Personal Story: As I See It Part IV
The Democrat Led Healthcare Mess
Among the other freebies, the Democrats push for free health care. No one denies that this would cost trillions in new taxes. Exorbitant taxes to pay for crap healthcare. Their first attempt with the Affordable Care Act... well, it made insurance more unaffordable, and destroyed healthcare for many.
In my case, my decent insurance was cancelled once the ACA took effect, and I was offered a lesser policy for double the price. In the first year, the cost of a policy just for one of my sons went from $192/month to $535/month, with less availability of physicians and hospitals, and severely limited prescription benefits. Prescriptions that I once obtained for a $10 copay were now not covered, but could be purchased out of pocket for hundreds, and yes thousands of dollars.
The so-called parity law that made mental health and substance abuse treatment equal to health care coverage with ACA was also a lie. I spoke to several rehab providers in Cali who said the government was basically blackmailing them to offer free beds for a certain number of patients. The government wasn’t compensating these private entities for these free beds so that they could continue to provide advanced services. What is the logical outcome of this? It guaranteed that these private rehabs, not only decreased acceptance of insurance. but also lowered the quality of care, and in some cases caused the closure of the facility altogether.
The facilities listed as offering drug rehab services paid for through this parity provision are a mystical unicorn. In the first year of the ACA, I contacted at least 20 different facilities in the Southern California area on the list. Each had one or two beds that were offered for inpatient rehab that were not cash pay and covered by ACA insurance. The process for getting one of these beds for a loved one was insane in itself. The drug addicted person had to call at 7 a.m. every day to ask if a bed was available. If they missed calling one morning at 7, they were taken off the list, and when they did manage to call on a morning, they were put back on the list at the bottom. It was explained to me that a few lucky people who manage to do that for several years, may get a bed, if they don’t die first. A year into the ACA, the list went down to only a few places.
People who really want the government to control their healthcare should really try being on Medicaid for a while and see how it really works. There are no choices and care is either limited or unavailable. I know plenty of people thrown onto Medicaid, not by choice, through the ACA. Most have given up on health care and haven’t seen a doctor in years. Healthcare has always had its issues, but I’d much rather have my old affordable policy that gave good coverage, than what I was forced into for a much higher price.
So, who are all those people that have benefitted from the ACA? I am sure there are some out there somewhere. I personally only know people who lost their good coverage, and now have worthless insurance. The wealthy ones just pay out of pocket to go to their old doctors who are no longer covered or pay a concierge fee for decent care.