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I know there is no COLA adjustment for Social Security for 2016. But does this mean Social Security won't send out the letter listing the benefits expected next year? This letter usually is mailed out by Social Security around the second to third week of December. Has anyone received this letter from Social Security yet?

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Haven't received mine, but I do get a Medicare newsletter, and from that, here are the stats:

People already on Medicare, with premium deducted from their Social Security, premium will remain at 104.90 per month.

For new enrollees, and those whose premium isn't deducted from Social Security, 2016 premium will be 121.80 per month.

Medicare Part A Deductible rises from $1260.00 per benefit period to $1288.00 per benefit period.

Part B Deductible will rise from 147.00 per year to $166.00 per year. Tthe 20% coinsurance for Part B stays, as well as Part B excess charges of an additional 15%, if a doctor not accept "Assignment".

Daily co-insurance amounts will be $322.00 per day for days 61 through 90 for inpatient hospital, and $644.00 per day for Lifetime Reserve days.

For Skilled Nursing Facilities, the coinsurance will rise to $161.00 per day for days 21 through 100, from $157.50.
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GA, the insurance companies doubled the premiums of many people before the ACA was enacted. They justified it by saying that it was because of the extra requirements of the ACA. I think they did it, really, to tap into subsidy money. The federal taxpayer cash cow. Raising premiums on people who had rarely even used their insurance at a time when not having it was illegal was pretty much highway robbery. Sadly, I've come to not expect much from the medical and insurance communities. They don't seem to possess any humanitarian bones in their bodies. It's all about the money. It is sad when you see people willing to hurt so many in the country for the sake of a dollar.
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The cost of insurance is outrageous. I was on COBRA from my last employer. My coverage was for me and me alone. My premium covered health and dental insurance. The monthly premium was almost $1,000 in 2014. I tried to find other coverage but it was more than the COBRA premium. It went down to $888 for 2015 but ran out at the end of October. Since I have no income while waiting on my disability decision, I couldn't afford any insurance at all for the months of November and December. The state of Georgia didn't adopt Obamacare, so you're basically screwed unless you fall into a very specific window. I had to withdraw an exact amount from my retirement fund (and will pay dearly for that because I'm 58) for the privilege of paying $178 per month - getting a tax credit to make up the difference in what would have been almost a $700 premium. Now I have to prove that is my only income in order to keep the tax credit. To get dental insurance, I'll have to pay about $80 per month. I haven't committed to that yet. But the difference in what I was paying - which completely wiped out what little savings I had - and what I will be paying in 2016 is sickening. The policy isn't nearly as good as my previously policy and I'll have to give up most of my doctors, all of whom are specialists and very much needed, as well as many of my medications. There is something very wrong with our healthcare system and Obamacare did NOT fix it. I thank God that my mom had a great policy that kicked in as a secondary policy when she went on Medicare, so she now gets 100% for the most part. However, her share of her medications still run well over $2100 last year and I haven't got the total for this year yet, but the cost was higher. She is only 76 and on a lousy $200 disability payment monthly. It is totally about the money for the pharmaceutical companies and the lobbyists. Unless and until I get disability - maybe in another year - I'm not eligible for assistance either. I went from flush to zero in less than 2 years. If I weren't living with my Mom to care for her, I would be on the streets and so would she if she weren't married. But because she is married, she isn't eligible for any assistance. This is SO incredibly wrong.
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I totally agree JessieBelle! We are gouged from every direction. I read an article yesterday that further made my blood boil. 85,000 refugees (for whom I do have empathy that have to flee their homeland to survive) will be entitled to welfare, Social Security and Medicare for life. How in the world is that fair to the citizens of this country??
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This is a country where it is easy to convince people to vote against their own best interest. TV and radio made it easy. Computers with email makes it easier still. If you want people to shoot themselves in the foot, all you have to do is circulate an email convincing them why NOT shooting themselves would ultimately lead to destruction of the country.

Universal health care is a good example. But the AMA and insurance companies certainly didn't want it. The next thing there were the viral emails about how the people who never worked would get the same care as those who work so hard to pay their taxes. And the immigrants would get it. That stirred people up to think the country was for sure on its way to ruin. Then they talked about how Canadians hate their universal healthcare and run to the US to get the better care here.

I know a lot of Canadians and believe me, they think their healthcare is fine. They can pay for private care if they choose without fleeing to the US, but most prefer the state-provided services. A wealthy friend of mine uses the state system. He says it's fine. He told me he does make sure to take out traveler's insurance when he goes to Seattle or Hawaii, because the healthcare system here would wipe him out if something happened.

About the rest of what was written -- people without jobs and immigrants already get free care when they need it.

Still, people turned in droves against the ACA before it even came up on the floor of Congress. And we ended up with remnants that created the mess we have now. And Obama gets blamed. Sheesh.
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Jessie, your post of 12 hours ago on voting against one's own interest, the politics of the ACA, and other related subjects is very well written and insightful. You've very articulately summed up the issues.

I would only add that many voters are unwilling to read and learn the facts for themselves, then vote with emotion rather than common sense, and we end up with so-called legislators who do not have the country's best interest in their actions.

And there's always the age-old issue of how much those who have should or could or want to help those who have not, an issue which I'm sure has been addressed by every country or civilization that ever existed, yet still there is no real solution that will satisfy everyone. Probably never will be.
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ATof3kids, my story is very similar to yours. I'm in Alabama. I am self employed, but business has been very slow for three years. I was paying $350 a month for insurance and dental two years ago. Before the ACA was enacted, the insurance company (bcbs) doubled the premium. This year they increased it to over $900, so I went with Humana on the marketplace. This is so wrong. I do wish we had gotten on a single-payer system. When that fell through, the insurance companies went to work to mild the federal subsidy cash cow. It also seems like the pharmaceuticals have become especially aggressive in their price increases. I have totally lost my respect for the health care and insurance companies of America. What I've been seeing looks a lot like treason. Too bad hurting the country like this cannot be prosecuted.
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mild should be milk.
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Jessie, you're in AL? so am I...my son got bcbs and they increased his premium to $170/mo.; there's another one now besides it and Humana - UHG? is that it, that we didn't have last year; the marketplace did say that they were having problems with the insurance companies taking the subsidies but then still charging the people the full amount

but ATof3kids, I don't understand what you mean by GA not adopting Obamacare; do you mean they didn't set up a state exchange? AL didn't either; I also don't understand what you mean by having to withdraw an exact amount from your retirement fund but I do understand having to pay dearly for doing it because - I assume you're talking about being younger than 59-1/2 - of your age; we did that as well for other reasons and spent years paying high taxes because of it but I'm curious as to how that enabled you to get the tax credit or again why you had to to get it - my son and dil got it but proving that's your only income shouldn't be a problem, should it...but did you have to stay on Cobra till it ran out - maybe so...like son wouldn't have been able to get on the Obamacare if they hadn't let him go from his job, so maybe that was a good thing but then he didn't wind up on Cobra, so did you have to? but then he didn't have the insurance they offered either; could that be the difference...he couldn't afford it, would have taken all his paycheck, not that that made any difference to the hospital when dil needed surgery, which wondering now what's going to happen; she's been told it's caused other problems but I also don't understand your mom only getting $200 disability; that's far less than SSI; can she not get that? or is that because she's married?
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I can answer part of that question. To qualify for a subsidy you have to make at least a certain amount -- something like $14000 a year. The size of the subsidy goes down with any amount above that. If you're a caregiver making nothing, you could qualify for Medicaid if you wanted to. BUT if you have retirement savings, you can't qualify for Medicaid in states where there was no expansion. So you end up drawing money out of your retirement savings to make sure you can qualify for the subsidy. If you are making nothing you have to draw out about $14000 each year. Really, people who fell through the cracks like this didn't have to buy insurance. They were exempted. But who wants to be uninsured?

When you are older insurance costs more. I'm 63 and a decent policy for me costs over $900 with bcbs per month and over $700 with Humana. I could get cheaper insurance, but the deductibles are very high.
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