What are specific costs that people aren’t aware of?
There are some specific taxes included in Obamacare, like on medical devices (which has been delayed) and on the profits of selling a house (over 250k), but that is not the real problem. The real problem comes from the mandates put on the insurance companies, which are raising their costs. People with pre-existing conditions now must be covered. This huge extra cost was supposed to be offset by 30 million extra people buying insurance. Since this is not happening, the cost is being offset by raising the fees on the other policy holders.
Another example is that the price differential between males and females of child bearing age has been eliminated. To offset the extra cost of child bearing, the costs to young males have been raised. Although this may be fairer, it causes prices to rise for young males. The real cause of these problems is because the penalty (tax) for individuals is so low, $60-$200/ year, that these people are still not getting insurance so there is no offset for the insurers as was promised.
At this point, what can companies do?
What I recommend is start living a healthy lifestyle. Ask your employer to get a good health and wellness program and really engage with it. Then get a high deductible insurance policy, which is less expensive. Leading a healthy lifestyle will help prevent, eliminate, or at least mitigate many health concerns and employers get a discount on their insurance for having a good health and wellness program, which they will happily pass on to the employee.
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