The truth about Obamacare
As an R.N., I took an oath and strongly feel that people need to know the truth about Obamacare and insurers. And since the local news media seem uninterested in informing people of the truth, I feel compelled to do so.
As an R.N., I wondered last year why insurance companies were not speaking out when they claimed they were forced to cancel our insurance plans to comply with the Affordable Care Act and then tried to re-insure us with plans that had higher premiums, deductibles, out of pocket costs, narrowed networks and provided less care. Well, I got my answer when I learned that insurers were receiving billions of federal dollars for the “reinsurance” and “risk corridor” programs. These programs basically shift risk from the insurance companies to the taxpayers for any losses they may incur.
At a meeting held with executives from America’s top insurance companies, insurers were promised to be well taken care of if they hold back any opposition and to try to get as many people signed up for Obamacare as possible. The cancellations were a deliberate part of this scheme to force people onto the exchanges. Insurers knew this and went along with it knowing that the more people they signed up for the Obamacare plans, the more federal dollars they would receive.
When there was a public outcry about policy cancellations last fall, the president then allowed the temporary extension of current plans. Now, insurers cried out because they had already set their rates for 2014 and were counting on all those people being forced onto the exchanges. The president responded by changing the rules of the risk corridor programs to funnel more money their way, which in effect bought their silence.
This law was never about what’s best for the American people; it was about control of healthcare, what best suits those in office and how insurers can best be guaranteed an astronomical increase in revenue.
Peter DiGiuseppe
Rhawnhurst
Research before voting
Last week on Philly Fox news, a story ran of a Pennsylvania town that cancelled a particular high school’s football season to address a “bullying problem.” This week, I learned of a Nebraska school district implementing a policy for 10-year-olds where children are not to be addressed as girls and boys but as “purple penguins” so as not to insult a child with a yet-unidentified gender identity issue.
Now, I will not deny that I personally want to upchuck when I learn that people elected to office actually institute such policies. Instead, I thought to encourage other sensible likeminded voters of Pennsylvania to simply take part in our duty of voting.
Please take the time to register and vote. Some investigation is necessary and we must read between the lines and form an educated opinion despite the 24-hour news cycle bombarding us viewers with paid advertising. For myself, I try to vote for a candidate that speaks of fewer taxes, less government and promotes small business and the American spirit. I do my best to research and ask others and read. Less government is the answer. Please take the time to investigate our options and vote at the national, state and local level.
Steve Madden
Mayfair
People, you have to vote
Please, people, you have to vote. We have a Congress that refuses to do anything for us. Remember the pledge they made four years ago? John Boehner and the rest of Congress repeated over and over, “We will do nothing for this country while that man is in office.” These are their words exactly. Of course, the country they are talking about is our country, America. Isn’t that the same one that elected them to do things for us? Now they are back with their lies.
Remember the last election when they kept saying Obama would raise your taxes? He didn’t even get taxes raised for the rich, which were the only taxes he wanted to raise. Now they are doing the same thing with Tom Wolf. He also wants to raise taxes on the rich and not the middle class. We have to get those people out of there and put in someone who wants to help our country. Please, people, get out and vote for our country. Vote Democrat.
Rus Slawter
Bustleton
