Obama Care vs Republicans

[glatt]

Obamacare is being phased in slowly, so I reserve the right to change my mind as more becomes apparent in the coming couple of years, but so far, I'm loving Obamacare.

One requirement that has already been phased in is that insurance companies must spend at least 85% of the money they collect in premiums on health care for their covered patients. If they don't meet that target, they must refund the premium money to the people who paid it. (actually, the money goes to their employers to be refunded to the employees or applied to future premium payments.) I've received premium refunds two years in a row thanks to Obamacare. The first year, it was pretty big, because the insurance company was caught with their pants down. The second year, the insurance company was able to adjust its operations so that it was a lot closer to the target and the refund was smaller. I expect that next year, there will be no refund, which is fine. It means the insurance company isn't profiteering as much as it used to be, and is actually providing healthcare more efficiently.

I also think it's telling that our system is so screwed up, we allow insurance companies to leech 15% off the top and that's considered good. Obamacare is a good start, but we need even more comprehensive health care reform.