oh darn it....

[RIJIMMY]

Health Insurers Plan Hikes

Health insurers say they plan to raise premiums for some Americans as a direct result of the health overhaul in coming weeks, complicating Democrats' efforts to trumpet their signature achievement before the midterm elections.


More from WSJ.com:

• Health Insurers: Rate Hikes Coming Soon

• Obama Tax Plan Holds Less for Small Businesses

• Start-Ups on a Shoestring



Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET - News), some BlueCross BlueShield plans and other smaller carriers have asked for premium increases of between 1% and 9% to pay for extra benefits required under the law, according to filings with state regulators.

These and other insurers say Congress's landmark refashioning of U.S. health coverage, which passed in March after a brutal fight, is causing them to pass on more costs to consumers than Democrats predicted.

The rate increases largely apply to policies for individuals and small businesses and don't include people covered by a big employer or Medicare.

About 9% of Americans buy coverage through the individual market, according to the Census Bureau, and roughly one-fifth of people who get coverage through their employer work at companies with 50 or fewer employees, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. People in both groups are likely to feel the effects of the proposed increases, even as they see new benefits under the law, such as the elimination of lifetime and certain annual coverage caps.

[scottw]

don't worry, everything will be fine, the admin. phonied up some employment numbers for Barry and he's reminding everyone right now how great everything is, will be and would not have been if not for him

[fishbones]

[QUOTE=RIJIMMY;793828]
The rate increases largely apply to policies for individuals and small businesses and don't include people covered by a big employer or Medicare.
QUOTE]

No mention of medium size employers. I just had to negotiate a new rate with BCBS a few weeks ago. Instead of the 14% they were asking for, I got it down to only an 11% increase.

But it's ok. Employees have no problem shelling out more money when there's a wage freeze on.

[scottw]

everyone is hurting out there

The Los Angeles Times reports :





But we do know that as of the end of 2009, 41 people inside Obama's very own White House owe the government they're allegedly running a total of $831,055 in back taxes





Why stop there?





In the House of Representatives, 421 people owe a total $6,524,892. In the Senate, 217 owe $2,774,836. In the IRS's parent department, Treasury, 1,204 owe $7,670,814. At the Labor Dept., where Secy. Hilda Solis' husband had some backtax problems before her confirmation, 463 owe $7,481,463. Eighty-one workers for the Federal Reserve System's board of governors owe $1,076,733.

Over at the Justice Department, which is so busy enforcing other laws and suing Arizona, 1,971 employees still owe $14,350,152 in overdue taxes.

Then, we come to the Department of Homeland Security, which is run by Janet Napolitano, the former governor of Arizona who preferred to call terrorist acts "man-caused disasters." Homeland Security is keeping all of us safe by ensuring that a Dutch tourist is onboard every inbound international flight to thwart any would-be bomber with explosives in his underpants.

Within that department, there reside 4,856 people who owe the tax agency a whopping total of $37,012,174.

And they're checking our pockets for metal and coins?



All told, federal employees across the nation owe $1 billion in back taxes.