Filed under: Economy, Health Care, Law, Liberalism, Taxes | Tags: AARP Employees' Premiums Rise, American Association for Retired People, Lobbyist for Liberal Causes
Whenever the media needs to talk to someone about our senior citizens, they call on the AARP, the American Association for Retired People. I have never had much use for the AARP, for I think that seniors believe that they are joining a club that lobbies and does nice things for older people, and offers some nice benefits like insurance. With my cynical nature, I think they are an insurance company that lobbies for leftist causes that will keep seniors dependent on them, but that’s just me.
AARP, I assume, buys lists from the Department of Motor Vehicles of people who turn 50 or 55, and you will get regular solicitations from them from then on. Quite a shock to those who are just recovering from reaching their 50th birthday.
In 2009, the AARP argued that ObamaCare was a good deal for seniors. That dubious proposition remains to be seen, but Obama’s chopping $500 billion out of Medicare is not a good start, nor is putting one Dr. Donald Berwick in charge of all Medicare without hearings, without confirmation, with absolute authority for all Medicare decisions — with no recourse if you don’t like the decision. Berwick is also a great admirer of Britain’s failing National Health Service, and if that doesn’t concern you, you need to read some British newspapers regularly. Britain is trying to turn their system back to doctors and their patients — a novel idea.
Around 60,000 seniors told the AARP that ObamaCare was not a good deal for them, and tore up their membership cards. Now it seems that ObamaCare is not such a good deal for AARP employees either. The seniors’ lobby is telling employees that their insurance costs will rise partly as a result of the law.
In an email to employees, AARP says health care premiums will increase by 8 percent to 13 percent next year because of rapidly rising medical costs.
And AARP adds that it is changing co-payments and deductibles to avoid a 40 percent tax on high-cost health plans that takes effect in 2018 under the law. Aerospace giant Boeing has also cited the tax in asking its workers to pay more. Shifting costs to employees lowers the value of a health care plan and performs as an escape hatch from the tax.
The AARP insists that the law only accounts for a small part of the hike in premiums, possibly because HHS Secretary Sebelius said she would go after any company that claimed that a premium rise was because of the law. And so it goes.
