Barbarism Isn’t What It Used to Be

Col Joseph Lenertz - It won't cost you anything, per se. It will cost those people that don't buy insurance should they get sick or injured in such a way that it calls for a hospital visit. You and I? We have insurance so this new healthcare bill can pound sand, IMHO. However for those healthy Americans that don't have insurance because they are 10ft tall and bulletproof, they could very well go bankrupt. These are hard working Americans just like any of us and them being face with the prospect of going broke because they didn't buy insurance doesn't pass muster with me.

Well, the 6th month waiting period is to help prevent people from gaming the system. Which is a bad thing, to be honest, and does cost these insurance companies money. It's a protection that I do agree with. The question will be, is there going to be a similar Qualifying Life Event system in place that you can bypass the wait period. For example, say I elect not to buy insurance because hey, I've got no dependents and I'm fully covered through VA. So I say screw insurance, that's more money in my pocket. Then say I get married, but am still in lock-down. Now I have a dependent to worry about, and if she doesn't have insurance (and my insurance options are better through work), I want to pick up an insurance policy to cover her. Which means I need to cover me, too. If I'm in lockout for 6 months, I can't. But if marriage, which currently is a QLE for bypassing lockout, remains a QLE, I would be able to purchase health insurance because now, my life circumstances have changed.

Thanks, good answers!

Insurance is not for when we expect to have a hospitalization. If I could wait until right before I needed it oh the money I could save, but I would be hurting the rest of society.