As I’ve reported, the health insurers and our employers have been shifting the health cost burden onto the insured over the past few years. And, now, given that many of the poor are on Medicare or subsidized Obamacare (PPACA) programs, it means that it’s pretty much just the the middle class that is feeling the pain of these cost shifts. (It is such a small amount of money to the rich that the change is not truly noticed by them.)

And, the shrinking middle class pocket books are showing their effects. Which becomes even worse now that current healthcare expenditures are encroaching upon 18.2% of our GDP (gross domestic product). The middle-income households are now spending almost 9% of their income on health care- up from below 6% just three decades ago.

This change reflects the much higher deductibles with which businessess are saddling their employees- plus the overall rise in health care costs themselves (such as the ridiculous price increases in pharmaceuticals, which have almost doubled (a 98.2% rise) in the last five years alone).

Before we get to the issue of Obamacare, most of you don’t know that ALL insurance companies are raising their rates- a LOT! For example, private insurance (not Obamacare) was afforded a 62% rate rise for BlueCross BlueShield in Tennessee (the largest insurer in the state).  But, there are increases of  46% for Cigna and 33% for Humana, as well, in Tennessee.  Mississippi has approved a rise of 43% for Humana rates and there’s a 23% rise in Kentucky for the Anthem/Blues and 31% for Humana. The rate increases for the Blues in North Carolina is only going to be about 19% next year, and the rise is almost 16% for the Anthem/Blues in Virginia.

Now, you should know that choosing to buy insurance via Obamacare may not be the best idea for individuals with taxable incomes of $ 45,720 or more. (That’s four times the poverty line- and it also means that, barring extraordinary expenses, the salary for these individuals is close to $ 60K- way different from the taxable income.) Because folks who earn some 4X the poverty rate get no subsidy from the program- they pay full price for their insurance.   The only reason why those folks would opt into Obamacare is if there are pre-existing conditions among their family members.

As has been normal, the more rural the state, the higher the rate increases. We’ve already noted that these rises have nothing to do with Obamacare. Because there is less chance for the economy of scale that is found in the more populous regions of the US.  And, that lack of scale is exactly why we are hearing about the lack of choices for Obamacare in the rural regions of the US.  Next year, about 1/3 of the US counties (again, it’s those rural areas) will have only one Obamacare insurer; there will be 2 carriers for a slew of other rural counties in the US.

And, under Obamacare, these insurance companies are limited to a 20% margin over costs; state regulators do not hold the insurance companies to such strictures. So, it’s not surprising that folks like United Health that never captured the volumes of patients in rural regions they expected (unrealistically, IMHO) are abandoning their offerings. Unless and until more of our younger citizens – those who theoretically don’t really use their insurance- join up.

But, as I’ve also discussed (check out the two previous day’s posts to this reference, too) many of these complaining insurance companies have not really lost the money they claim. (It’s kind of like how other firms never seem to show profits in the US, but manage to hide those funds overseas, places where that income is not taxed.)

And, not that I am the prime example, but I am an old fart. I have preexisting conditions. And, the premiums for my insurance run some $ 10,750 a year- but the total amount shelled out by insurance on my behalf have not yet approached $ 2500 for three calendar years. (That’s total- not per year, folks!)

Hmm. No wonder they really aren’t losing money.

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