As of October 1st, the state and federal exchanges for the Affordable Health Care Act (nicknamed “Obamacare”) opened. The exchanges named a whole list of prices for individuals and families who can “afford” insurance. I saw the prices, and to put it mildly I was not impressed. The whole thing is to try and give individuals in certain age and income brackets a “choice” on affording insurance. But even with the lowest prices, the prices are still rather high and there is no guarantee that people will sign up for them or be able to afford them. I have talked to people where their companies have essentially cut back their hours because the companies do not want to pay into Obamacare—thus putting them out of any company options and sadly forcing these people to buy insurance on these exchanges…if they can afford them.

                                      After seeing what I am seeing, I am beginning to play devil’s advocate big time. What happens if you are self-employed? You may be having trouble paying your utility bills, putting food on the table, and possibly having to pay for a mortgage and rent. What if you do not have any money left over? How can you afford even the lowest health care premiums? Will the state or federal governments provide a subsidy to help those who cannot pay to be able to pay, how much would such subsidies be, and can any state or the federal government pay such subsidies? Where will this money come from? To put that question another way, who will pay for them? Will the corporations want to pay for this? Will small mom and pop businesses be forced to pay for it? Will the poor be forced to pay for this? With a national debt as bloated as that of the United States, where will the money come from? Oh yes, there is a clause that states that certain people will be “exempt” if they cannot pay for health insurance. Who decides who is exempt?

                                    I think the two key words for Obamacare are “requirement” and “penalty.” Requirement makes itself very clear—it means “either have health insurance or pay a penalty.” How much would such a penalty be, and if one cannot afford health insurance, can one afford the penalty? If one cannot afford the penalty, then what happens? The U.S. government throws someone in jail? Confiscates their property? Take away their welfare or any other federal program that they may benefit under? What about people who are collecting unemployment? How will they be able to afford health care coverage if they are barely able to afford even the basics? The law they may be exempt, but will they be? What about people who have since dropped out of the workforce? Under these circumstances, how many will sign up, and will this whole thing really be sustainable? Personally, these questions and many more should have been asked when this act was rammed through the U.S. Congress in 2010. Many Republicans, and also many people who wonder about the economics about Obamacare are calling it a train wreck waiting to happen. Unless I can receive satisfactory answers to the questions I have asked above, they may prove right.