teko -- I'll have to try to find the article to verify this, but I'm sure I read recently that *none* of the provisions of the health care plan go into effect until 2013, even though we begin paying immediately. That includes the part which denies insurance companies the right to drop your coverage, or refuse to cover you if you have pre-existing conditions.
First of all, welcome to CE. There are many misconceptions of what health care reform entails. Opposition seems to think that it is a government takeover, and that it is free care for ones such as you, and they think that if they have insurance and pay premiums they will now be taxed to cover your free care. Is this in the bill, not to my knowledge. I think that way of thinking comes from Fox News. But that is my opinion.
My take on all this is that we will do away with the pre existing clause, as well as caps, and the insurance companies can no longer drop your care. These from what I understand will take place immediately, this year. However it will take a few years to implement some of the bill, such as setting up pools to choose from, and I do understand that there will be a requirement to carry insurance once these options are set in place. This is where they get government takeover, I think. The bill will be paid for by gleaning the waste and fraud in many other entitlement programs as well as a tax put on people making over 250,000 a year (If I understand correctly). The CBO has looked at the numbers and has said it is doable and will bring down the deficit. The other side says the CBO has been wrong before.
The other issue has been how they are proceding with this. Some people think it is all behind closed doors and being done to shove it down the throats of the American people even tho they do not want it. Personally, I wish it could have been done another way as well, but do feel that this is so important that it still needs done. IMO Republicans have been having a tantrum for the last 18 months and all it has done is accomplish nothing. No working together, notta and IMO it is because they are intent on getting their power back and if Obama succeeds at anything, it will threaten that reality.
Now these are my thoughts only, others here certainly disagree with me and that is ok.
It offends me when I hear someone say you want healthcare and you want me to pay for it. NOT TRUE! We want affordable health care and we want the power taken away from the insurance companies that now control whether we get it or not by charging ridiculous premiums to anyone not having employer based insurance. I want to pay for my own care, I do not want hand outs, but I do not think it fair that because I lost my insurance in the workplace, that they should be able to hold agains me what I was treating for beforehand and now tell me I am uninsurable. That is what is not right. I could go on and on and on. I also feel like if they can create these pools, it will take a lot of people off the medicaid system alons. How many people are on welfare just to get their children medical coverage because they cannot find a job that offers insurance or it is otherwise impossible for them to do. However, if you have no children, even medicaid is off limits.
I should have been a preacher I know! Anyways, I totally agree with you and hopefully, and I do say hopefully this thing will go thru. If not we will still get higher premiums and more people will be on the already bulging system.