What was it like before Obamacare?

[Goldenguy]

Amen! 1st HUGE step to government control. Aimed at the backbone of an independent and free society - Small business. State Exchanges can't wait to implement Single payer, then say goodbye to quality healthcare and your freedom.

Every year the Dems of Ca. put in legislation to find funding, and once again they have a new proposal which the tyrant Gov. Newsom just signed.
It's redistribution of our taxes to enable Government interference and control of the free marketplace capitalism that built the society we've had the priviledge to live in.
The only question is will we fight to keep it?

Pre obamacare. Raised 3 kids mostly up, on my own very comfortably preobama doing a ton of U65, assurant was the bread and butter, followed by golden rule, american community, world. We all new it was coming and was warned for a long time before it happened .. Had plenty of time to prepare. That was the only decent part. I had time to plan way ahead and did before U65 as we knew it went down the $shitter$$

Pre Obama was my first experience at a grown up job that fully supported my household without two parents. It was also very nice for small business owners who had many choices for their health care needs. Even those with pre existing had options that were around the tune of $400/500 a month for an average family of 4. Remember Obama lying about your premiums will go down and you'll be able to keep your doctors of choice. Ha

We also had nice health plans for college kids and young adults. Young Blue. $50 a month.

I left the U65 and focused on new horizons

Watched many small business owners who had money lose their minds, businesses and money. Many took their money and started hiding it out of banks and working for more cash....was one thing I witnessed more of---taxpayers trying to hide what they did make just to be able to afford health care and get the subsidies.

Almost cracked when I listened to politicians say they were all for small business owners as this was how our country was built. Demo polis claiming they were ALL for small biz owners was icing on the cake.

The group most hurt were small business owners. It was a total disaster and we still feel it today. People with group options, teachers, government workers, poor people on medicaid. All good. The rest of the folks who helped build this country were hurt.

That move was the first HUGE sign they were against small business owners that the foundation of this country was built to moving toward socialism since I've been alive.

I tried to get back into it, but I'm too old school and started when it was good. No ones going to get me to spend time on bs commissions that put me at too much risk and just irritated the entirety of my client base. I didn't have a good experience trying to do obamacare. I was very successful with it pre O.

I do it now, but not much and with only two carriers, and BY GOD the client better not be lying about their income.

This single most irritating issue with it for me is, "Oh I only make a small amount of income" then find out after we get them enrolled with a subsidy, "oops I forgot about the 130k I just cashed out of my retirement plan..." for my own reasons, I stay away from it as much as I can. I didn't want to deal with the headache that came with lies I couldn't control and I couldn't even blame the people lying.

 

[Goldenguy]

Nice try @hockeyday , we only wish it could be that simple to overhaul State financing of healthcare, which was never intended pre -1940.
Fearmongering with insane predictions doesn;t help illuminate the real problems we all will face with current funding methods in not too distant future. Trump has no plans nor ability to make draconian cuts/changes like you mention, even if he plays the Exec order power trip game your boy Brandon has unprecedently done both in frequency and clear violation of power.
Perhaps you don't care about future generations, but try to remember what has been built and provided to you with a free market.

U65 and on Medicare done gone bye bye, that's 18 months , he will go after the so called entitlement programs on day 1, low income , sick, will be kicked to the curb by his boy hilter Miller,

 

[Dave G]

Never understood why neither Party in Congress came up with this idea: "National Catastrophic Major Medical" for everyone. We used to have such a plan in my home state of Maryland. In an early LUTC class years ago we were told Pres. Eisenhower suggested such a plan in the 1950's. If anyone was serious about building an alternative to "Obamacare" this is as good a place as any to start.

Our local BCBS offered an individual Catrastrophic plan up to around 2008. It had a $50,000 deductible then paid 100% for covered care to a $1 Million lifetime max. The deductible period was a rolling 18 mos. and only required you to incur the expense....not that you paid it out-of-pocket. So any expenses covered by other plans, individual,or group also counted.

The premium was virtually unchanged for years. Wanna guess the person rate? $78 a year and a true "community rate" for all. Can you imagine, we could've insured every man, woman and child in our state of 5.68 million in 2008 for $443 million for the entire year. And "underwritng" was a breeze....if you could fog a mirror and sign your name, you were insurable.

Granted, $78 a year now won't cut it. Even so, $1 million still buys lots of care. I did a number of self-funded group plans from 1990-2010 and saw very few claims iexceed $50,000. So maybe we need $240 a year or a meager $20 a month. per person.

This plan-type on a national basis would unleash insurers, employers and individuals to get creative and develop plans to fund care below the high-deductible. You might see association and fraternal plans make a comeback. It would restore an individual's choice to decide how much risk their willing to take and how much they're willing to pay. When you consider today's exorbitant Obamacare rates + the high deductibles, most folks are out tens-of-thousands of dollars before they see a dime back. At those rates, you could fund your own $50k deductible in just 2-3 years!

I've tried finding information about Eisenhower's idea but hit dead ends, including on the Eisenhower Library website. If politicians of all stripes could stop grand-standing and get serious about solving real problems, there may be hope for us after all.

 

[AgentGeneral]

Nice try @hockeyday , we only wish it could be that simple to overhaul State financing of healthcare, which was never intended pre -1940.
Fearmongering with insane predictions doesn;t help illuminate the real problems we all will face with current funding methods in not too distant future. Trump has no plans nor ability to make draconian cuts/changes like you mention, even if he plays the Exec order power trip game your boy Brandon has unprecedently done both in frequency and clear violation of power.
Perhaps you don't care about future generations, but try to remember what has been built and provided to you with a free market.

Same page.

This is reality.

I've never disagreed with Hocky but do on what he's saying there.

I don't love Trump but absolutely do not think he will smash medicare. I voted twice fr im and will again. He's the lesser evil. He could also help U65. He's the only one I recall supporting HSAs (just one example) which I agree with. HSAs, although the average housewife was against those, turned out to be very nice for many small business owners. Thats a small tidbit but thought I'd add it here.

 

[hockeyday]

Amen! 1st HUGE step to government control. Aimed at the backbone of an independent and free society - Small business. State Exchanges can't wait to implement Single payer, then say goodbye to quality healthcare and your freedom.

Every year the Dems of Ca. put in legislation to find funding, and once again they have a new proposal which the tyrant Gov. Newsom just signed.
It's redistribution of our taxes to enable Government interference and control of the free marketplace capitalism that built the society we've had the priviledge to live in.
The only question is will we fight to keep it?

Eric that you?

 

[walthamny]

Health Insurance was a viable career option to agents. When Obamacare came, everyone thought their career was over. Now selling health insurance is back in fashion, on the hand, most ACA agents are ready to have the plug pulled any second

 

[myinsurebiz]

Yap Trump is going to take Medicaid and turn that up side down , there goes the dual market, ssdi done millions will be cut off , aca will be a drop in the bucket. Millions will lose health insurance and hospitals and health departments all over the country will close, public colleges all over the place will have their funding cut ending the medical training programs that on the envey of the world, buckle up butter cup

BullChit . . .

 

[bill3173]

Life was grand for a dedicated health and life agent. Every day was a new challenge, and you could set monthly or annual goals, for adding new health clients, and meet them, or keep moving the goal posts. You could actually build relationships with carrier reps that would send you leads, and almost every carrier had a bonus program running all year.

There was no "season for health insurance", you could meaningfully work 12 hours a day on health insurance if you wanted to, talking to people all during the day, and before they went to work and others after they came home. Base Commissions at many BCBS was 20/10 and other carriers 20/5.

The world was a magical place back then: the food tasted better, the air was fresher, and my G-d the women were beautiful.

 

[walthamny]

Never understood why neither Party in Congress came up with this idea: "National Catastrophic Major Medical" for everyone. We used to have such a plan in my home state of Maryland. In an early LUTC class years ago we were told Pres. Eisenhower suggested such a plan in the 1950's. If anyone was serious about building an alternative to "Obamacare" this is as good a place as any to start.

Our local BCBS offered an individual Catrastrophic plan up to around 2008. It had a $50,000 deductible then paid 100% for covered care to a $1 Million lifetime max. The deductible period was a rolling 18 mos. and only required you to incur the expense....not that you paid it out-of-pocket. So any expenses covered by other plans, individual,or group also counted.

The premium was virtually unchanged for years. Wanna guess the person rate? $78 a year and a true "community rate" for all. Can you imagine, we could've insured every man, woman and child in our state of 5.68 million in 2008 for $443 million for the entire year. And "underwritng" was a breeze....if you could fog a mirror and sign your name, you were insurable.

Granted, $78 a year now won't cut it. Even so, $1 million still buys lots of care. I did a number of self-funded group plans from 1990-2010 and saw very few claims iexceed $50,000. So maybe we need $240 a year or a meager $20 a month. per person.

This plan-type on a national basis would unleash insurers, employers and individuals to get creative and develop plans to fund care below the high-deductible. You might see association and fraternal plans make a comeback. It would restore an individual's choice to decide how much risk their willing to take and how much they're willing to pay. When you consider today's exorbitant Obamacare rates + the high deductibles, most folks are out tens-of-thousands of dollars before they see a dime back. At those rates, you could fund your own $50k deductible in just 2-3 years!

I've tried finding information about Eisenhower's idea but hit dead ends, including on the Eisenhower Library website. If politicians of all stripes could stop grand-standing and get serious about solving real problems, there may be hope for us after all.

There are two simple reasons why this would never pass in USA. Birth Control and abortion. Neither party will compromise. Democrats wont approve any plan that does not cover abortion at full cost and Republicans will argue its elective surgery and we will never reach a consensus. SWiss have a plan similar to that, its very cost effective. A government panel decides whats major. Any insurance company can sell the major at any cost but they are not allowed to make profit on it. Insurance companies can also structure and sell supplemental plans however they wish. What if someone cant afford insurance, they have to be filing taxes and government pays the insurance company directly for the major plan and requires individual to file taxes and the health insurance subsidy is dealt there. There is no stupid 1095 A form and going back and forth.

 

[STIBROKER]

Life was grand for a dedicated health and life agent.