If you are a legal resident alien, you will be required to obtain the same government-mandated health coverage that US citizens must obtain. However, if you have been here for less than five years, and if your income falls below 133 percent of the federal poverty level, you will not be allowed to enroll...
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The new healthcare law creates subsidies for employer-provided insurance for retirees, but these new subsidies phase out in 2014.[1] Moreover, the subsidies go not to individuals but to employers. Indeed, one of the ironies of the new health law is that the first subsidies are going not to low-income, uninsured families, but to General...
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Suppose you’re a small-business owner, and you’re unsure how to deal with the choices you face under the new healthcare reform law. Unless you employ mainly high-income people, your best option is probably to avoid providing health insurance altogether. The reason: your employees will be able to obtain insurance that is cheaper (for them)...
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In almost every case under the Affordable Care Act, married couples will fare poorly compared to unmarried couples. The reason: subsidies in the newly created health insurance exchange will treat two singles better than a married couple. Suppose you are earning 200 percent of the federal poverty level (currently $21,660). You will be required...
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Like all other individuals, young adults will be required by federal law to purchase health insurance with the specific benefits the federal government says they must have, regardless of whether they want to pay for them and regardless of whether those benefits are useful to them. For instance, young single males will be required...
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In a post entitled “Regime Uncertainty on Display – Gun Version,” George Johns at Sleepless in Midland argues that the White House’s rhetoric on gun control has been good (so far) for the firearms industry: Gun and ammo manufacturers and sellers are thriving like never before. And the reason is fear of Barack Obama’s...
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If you are one of the more than 22 million people [1] enrolled in a Health Savings Account (HSA) or a Health Reimbursement Arrangement or if you work for the one of every two employers who now offer one of these consumer-driven health plans, in the future you will have fewer options. The new...
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New Book Examines the ‘Risky Business’ of Insurance Regulation “Insurance is too important to society and to commerce to be left as a political pawn,” writes Lawrence S. Powell, the editor of the newest Independent Institute book, Risky Business: Insurance Markets and Regulation. Powell’s words are timely because, as with so many natural disasters,...
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Unless you qualify for an exception, beginning in 2014, the new law will require you to obtain a health insurance plan. For the first two years, state governments will have the power to dictate most of the benefits the plans must include. Beyond that point, the benefits will probably be mandated under federal law....
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Probably not. No promise was repeated more often by Barack Obama than the pledge that, “If you like the plan you are in, you can keep it.” For the vast majority of people, however, this promise almost certainly will not be kept. Here’s why. Your Employer May Be Forced to Switch to Another Plan...
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