So Important They Aren't Bothering To Track It

You may have thought that a major impetus for healthcare reform was the looming spectre of 30 or 40 million Americans who lacked insurance. It may even be that that notion was planted by Presidential rhetoric such as this, from a 2009 speech to a joint session of Congress pitching health care:

We are the only democracy -- the only advanced democracy on Earth -- the only wealthy nation -- that allows such hardship for millions of its people.  There are now more than 30 million American citizens who cannot get coverage.  In just a two-year period, one in every three Americans goes without health care coverage at some point.  And every day, 14,000 Americans lose their coverage.  In other words, it can happen to anyone.

So how is ObamaCare doing at enrolling the uninsured? Don't ask, because they can't tell:

"That's not a data point that we are really collecting in any sort of systematic way," Cohen [of HHS] told the insurance-industry crowd on Thursday when asked how many of the roughly 4 million enrollees were previously uninsured.

Why would they want to know whther they were meeting their goals or not?

AllahPundit has a more vigorous beatdown here.

POIGNANT: The Times editors admit that the delay in banning junk, skimpy, sub-standard plans is purely political but back it anyway because Obama, Evil Republicans, duh. Do they have any reservations about this endless exercise of transitional powers by the President? Any concerns that one day an Evil Republican President might impose an endless transition on gun control or environmental regulation or expanded access to abortion? Those are worries for another day.

They do preserve their sense of humor, or at least tickle ours, with this:

Administration officials point to an analysis by the RAND Corporation, which estimated that enrollments in the exchanges could drop by 500,000 people because of the extension last November. That’s a small segment of the roughly 11 million people who have health insurance policies from the individual market, usually under one-year contracts. There is always enormous turnover in the individual market; about half of the policyholders leave the market within 18 months, usually because they get a job with health benefits or become eligible for Medicare.

Uh huh. Sooo 1980's. Every free-lancer who is now their own brand, including many former NY Times employees who took the buy-out rather than face the ax, are now candidates for the private insurance market. Will most of them land new jobs with benefits, or be free-lancers for life?

Comments

[Jim Eagle]

First?

[Neo]

President Obama has nothing but “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” for the women of soul, even if he accidentally misspelled the title of Aretha Franklin’s signature anthem.

In an “oops” moment tonight, the president dropped a letter when paying tribute to the one and only Franklin at the White House concert series event, “In Performance at the White House: Women of Soul.”

“When Aretha first told us what R-S-P-E-C-T meant to her, she had no idea it would become a rallying cry for African Americans, and women, and then everyone who felt marginalized because of what they looked like or who they loved. They wanted some respect,” the president said.

LUN

[Ignatz]

OR-ee-on, corpse, rspect, 57 states, Austrian;
What is it MarkO keeps saying?

[jimmyk]

Don't forget "inequities."

[Jim Eagle]

Mike Lee soundbite at CPAC:

"Stop talking about Reagan and start acting like him".

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

TomM's point-- this is a churn operation, that has reduced the number of private insureds, and added a couple of million to MediCaid-Welfare. And taxed the rest of us either directly through high-income earner increases or indirectly through higher premiums/deductibles for middle earners. It's socialism, so it's made everyone more miserable-- that's what socialism does.

[narciso]

I pointed out on the other thread, how Zerohedge, found the last round of chocolate rations even lighter than usual, 95/175,000

[narciso]

Carlos Slim's has a decent piece on the history of the Crimea, which occupies a place somewhat like Texas, in Russian history.

[jimmyk]

I mentioned this at the end of a dying thread, and maybe it's obvious, given the stories about sick people losing their doctors and treatments, but I think it's worth pointing out:

[A] health plan cannot deny enrollment, or the plan’s benefits, to someone based on that person’s preexisting.

However, that is not the same as saying that a plan has to include coverage for any particular preexisting condition, and it certainly does not mean a plan has to include coverage for ongoing treatment that a patient started before obtain coverage in an exchange plan on January 1, 2014.

http://nation.foxnews.com/2013/11/05/no-obamacare-might-not-cover-your-preexisting-condition

Kind of makes a joke out of the whole fuss about 404Care enabling people with pre-existing conditions to get "coverage." Maybe that's a good thing, given how little sense it makes to let people wait till they get sick to get "health insurance." The problem is that it's caused problems for people who did have coverage.

[Eric in Boise]

OT, but the Pegster's takedown of Komrade DeBlasio this morning at the WSJ is epic. She's sounding less like an Obama supporter with each passing week. Not that she doesn't still need to be reminded of it at every opportunity:)

[narciso]

So, it makes as much sense as the Budapest Memorandum them,

[MarkO]

Please, no calls to fix ObamaCare.

And, Obama's just not that smart.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Peggy Noonan-- her blasting of warren 'Bane' Wilhelm, Jr. is predictable. He's a commie thug, he's a danger to her rich 5th Avenue pals, and worst of all to Peggy-- he's very tardy and impolite.

[Captain Hate]

Please, no calls to fix ObamaCare.

That sounds like exactly what Cantor the weasel is up to with his doc.fix.

[Ranger]

Via Hot Air Headlines:

The White House Promises There Will Be No Obamacare Bailout

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-06/the-white-house-promises-there-will-be-no-obamacare-bailout

Sort version, it looks like Obama just threw the insurance companies under the bus.

The author of the story spins this as good politics by Obama to protect Dems from the "bailout" charge. But, I suspect the insurance companies will not be pleased. How many will simply pull out of the exchanges if they see now way to recover the loses they will take on each policy they write there? It's very difficult to have an exchange, if there is no one willing to offer policies for it.

[rse]

ch-I also do not care for Cantor's ed initiatives. Either he does not understand it or thinks the rest of us do not.

nk-socialism in health care is intricately linked to the socialist theory of the mind as I get into today.http://www.invisibleserfscollar.com/imposing-cybernetics-control-theory-on-students-while-pretending-the-impetus-is-equity-for-all/

In both areas the equity for all is just a sales pitch for socialist control.

[jimmyk]

Agreed, Eric, an excellent column from Peggy for once. One can only hope DeBlasio becomes as hated as Robespierre. He certainly comes off like a real prick, who, like Obama, is determined to do what he wants to do regardless of public opposition and basic human decency. Eighty percent of NYCers slept through the election and allowed this guy to come into power. Mussolini's fate might be too merciful for him.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow while the Capitol gorges itself]

and he said Cocktaw Indians instead of Choctaw

http://www.rights-right.com/t12636f3-Presidential-mispronounces-name-of-Choctaw-Nation.html

[Old Lurker]

My rant last night covered Cantor nicely I thought.

[Captain Hate]

rse & OL, Cantor is second only to Ryan when it comes to image versus actions.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

rse-- no doubt. The result is socialism and the result of socialism is expanding misery-- except for the connected cronies.

[Bori]

Re @ 10:59

Sure, they really mean it this time, they will keep their promise. LOL!

[Captain Hate]

My rant last night covered Cantor nicely I thought.

Well done; I agreed with everything.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

True Bori-- the Obamaniacs are flailing. ObummerCare is a poisoned chalice not the holy grail of power. What they say is meaningless. But, I agree with ranger, I do think the BigGovInsurers will protect themselves and ignore the delays and fully implement ExchangeCare this year and write only complying policies and demand rate hikes, That will become apparent this summer. Killer for the Dems.

[Old Lurker]

Cap'n, did I see your pal Mark Levin has one state signed up for a Constitutional Convention?

[Threadkiller]

"Cantor the weasel"

[Old Lurker]

Yep TK.

[Captain Hate]

OL, I know Mark has been talking, iirc, Miss Marple's state having taken steps for an Article V convention but I wasn't sure how far it had gotten.

[Ignatz]

Cantor the musteline; h/t Marko. :)

[Bori]

NK,

I agree that the Insurers will attempt to minimize the damage as possible, but State Regulators will have a say on it.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Indeed-- and the red State regulators who see ObummerCare as an infringement on their turf-- they will hep Out Obummer? I think the Arkansa, NC, Alaska, even colo regulators won't roll over for Obummer. These are electorally important states.

[maryrose]

NK;
You are correct.Colorado,Arkansas and especially North Carolina see the feckless fraud Obama and his total disregard for their welfare. Not far behind is West Virginia and Ohio. Those states are going red in 2014 and 2016. Hopefully Alaska will wake up and smell the coffee as well.

[Miss Marple]

It isn't enough that you take a pass on gay marriage.

Two gay couples are suing Governor Pence to legalize marriage for them. I believe this is a federal lawsuit, but I could be wrong.

They keep this up and they will be REALLY surprised at how many people formerly tolerated them and now do not.

[glasater]

TomM's point-- this is a churn operation, that has reduced the number of private insureds, and added a couple of million to MediCaid-Welfare.

I'd liken this more to a "Hotel California" situation where once you get into the Obummer care system you can never leave…especially if one would be on Medicaid.

[We are programmed to deceive.]

Hospital California.

[GMax]

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