Katy Grimes nails it on Covered California

President Obama just apologized for the millions of insurance policy cancellations under the Affordable Care Act, usually called Obamacare. He also has blamed “bad apple” insurers for the cancellations.
But in California, critics of the program insist the cancellations were not made by the insurers, but by Covered California, the state’s implementation of Obamacare. California compelled insurers participating in the Covered California health exchange to cancel noncompliant individual policies.
Cal Watch

Young and healthy, beware:

Gottwals [health care policy attorney and Obamacare expert with BB&T-Liberty Benefit Insurance] said the singular insurance issue with medical providers is reimbursement — getting paid for the treatment they give. Mandated coverage is the only way to save money in the system and cut reimbursement costs. “It’s a race to the bottom,” Gottwals said. “Doctors will opt out of [accepting] insurance because of low reimbursements. It’s not philosophical. The only leverage the government has is, ‘We’ll cut reimbursements.’ There’s no other way to to save money in health reform because of the mandated benefits.” Interestingly, Gottwals said the average age of persons enrolled in Obamacare is 51-54. By contrast, in 2013 the average age of someone enrolled in pre-Obamacare insurance was 41, which is close to the U.S. median age of 37 years. “This is significantly going to blow costs up, and taxpayers will be on the hook to pay for the difference,” said Gottwals. That’s because older people require more health care. He said there is a bailout plan already written into the Affordable Care Act, which requires U.S. taxpayers to pay the difference between what care is covered and what is not. “It is going to go way over budget, and taxpayers are on the hook for 80 cents on every dollar,” said Gottwals. “It’s a bad deal, and bad for taxpayers.”