Tuesday, June 19, 2012

For College Students, an Obamacare Bait-and-Switch

The Washington Post reports today on major changes underway involving college student health plans, and the punchline is one students may find to be no laughing matter – premiums will go up significantly:

College health plans…are also expected to become more costly as they accommodate the benefit requirements of the health law.  A few schools have had their prices rise so much that they have decided to drop their health plans altogether….Many plans that provide limited coverage are raising their premiums as much as 50 percent to comply with the new law’s requirements for coverage, according to Stephen Beckley, a student insurance consultant and co-organizer of the Lookout Mountain Group, an organization of college health professionals.

Obamacare supporters would argue that those higher premiums are a good thing, because students are getting richer health coverage.  But candidate Obama didn’t promise higher premiums and “better” coverage.  He said repeatedly that premiums would go DOWN by $2,500 per family under his plan, and that “you will not have to change plans.  For those who have insurance now, nothing will change under the Obama plan – except that you will pay less.”

Today’s report once again illustrates how Obamacare is failing to deliver on candidate Obama’s promises – and no amount of retrospective spin by Obamacare apologists will mask that fact.