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Recent content by socca

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    my collision with Obamacare

    Latest Update: • a couple of years ago (11-2019), I promised to post the details of the short-term (one-year) policy I purchased, but didn't get around to it. It was a National General policy: $180 / mo, $25,000 deductible, $1M max payout, highest-quality local hospital in-network • a couple of...
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    The NPA 2020 Vote: what's changed?

    The NO PARTY AFFILIATION 2020 vote: what’s changed? Back in 2016, I colored in the circle next to Trump’s name on the ballot (which is not the same as voting FOR Trump). I was primarily voting against the broken promises the Democrats made regarding Obamacare: (1) the “rich” will pay for it...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    Latest Update (for people who prefer data over ideology/politics): For someone in my county & risk class: • 2020 lowest-cost Bronze plan: $641.61 / mo = $7,699 / yr > percentage change from 2019: (641.61 - 618.18 ) / 618.18 * 100 = 3.8% increase > Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida ...
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    a new U.S. wealth tax - only on the ultra-wealthy?

    Exactly my point. This decent article in Yahoo Finance discusses this topic. A better title for this article would have been, "Warren’s Wealth Tax Would Be a Pain for the IRS, a Pain for Taxpayers, and a Boon for Appraisers." I spent an additional 20 hours of time preparing my 2018 tax returns...
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    a new U.S. wealth tax - only on the ultra-wealthy?

    Some Democratic presidential candidates have floated the idea of a new U.S. wealth tax (one version: 2% on net worth > $50M; 3% on net worth > $1B). There are a couple of ways that this tax could be implemented in a future version of everyone's favorite document: IRS Form 1040. Version 1: each...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    Latest Update (for people who prefer data over ideology/politics): For someone in my county & risk class: • 2019 lowest-cost [A]CA Bronze plan: $618.18 / mo = $7,418 / yr > percentage change from 2017: (618.18 - 549.61 ) / 549.61 * 100 = 12.5% > BlueCross BlueShield of FL BlueSelect...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    I disagree with everything the Trump administration is up to except for the War on Obamacare. This shouldn't be a surprise - don't forget that I voted straight Democrat for 35 years :). My current disagreements: • the war on science • the war on education • the war on the environment • the war...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    The Democrats will try to blame Trump for skyrocketing health care premiums. Unfortunately, premiums were skyrocketing well before Trump arrived on the scene. The 2018 premiums are just the continuation of a well-established trend. It’s amusing that Trump is so politically inept that he's...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    I logged into healthcare.gov today to see what kind of disaster Obamacare is offering me for 2018. Here is the raw data for your amusement: FROM healthcare.gov: • 2018 lowest-cost Bronze plan: $549.61 / mo = $6,595.32 / yr > percentage change from 2017: (549.61 - 455) / 455 * 100 = 20.8%...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    Latest update: • for 2017, I have purchased 11-month, non-ACA-compliant health insurance from National General. The details: + uses the Aetna Open Choice PPO network >> no referral required >> out of network covered at 50% + $199.60 / mo = $2,388 / yr + term: 11 months + $5,000 deductible...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    Whoops! My bad! :3oops: I guess I don't have a future as a political pundit. In my defense, I had plenty of company: the Huffington Post estimated the probability of a Clinton win at 98.5%, and CNN pointed out that Trump had to take every swing state in order to win, while Clinton only had to...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    What a difference 6 months makes! Since I last posted: • major insurers have been dropping off the exchanges like crazy. Based on preliminary 2017 info on the healthcare.gov website, there is only one major insurer left offering policies in my zip code on the exchange - amazing! • I always...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    Status Update: + I received an amusing call from a Blue Cross / Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSFL) sales rep a couple of weeks ago. As you may recall, BCBSFL cancelled my grandfathered non-Obamacare insurance plan in mid-2015, forcing me to enroll in an Obamacare-compliant plan with a vastly...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    OK, let's review the numbers: + my January 2015 monthly premium [grandfathered plan; not Obamacare compliant, BCBS of FL] : $174 / month ($2,088 / year) + my January 2016 monthly premium [Obamacare complaint plan, Bronze, Aetna] : $398 / month ($4,776 / year) + my year-over-year annualized...
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    my collision with Obamacare

    I'm definitely not arguing that everyone should be forced into insurance policies with high deductibles - that's ridiculous. My point is that there are some people whose personal circumstances make policies with a high deductible desirable. For example, someone in a low risk category with...
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