Truth Team: Let's talk about tax credits

On October 1st -- in just 18 days! -- more than 30 million uninsured Americans will be able to sign up for affordable health insurance in the marketplace, many for the very first time.

One of the lesser-known facts about Obamacare is that under the law, millions of Americans will be eligible for financial assistance, or tax credits. Unfortunately, this is also one of the newest targets for our opponents in Congress who are trying to derail the law -- and they have plenty of myths to spread here.

We Truth Teamers have an opportunity to make sure our friends and family know the truth about what Obamacare financial assistance is and what it means. Check out this cool calculator from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation that shows how the tax credits work -- and then share it on Facebook or Twitter.

This is just one way Obamacare is helping provide security to the middle class.

Our opponents are out there blowing hot air about the impact of Obamacare -- some are even trying to stop the law entirely. Just this week, we saw two separate attempts in Congress to block crucial parts of how Obamacare provides better benefits and lower costs to millions.

But we've got the facts on our side -- and we've got to spread the word.

Here's how the financial assistance works:

-- Individuals earning up to $45,000 per year -- or families of four earning up to $94,000 per year -- will be eligible to receive it.

-- Nearly half of all people who currently buy their own health insurance will be eligible for financial assistance next year -- and, on average, are expected to save about $2,700 a year.
This is huge -- for the country, for the middle class, and for folks out there who have been looking forward to the day that they can finally get affordable health care.

We need to be the ones out there telling folks that day is coming soon -- and the tax credits will probably help someone you know.

Check out the subsidies calculator:

http://my.barackobama.com/Kaiser-Subsidy-Calculator

And share it with your family and friends on Facebook:

http://my.barackobama.com/Kaiser-Subsidy-Calculator-FB

Or tweet it out:

http://my.barackobama.com/Kaiser-Subsidy-Calculator-TW

APP: Middletown health plan tops most in cost, coverage

In following up last week's article "Middletown reduces workers hours to avoid Obamacare", the Asbury Park Press (and others) found it incredulous that the Township was cutting back the hours of  25 part-time employees due to the $31,000 per employee price tag that it would cost the Township to provide health  coverage to them under the terms of the soon to be implemented Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). For many  (myself included, you can read about it  HERE)  the $31,000 price tag stated seemed absurdly high and not at all possible, but it is. In its follow-up article from Saturday, "Middletown health plan tops most in cost, coverage" the APP's reporter Susanne Cervenka spoke to the town's insurance broker who stated that Middletown Township’s health benefits are so good " the coverage would fall under a nonexistent “Double Diamond” rating on the Affordable Care Act’s four-tier ranking."  Insurance rankings for plans proposed under the Affordable Care Act actually includes Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum level coverage.

The article goes on to state that Middletown expects to pays about $9.3 million this year for employee and retiree health bills or about 14 percent of this year's overall $67.9 million budget which represent about 18 percent of the municipal tax levy. Employee offset the costs by contributing only $520,000 towards their benefits. And on average,health care costs taxpayers who own an average Middletown home worth $375,500 about $337 a year.

That's outragous especially when you consider that according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization focusing on the major health care issues, the  average health care costs in the Northeast is $17,441 for family coverage and $6,117 for single coverage which would make Middletown's health care costs nearly double the national average.

At that cost, Middletown could afford to insure all it's employees while cutting its overall cost of coverage in half!

NEW JERSEY CONSUMERS TO RECEIVE OVER $106.4 MILLION IN HEALTH INSURANCE REBATES THANKS TO AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

For Immediate Release:
April 26, 2012

(NEW JERSEY) – New Jersey consumers will receive $106,462,468 in health insurance rebates as a result of provisions of the Affordable Care Act, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report released earlier today.

“This year, New Jersey consumers will actually be getting money back from their insurance companies,” said Joshua Henne, New Jersey spokesman for Know Your Care. “This sort of rebate would have been entirely unheard of a few years ago. Thanks to President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, we can now come to expect this sort of transparency and consumer protection.  It’s nice to finally have someone on our side and looking out for the best interests of consumers.”

The Affordable Care Act requires that insurance companies spend at least 80% of premiums on patient care. This provision, the Medical Loss Ratio (MLR), guarantees that consumer premiums are going back to the consumers themselves – and not used for CEO bonuses or corporate retreats. Insurance companies who do not meet this 80% mark must pay rebates to consumers. The amount depends on the extent to which the insurer fell below that threshold.

The MLR provision is just one of many ways that the Affordable Care Act increases transparency and extends new protections to American consumers.  The rule went into effect on January 1^st, 2011. The first rebates to consumers will be issued this year. However, in the small group market, one insurer in New Jersey has already paid $18,934,071 in rebates to consumers.

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The Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23^rd, 2010. Over the past two years, it has been a tremendous help to millions of Americans as this real reform lowers costs and guarantees more choice for consumers.  As additional provisions are implemented, ACA will continue to benefit millions more people.