So I will discuss the first of the 5 most important lies/myths you need to be aware of in Obamacare that will affect you as early as 2013.

1. Myth number 1- Obamacare will save you money.

Insurance rates will continue to go up. They have increased about 20% since Obamacare became law in March 2010. They most likely will continue to increase at this rate or more which is much higher than before Obamacare. Therefore, there is a need to shop around in order to obtain better coverage. If you and your family do not get sick and are healthy, you can obtain cheaper premiums by choosing policies with higher deductibles. Many will have deductibles of thousands of dollars and this will save you money if you are healthy, but will give you coverage in the event of an unforeseen illness. Almost all health care policies allow you to choose the initial deductible and this may save you the yearly increases in premiums, by being more selective. Also, review your policy and the types of coverage available yearly, so you can change to a more appropriate coverage if your family’s health needs change.

In addition, Obamacare has so many hidden taxes- that it is a tremendous cost to all-especially the Middle Class that our President pretends to protect. A few examples include surtax on capital gains, an increased tax on the sale of your house, an increase tax on Medicare premiums, and many penalties to small businesses which are predominantly run by the middle class in our country. Also, taxes on medical equipment will increase and these costs will result in job losses to those companies resulting in increased unemployment. Those increased costs of medical goods will be passed on to the consumer and therefore the health insurance premiums will go up even more than they did in the last 2 years since Obamacare was enacted into law.

Do not forget that any increase in bureaucracy increases costs through its waste and inefficiency, thus costing the consumer- in this case all Americans- a lot more money for less available healthcare.

Next week-Myth number 2- Health insurance exchanges are good programs.