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Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: Soul Crusher on March 18, 2014, 07:50:46 AM
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http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/obamacare-leaves-las-vegas-man-owing-407000-doctor-bills
Unreal
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By JENNIFER ROBISON
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
The hospital bills are hitting Larry Basich’s mailbox.
That would be OK if Basich had health insurance. But he doesn’t.
Thing is, he should be covered. Basich, 62, bought a plan through the state’s Nevada Health Link insurance exchange in the fall. He’s been paying monthly premiums since November.
Yet the Las Vegan is stranded in a no-man’s-land where no carrier claims him, and his tab is mounting: Basich owes $407,000 for care received in January and February, when his policy was supposed to be in effect. Instead, he’s covered only for March and beyond.
Basich has begged for weeks for help from the exchange and its contractor, Xerox. But Basich’s insurance broker said Xerox seems more interested in lawyering up and covering its hide than in working out Basich’s problems. Nor is Basich the only client facing plan-selection errors through the exchange, she added.
Xerox, meanwhile, said it’s working every day to fix Basich’s problem, and its legal counsel is routine.
In the rollout of the Affordable Care Act and its insurance exchanges, you can find a success story for every failure. But Basich’s case is extreme.
WHO’S RESPONSIBLE?
Basich said he began trying to enroll on Oct. 1, the day the exchange website went live. Like many consumers, he fought technical flaws during multiple sign-up attempts. In mid-November he finally got through and chose his plan: UnitedHealthcare’s MyHPNSilver1.
“It was like reaching the third level of Doom,” Basich said of the torturous sign-up process.
Basich paid his first premium on Nov. 21, and within days the exchange withdrew the $160.77 payment from his money-market savings account. Because Basich paid a month before the Dec. 23 deadline, his coverage was to begin Jan. 1.
Weeks ticked by, but Basich received nothing to confirm he had insurance. Nevada Health Link kept telling him he was enrolled, but UnitedHealthcare said he wasn’t in their system.
Basich’s predicament went critical on Dec. 31, when he had a heart attack. His treatment, which included a triple bypass on Jan. 3, resulted in $407,000 in medical bills in January and February that no insurer is covering.
Basich and his insurance broker, Tamar Burch of Branch Benefits Consultants, said the issue appears to be confusion at the state exchange. Xerox’s system says Basich chose a plan from another insurer, Nevada Health CO-OP, even though Basich has paperwork that shows he selected MyHPNSilver1. In short, Xerox can’t seem to decide where Basich belongs, Burch said.
So the exchange is trying to compromise, putting Basich with Nevada Health CO-OP for January and February, when he incurred his bills, and with UnitedHealthcare from this month on. But CO-OP officials say Basich is not their member.
Nevada Health CO-OP CEO Tom Zumtobel told the exchange board on Feb. 27 that the nonprofit carrier spent seven days with Xerox determining Basich’s eligibility, only to find that Basich hadn’t chosen the group’s coverage.
“If he had picked our health plan, we would be advocating for a solution. But he didn’t pick us,” Zumtobel said. “We need someone on the board to advocate for him.”
Why have four months passed without a resolution?
“Xerox is truly out of their league. They need to understand they are an administrator, they are not an insurance company,” Burch said. “They need to understand their boundaries. They don’t understand this world. Everybody is at the mercy of Xerox, and they are not doing this right.”
Xerox representatives responded that they’re working hard to make it right.
“Mr. Basich’s issue is complex, and we’re working on it every day. We are in touch with Mr. Basich, his broker, the carriers, (Silver State Health Insurance Exchange) leadership, and the Division of Insurance to sort it out,” said spokeswoman Jennifer Wasmer.
The help didn’t come fast enough, said Basich, who blames his back-and-forth with the exchange in December at least in part for stress that caused his heart attack. That stress has turned up a few notches now that Basich is getting the bills. He fretted in the exchange board’s Thursday meeting about what will happen to his credit rating — and his ability to qualify for a mortgage — if the bills are not covered.
“All I wanted to do when I moved here was buy a house, get a dog and go to some spring training games for the Dodgers,” said Basich, who moved to Las Vegas from Hawaii in 2012.
Meanwhile, the exchange sent Basich premium invoices for January and February. He paid them both.
WHO CAN HELP?
Basich has sought help at virtually every level of the system, from the Xerox customer-service reps who answer the phones at the exchange’s Henderson call center all the way to Gov. Brian Sandoval and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Both Sandoval’s and Reid’s offices have told him they want to help, Basich said, but there’s been no resolution so far.
Even Reid, who took flak for his Feb. 26 statement that “all” Obamacare “horror stories” are “untrue,” is trying to help. Reid spokeswoman Kristen Orthman said one of the senator’s health-care legislative aides has been on the phone with Basich almost daily, “but at this point it’s in the hands of Xerox to see what can be done.”
Sandoval spokesman Mac Bybee said the office “regularly engages” the exchange and Xerox on behalf of any consumer who reaches out with concerns about Nevada Health Link.
Officials with the Nevada Division of Insurance said they’re also watching the situation.
“Mr. Basich’s concerns are certainly on our radar. We have discussed them with our partners at the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange, and we feel confident that his concerns will soon be resolved appropriately,” division spokesman Jake Sunderland said.
But there hasn’t been much action. What’s more, when Burch discussed Basich’s case with Xerox executives on March 11, they said they couldn’t tell her much because the company had hired legal counsel. That’s even though Basich has no interest in suing and has not retained a lawyer. He said he merely wants the exchange to keep the promise it made when it withdrew three premium payments from his savings account.
Xerox seems to be spending inordinate time documenting Basich’s phone calls, website access and emails, Burch said. She said a Xerox executive tried to throw blame on Basich for writing four different applications with four separate sets of information.
“I said, ‘Larry’s not the only one who did that. Lots of people have created multiple applications. Nothing is concrete until people pay. If you have a problem with multiple applications, then you’ll have to come to our office and take back hundreds of cases,’” Burch said.
“I believe Xerox is covering themselves because of a huge system error. They don’t want the accountability of saying, ‘Yes, we did mess this up, and here’s the plan you selected.’ It’s like, ‘What did he pay for?’ That’s it. They are making this more complicated than it has to be,” she added.
Wasmer said there was nothing unusual about bringing in Xerox’s attorneys.
“Our internal counsel is part of the extended Xerox team looking into the situation,” she said. “It’s regular practice for a corporation to tap experts across its organization to best understand complicated issues like this one. We’ll continue to keep the goal of resolving Mr. Basich’s issue front and center as we work through its complexities.”
Though Basich’s problem is exceptional for its dollar value, his situation is not unusual, Burch said. She estimates that of nearly 200 Branch Benefits Consultants client sign ups via Nevada Health Link, only 5 percent have gone through problem-free. More than 20 customers have the same plan-selection issue as Basich. One gave up trying to fix it and is sticking with the plan the exchange put her in.
With the March 31 enrollment deadline looming, Burch said she still sees other widespread enrollment problems, including frequent website error messages; inaccurate federal subsidy calculations; payments missing in the system despite clients’ canceled checks; and wrong effective coverage dates. One client chose an effective coverage date of March 1. Her insurance card showed an effective date of Jan. 1. Burch said that when she called to fix the issue, a customer-service rep told her the system showed a start date of April 1.
Burch said her brokerage supports the Affordable Care Act and launched a department to sell exchange plans. But she said the experience is not what she or her clients hoped for.
“We think it’s a great concept for those who need insurance. It’s just unfortunate, with all of the roadblocks we’re dealing with right now,” Burch said. “The bottom line is, we’re talking about people. It’s not a system, it’s people. I think, somehow, Xerox forgot that.”
Contact reporter Jennifer Robison at jrobison@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4512. Follow @J_Robison1 on Twitter.
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wow a mistake, never herd of such a thing before Obama :D :D I,m sure it will be taken care of and you will post it here ::)
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You are just a racist!!!!! FORWARD!!!!!!!!!!!
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wow a mistake, never herd of such a thing before Obama :D :D I,m sure it will be taken care of and you will post it here ::)
STFU - Obama promised this could and would not happen remember?
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STFU - Obama promised this could and would not happen remember?
lol he promised no mistakes :D can you post a link :D :D :D :D
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STFU - Obama promised this could and would not happen remember?
And you believe everything a commie dictator tells you?
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This poor slob got robbed and the best you pos can do is make excuses for TraitorBama - F off shills
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if it fits his agenda of Obama bad,he has no rational thinking
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This poor slob got robbed and the best you pos can do is make excuses for TraitorBama - F off shills
now he got robbed, post a link as far as I know they are working on it and he hasn't paid a cent
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Pastor Diagnosed With Cancer: 'No Compassion in the Affordable Care Act'
Obamacare 'anything by affordable.'
9:01 AM, Mar 18, 2014 • By DANIEL HALPER
A pastor recently diagnosed with cancer, and who is covered under Obamacare, tells a local Iowa reporter that there's "no compassion in the Affordable Care Act."
"Back in January, Pastor Angran was diagnosed with stage three cancer of the esophagus. He had insurance, but because of a previous heart condition, it did not cover the treatments he needed for his cancer. He found that out just minutes before receiving life-saving chemo," says the local reporter.
The pastor says, "One of the workers came and said let me talk to you. And so I went to talk to her. She says that we found out that your insurance does not include chemo."
"Over the past two months, the Angrans have emptied their savings account and racked up $50,000 in debt. They signed up for the Affordable Care Act," says the local reporter, "but found it to be anything but affordable. It will cost the couple more than $800 per month, money they just don't have."
The reporter adds, "As a pastor, Angran has devoted his life to helping others, to being compassionate. He says, 'There's no compassion in the Affordable Care Act.'"
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lol lets not jump around lets stick to the original post
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Yeah original post speaks for itself.
F Obama - f him x 1000000 for his crimes and lies.
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Yeah original post speaks for itself.
F Obama - f him x 1000000 for his crimes and lies.
that's right there will be no mistakes,i still havn't seen the link,let me guess that's Obama's fault too
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Were were you when people could not get Health Insurance because of preexisting conditions and died because of it?
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that's right there will be no mistakes,i still havn't seen the link,let me guess that's Obama's fault too
Yeah - just another bump in the road to communism under O-twinkie
The worldwide butt of jokes. Congrats on voting for this twink 2x over - now taken over as the worst ever. Even Carter looks like Reagan compared to this worthless choomer
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Idiots wanted the Federal government to get involved in healthcare. Now theyre paying for it.
The Fed can fuck up a wet dream.
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owned in another one of your post and now trying to backdoor your way out ;)
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owned in another one of your post and now trying to backdoor your way out ;)
STFU you worthless idiot - this guy was paying his obamacare premiuims and due solely to the flawed and failed architecture of CommunistCare he is fucked.
How much are you paid to shill for this communist drug addict?
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STFU you worthless idiot - this guy was paying his obamacare premiuims and due solely to the flawed and failed architecture of CommunistCare he is fucked.
How much are you paid to shill for this communist drug addict?
the problem with you is you post shit on emotion,think about it for a second next time,you won't look like a fool ;D
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the problem with you is you post shit on emotion,think about it for a second next time,you won't look like a fool ;D
right ::)
How about you address the article itself for once instead of rimming Obama?
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STFU you worthless idiot - this guy was paying his obamacare premiuims and due solely to the flawed and failed architecture of CommunistCare he is fucked.
How much are you paid to shill for this communist drug addict?
this is pretty much it. There are mistakes, then there are pure failures. Over and over this has been a colossal failure and more evidence of the feds ineptitude.
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did already, there is a mistake and it's being looked into,he has paid nothing yet.your the one that really hasn't looked into it.which leads to another owning of you ;D
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Why should this guy pay for the mistakes of ObamaCare? Just another bump in the road right?
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did already, there is a mistake and it's being looked into,he has paid nothing yet.your the one that really hasn't looked into it.which leads to another owning of you ;D
Yeah looking in to it - just like fast n furious, irs scandal, Benghazi, ap scandal, spying scandal, and all the other lies and crimes that this admn is eye balls deep in
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Yeah looking in to it - just like fast n furious, irs scandal, Benghazi, ap scandal, spying scandal, and all the other lies and crimes that this admn is eye balls deep in
again changing the subject,lets just stick to this one. :D :D :D
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again changing the subject,lets just stick to this one. :D :D :D
No responsing you to your rimming of Obama. Again - why should this guy pay for the failures of ThugCare?
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Lmao this little troll 'blacken' is such an annoying little shit ;D
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ok lets dumb this down for you,how much has the guy paid, nothing, next in the article that you posted does it not say that Xerox is working every day to fix Basich’s problem. :D :D
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nothing to see here move along ;D
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ok lets dumb this down for you,how much has the guy paid, nothing, next in the article that you posted does it not say that Xeroxit’s is working every day to fix Basich’s problem. :D :D
The guy paid his premium and had no coverage - now is facing a bill of 407k due to the failure of kenyacare and you think this is funny?
Hey FU - you and all your fellow traveling communist cult of morons who voted for this
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The guy paid his premium and had no coverage - now is facing a bill of 407k due to the failure of kenyacare and you think this is funny?
Hey FU - you and all your fellow traveling communist cult of morons who voted for this
who said it's funny,what I think is your an idiot that can't understand that their working on it. if you get a bill in the mail from your power company for 100,000 dollars does that mean your going to pay it
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who said it's funny,what I think is your an idiot that can't understand that their working on it. if you get a bill in the mail from your power company for 100,000 dollars does that mean your going to pay it
Who is they? No company is going to voluntarily pick up the 407k tab
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Xerox is working on it, they're the administrator of the program, who's going to pay will have to wait and see.or we can jump to conclutions and run around with our heads cut off screaming Obama's fault like you
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Xerox is working on it, they're the administrator of the program, who's going to pay will have to wait and see.or we can jump to conclutions and run around with our heads cut off screaming Obama's fault like you
Right - just another bump in the road ::)
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Lmao this little troll 'blacken' is such an annoying little shit ;D
LOL.
In the name of being fair and balanced, how would you describe SC?
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Soul is legit. He may be overly passionate lol but most of what he posts has substance and valid points.
Blacken is pure troll.
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Soul is legit. He may be overly passionate lol but most of what he posts has substance and valid points.
Blacken is pure troll.
Legitimately unbalanced, maybe.
While it might be technically true, I would not say "Most of what he posts has substance". Because even if 51% of what he posts does in some way have merit, the still large percentage of his other posts are such freakin' garbage that it's very hard to take him seriously.
Besides, he has admitted that some what he posts is just to get a reaction out of folks here and if that ain't a troll, I don't know what is.
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Legitimately unbalanced, maybe.
While it might be technically true, I would not say "Most of what he posts has substance". Because even if 51% of what he posts does in some way have merit, the still large percentage of his other posts are such freakin' garbage that it's very hard to take him seriously.
Besides, he has admitted that some what he posts is just to get a reaction out of folks here and if that ain't a troll, I don't know what is.
and that has to do w the article how?
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wow a mistake, never herd of such a thing before Obama :D :D I,m sure it will be taken care of and you will post it here ::)
when a regular insurance company makes this type of mistake you're the first one to blame the evil white haired CEO whose only concern is profits.
and now you're a consummate pragmatist and you know that there must be a logical explanation.
wow. big fuckin surprise.
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and that has to do w the article how?
It's at least as relevant to the article as that other guy's characterization of blacken.
Sorry, though; If you also questioned him about the relevance of his comment, I guess I missed it. ;D
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when a regular insurance company makes this type of mistake you're the first one to blame the evil white haired CEO whose only concern is profits.
and now you're a consummate pragmatist and you know that there must be a logical explanation.
wow. big fuckin surprise.
can you post where I said that,one thing I noticed with you is you like to put words in other peoples mouth.about the article do you agree with 333386 that's it Obama's fault
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Soul is legit. He may be overly passionate lol but most of what he posts has substance and valid points.
Blacken is pure troll.
lol substance and valid points,your as crazy as he is ;D :D
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can you post where I said that,one thing I noticed with you is you like to put words in other peoples mouth.about the article do you agree with 333386 that's it Obama's fault
Yes it is obamas fault - along w the rat Pelosi and reid
They created thugcare - no one else.
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Meltdown.
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Meltdown.
Yeah - of the medical system due to obamacare
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can you post where I said that,one thing I noticed with you is you like to put words in other peoples mouth.about the article do you agree with 333386 that's it Obama's fault
just stop it.
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can you post where I said that,one thing I noticed with you is you like to put words in other peoples mouth.about the article do you agree with 333386 that's it Obama's fault
so you disagree with most liberals who believe that the regular health insurance carriers before Obamacare were ONLY concerned with profits?
because the overwhelming majority of libs who support Obamacare believe that the costs to the insurance companies were overstated and that they increased premiums and denied coverage only because they ONLY care about profits.
from what i'm seeing so far the Obamacare exchanges aren't much cheaper and they have the same problems and snafus as those "bad guys" who run the other insurance companies.
face it. you were duped. this whole thing is one thing and one thing only. political posturing.
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so you disagree with most liberals who believe that the regular health insurance carriers before Obamacare were ONLY concerned with profits?
because the overwhelming majority of libs who support Obamacare believe that the costs to the insurance companies were overstated and that they increased premiums and denied coverage only because they ONLY care about profits.
from what i'm seeing so far the Obamacare exchanges aren't much cheaper and they have the same problems and snafus as those "bad guys" who run the other insurance companies.
face it. you were duped. this whole thing is one thing and one thing only. political posturing.
I don't think you have to be a liberal to believe that my guess is you can find many repubs that believe it
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I don't think you have to be a liberal to believe that my guess is you can find many repubs that believe it
Again you were duped and conned and you still shill for Obama why?
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Again you were duped and conned and you still shill for Obama why?
lol what are you talking about you get owned every day on here and you were owned on this post ,a day in the life of [333386] soul crusher
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Again you were duped and conned and you still shill for Obama why?
regular health insurance companies rip people off. because they're the bad guys. Obamacare carriers make mistakes. because they're the good guys. that's seriously what this dude believes.
this is a perfect example of marketing to the lowest common denominator. say it enough times it becomes truth. why? well because I heard it from a guy on tv.
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regular health insurance companies rip people off. because they're the bad guys. Obamacare carriers make mistakes. because they're the good guys. that's seriously what this dude believes.
this is a perfect example of marketing to the lowest common denominator. say it enough times it becomes truth. why? well because I heard it from a guy on tv.
Oh brother - how old are you? The problem is that the obamacare payment part of the website is a complete failure - like everything else associated w obamacare.
Its a failure
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-03-18/young-invincibles-are-killing-obamacare
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regular health insurance companies rip people off. because they're the bad guys. Obamacare carriers make mistakes. because they're the good guys. that's seriously what this dude believes.
this is a perfect example of marketing to the lowest common denominator. say it enough times it becomes truth. why? well because I heard it from a guy on tv.
Wrong post I was responding to - meant Blackens'
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lol what are you talking about you get owned every day on here and you were owned on this post ,a day in the life of [333386] soul crusher
you own yourself simply because you won't stop defending this administration on EVERYTHING. you can disagree once in a while dude. it doesn't make you a bad democrat.
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you own yourself simply because you won't stop defending this administration on EVERYTHING. you can disagree once in a while dude. it doesn't make you a bad democrat.
so again do you think the guy is going to have to pay the 400,000 or do you think it's going to get corrected
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so again do you think the guy is going to have to pay the 400,000 or do you think it's going to get corrected
Why should even have to deal with this at all after paying for his premiums? This would not occur BUT FOR the failure of the obamacare website
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so again do you think the guy is going to have to pay the 400,000 or do you think it's going to get corrected
Republican Tennessee Rep. Diane Black says that the Obama administration’s most recent Obamacare rule change will result in insurance companies keeping more profits while paying less for customers’ health care needs.
“I am writing to express my concern with the proposed rule change released on Friday, March 14th that would allow insurance companies to keep an additional two percent of premiums for purposes other than medical care…your department is now proposing to increase the amount of money that insurance companies will be allowed to retain for profit,” Black wrote in a letter Tuesday to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, which was obtained by The Daily Caller.
HHS’ Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services quietly introduced the new rule Friday, which relieves insurance companies of some of the damage about to be levied on them by Obamacare-related administrative costs.
“In the proposed rules, you have indicated that this adjustment in the ‘medical loss ratio’, or 80/20 rule, is due to the possibility of increased administrative costs in 2015. However, adjusting the percentage that insurance providers are required to spend on medical care by two percent would have the combined impact of reducing the amount that insurance providers will be required to pay for people’s medical care while increasing the amount that insurance companies are allowed to retain for profit and for executive pay,” Black wrote.
“This is deeply concerning, as it could result in higher out of pocket costs for consumers solely for the benefit of the insurance industry.”
“If this rule were to take effect for 2015, what reasonable expectation can consumers have that it would be reversed in 2016 or later years?” Black wrote.
“At a time when public approval of the health care law is so low, do you believe that giving insurance companies a greater percentage of American consumers’ money for their profits will negatively impact enrollment? Do you believe it is fair to force Americans through tax penalties to give insurance companies an even greater percentage of their premiums for costs not related to medical care?” Black wrote.
Follow Patrick on Twitter
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2014/03/18/congresswoman-obama-admin-rule-change-lets-insurance-companies-keep-more-profits-while-paying-less-for-customers-care/#ixzz2wLbtlKzV
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Hang on a sec, was this guy paying his premiums or not. This might affect his case.
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Hang on a sec, was this guy paying his premiums or not. This might affect his case.
Doesn't matter. Obama pointed at him and said "Booya!" and he had a heart attack instantly.
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Basich paid his first premium on Nov. 21, and within days the exchange withdrew the $160.77 payment from his money-market savings account. Because Basich paid a month before the Dec. 23 deadline, his coverage was to begin Jan. 1.
Weeks ticked by, but Basich received nothing to confirm he had insurance. Nevada Health Link kept telling him he was enrolled, but UnitedHealthcare said he wasn’t in their system.
Basich’s predicament went critical on Dec. 31, when he had a heart attack. His treatment, which included a triple bypass on Jan. 3, resulted in $407,000 in medical bills in January and February that no insurer is covering.
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Doesn't matter. Obama pointed at him and said "Booya!" and he had a heart attack instantly.
I lol'd.
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so again do you think the guy is going to have to pay the 400,000 or do you think it's going to get corrected
it'll get corrected. I just find it absolutely hilarious how you defend Obamacare at every turn. the website sucks. and you defend it. they're going through some logistics problems at the beginning. and you tirelessly defend that.
i'm just wondering why you weren't a champion for Blue Cross when people complained about it. i'll tell you why. you're a bought and sold Democratic soldier. infantry first class. you're like a champion for Obamacare. its cute actually.
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I lol'd.
I guess that dude's NCAA picks were different than Obama's. Can't be having any of that you know.....