No 2019 and 2020 Tax Penalty For Not Having Health Insurance Under ObamaCare

[Updated] Will i still have to pay health insurance penalties (under the Obamacare individual mandate)? This is the question a lot of Americans are asking. The short answer is NO from 2019.  Here is why the individual mandate, a.k.a Obamacare penalty, is no longer in effect from 2019:

While Congressional Republicans were unable to muster the required majorities to pass several versions of House and Senate health care replacement bills, they were able to include a provision to repeal the individual mandate (i.e. the Obamacare penalty) via successfully passing their GOP tax reform bill to support President Trump’s tax reform agenda.

While the Obamacare penalty applied for 2017 and 2018 tax filings (per details and amounts below), for 2019 the Affordable Care Act (ACA) individual mandate provision requiring every eligible American to obtain health insurance or pay financial penalty when filing taxes has been permanently scrapped.

The individual mandate repeal does not mean that Obamacare or the broader ACA is dead – health insurance marketplaces and provisions like coverage for children under 26 are still in place. But it does deal a massive blow to the long term sustainability of ACA as it was based on ensuring enough healthy people buying health insurance (hence the penalty) to offset costs for providing subsidizing insurance to those who could not afford or were ineligible for employer sponsored insurance.

I will update as more details are made available and encourage you to follow or share this article via Facebook or Twitter.
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ObamaCare or the Affordable Care Act (ACA), is the law of the land now which means that all Americans with an income above a certain threshold have to purchase or have health insurance. The provision referred to as the individual mandate is what legally required most US citizens and legal residents to obtain private, employer sponsored or public health insurance (through state run exchanges). Based on the most recent data available it is estimated that the majority of the US population gets health insurance through their employers while 50 million people are uninsured. The remaining consumers either buy their own private insurance or are covered by federal/state government programs, such as Medicaid and Medicare.

Here is a summary table of the standard penalties for not having health insurance. Details on how the penalty is applied and individual exemption mandates are provided in subsequent sections.

YearPenalty (Single)Penalty (Family)Maximum Penalty
2019No penaltyNo penaltyNo penalty
2018$695 or 2.5% of income$2,085 or 2.5% of income$13,100
2017$695 or 2.5% of income$2,085 or 2.5% of income$13,100
2016$695 or 2.5% of income$2,085 or 2.5% of income$13,000
2015$325 or 2% of income$975 or 2% of income$12,500
2014$95 or 1% of income$285 or 1% of income$9,800

See this article for details on Republicans/Trump’s American Health Care Act (ACHA) to repeal individual mandate penalties and provide tax credits to offset the cost of providing insurance.

Individuals: For the 2014 tax year (reported/filed in 2015), individuals who did not have insurance would owed $95, or 1 percent of income, whichever is greater. For the 2015 tax year it rose to the greater of $325 or 2 percent of income. But the penalty for 2016 rose yet again, reaching $695, or 2.5 percent of income, whichever is greater. From 2017, the minimum tax penalty per person will rise each year with inflation. Estimates are provided on the table above and it is likely 2017 penalties and maximums will remain the same as 2016 given the low inflation environment. And for children 18 and under, the minimum per-person tax is half of that for adults ($47.50).  The tax penalty is pro-rated, so that a person who is not covered for only a single month would pay 1/12th of the tax that would be due for the full year.

While the focus is on the $95 (single adult) penalty, the actual penalty may be much more for higher income people because the percentage component of the penalty comes into play. For example, a single person whose MAGI is $35,000 and elects not to have health insurance, may be liable for a penalty of $249 ($35,000 – $10,150 = $24,850 x 1% = $249).

Families: For families the 2014 health insurance non-compliance penalty was capped at $285 per family, or 1% of income, whichever is greater. In 2015 it rose to the greater of $975 or 2 percent of income. For 2016, the penalty jumped sharply to $2,085 per family, or 2.5% of income, whichever is greater. From 2017, the penalty/tax will rise in line with inflation. The minimum amount per family is capped at triple the per-person tax, no matter how many individuals are in the taxpayer’s household. So, for example, a couple with one child over 18 (or two children age 18 or under), and no coverage, would pay a minimum of $285 in 2014, $975 in 2015 and $2,085 in 2016. And that would be the minimum no matter how many uninsured dependents a taxpayer has.

The maximum penalty (under the percentage of income criteria) is capped at the national average price of a bronze plan sold through the health insurance marketplace. For 2014 the maximum was $9,800, $12,500 in 2015 and then $13,000 in 2016. The 2017 maximum penalty is expected to stay the same as 2016 or rise marginally in line with inflation.

Individuals or families who fall below income-tax filing thresholds would not owe anything or get subsides or credits to offset health insurance costs (see section below on Health care premium tax credit). People who are unemployed or cannot find a policy that costs less than 8% of their modified adjusted gross income would also be exempt from penalties under the individual mandate. On the other hand, to offset the cost of providing insurance to low income households, individuals making more than $200,000 a year and couples earning above $250,000 will get additional health care taxes deducted as payroll taxes. These people are also hit with a 3.8 percent tax on investment income.

Employers: For employers with 50 or more workers could face federal fines for not providing insurance coverage. Several of the other changes would take effect much sooner. For the current and future impacts of health insurance on employers see this article.

Do I still have to pay the no coverage (individual mandate) penalty with Trump/GOP bill to repeal Obamacare?

President Donald Trump along with Congressional Republicans have started the process to repeal Obamacare in 2017 via the American Health Care Act (ACHA). The challenge they are current facing is that their still isn’t broad consensus for this Obamacare replacement plan and implementing a full replacement will take months, if not years. Without an effective replacement plan an ACA repeal could leave millions without access to health insurance and create significant financial turmoil within the American healthcare system. From a health care penalty perspective, there is the strong expectation that the individual mandate will be removed from 2018 if the ACHA bill is passed (changes may be retroactive). This means that those without health insurance in 2017 may only be subject to a partial or no penalty when filing taxes in 2018.

Note however that President Trump has signed an earlier Executive order that directed federal agencies to to waive or exempt health law-related provisions that would impose costs or penalties on individuals, to the extent permitted by law. But this “hardship clause” does not mean that taxpayers should NOT pay the penalty or delay filing ahead of any formal repeal law.

How Individual Health Care Coverage Will be Monitored

Employers have had to state the value of the health care benefits provided to each employee on their W-2 at the end of each year. Insurers (including employers who self-insure) that provide minimum essential coverage to any individual during a calendar year will also have to report certain health insurance coverage information to both the covered individual and the IRS. Thus, the IRS will ultimately be responsible for reporting an individuals and business’ non-compliance with purchasing health insurance.

Obamacare/Affordable Care Act Tax Forms

A number of tax payers will have more complicated tax returns this year with the need to account for health insurance coverage as part of the individual mandate of the new Affordable health care laws.

Taxpayers who get their health insurance through their employer or government sponsored programs like Medicare or Medicaid, which will be the majority, will be able to prove their compliance via their tax filing by check a box on their normal tax (1040 series) return validating they had insurance. But those who bought insurance on the health insurance exchanges with the help of federal subsidies (see below for income qualification levels) will receive a form 1095-A detailed their coverage and have to reconcile their payments with their income level.  HealthCare.gov, the federal exchange that serves 37 states, started to mail out 1095-A forms to customers said all forms should be mailed out by the end of January. This end of month deadline is also the same for state-run exchanges

Those who failed to report raises or bonuses to their respective health exchanges may have to pay back some amount of subsidy for purchasing health insurance via these exchanges. This may require them to complete additional forms (Form 8965 or 8962) to claim exemptions and determine the allowed premium tax credit.

Checking if you have the minimum essential coverage to meet the individual mandate

Minimum Essential Coverage under ObamacareThe IRS has provided details on what constitutes coverage under the new health care laws. If you meet this coverage you won’t face penalties.

There are also certain allowed exemptions from the individual mandate that include items like

  • Being uninsured for less than 3 months of the year
  • The lowest-priced coverage available to you would cost more than 8% of your household income
  • You don’t have to file a tax return because your income is too low
  • You’re a member of a recognized religious sect with religious objections to insurance, including Social Security and Medicare
  • You’re incarcerated (either detained or jailed), and not being held pending disposition of charges
  • You’re not lawfully present in the U.S. (illegal immigrants)
  • You qualify for a hardship exemption (homeless, evicted in the past 6 months, received a shut-off notice from a utility company etc)

But you will need to show evidence for these in your tax return (Form 8965) with your tax return.  when claiming the exemption and the IRS will be checking these quite thoroughly.

US citizens or residents who reside overseas and meet the IRS foreign residency criteria (generally 330 full days outside of the U.S. during a 12-month period) can also claim exemption from the individual mandate penalty via Form 8965.  If living overseas for a partial period of time that does not qualify you as a foreign resident for tax purposes coverage provided by your local employer (under an expatriate health plan) can count as qualified health coverage that precludes them from the penalty. One exemption that may be particularly relevant to U.S. citizens living abroad for a small part of a year is the exemption for a short coverage gap. This exemption provides that no shared responsibility payment will be due for a once-per-year gap in coverage that lasts less than three months.

ObamaCare Premium Tax Credit Subsidy and Federal Poverty Levels (FPL)

Lower income Americans that purchase health insurance under the Affordable Care Act may also be eligible for a premium tax credit or subsidy. This is paid in the form of a tax credit (in advance or when filing your tax return) and is based on household size and income relative to the federal poverty levels (FPL). To qualify for the premium tax credit the household modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) has to be between 100% and 400% of the FPL. This is shown in the table below for different household sizes. The actual amount of the tax credit will vary based income and household size, but can only be claimed if you purchase health insurance through a healthcare marketplace or exchange.

# Persons in Household2015 - 100% FPL income threshold2015 - 400% FPL income threshold2016 - 100% FPL income threshold2016 - 400% FPL income threshold
1$11,770$47,080$11,880$47,520
2$15,930$63,720$16,020$64,080
3$20,090$80,360$20,160$80,640
4$24,250$97,000$24,300$97,200
5$28,410$113,640$28,440$113,760
6$32,570$130,280$32,580$130,320
7$36,730$146,920$36,730$146,920
840,890$163,56040,890$163,560
9+add $4,160 for each additional person.add $16,640 for each additional person.add $4,160 for each additional personadd $16,640 for each additional person

Note: FPLs are higher in Alaska and Hawaii than in the mainland 48 states. The above limits increase with inflation every year. Eligibility for the subsidy/tax credit is based on income limits for the prior year (e.g your 2017 subsidy is based on your 2016 income levels).

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558 thoughts on “No 2019 and 2020 Tax Penalty For Not Having Health Insurance Under ObamaCare”

  1. Obama is robbing everybody cant no one afford this crap ppl have bills to pay kids to take care of animals to take care of this is just another bill for ppl to pay and i think everyone can agree we have to many bills already i hope trump gets all of the crap thrown out

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    • This is why people need to be in control of their lives and not the government. There isn’t a one size fits all. Some people dont have the money. some people are really healthy and would rather give to their kids than health insurance. But NO, Obmama and the dems forced this control on us and now something important for many is now in the hands of the politicians. This is POWER over people plain and simple

      Reply
      • A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds that 45% of Americans think the 2012 health law is a “good idea,’’ the highest mark since pollsters began asking about President Barack Obama’s vision for a health overhaul in April, 2009.

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        • They are probably getting it free! Hell with them, i cannot afford either the garbage insurance or the penalty. I am not going to file ever again, let them come get nothing! Communist!

        • You said the right word about it….Communism, that it is! I myself have a college degree with certification as an educator and cannot find full time employment. When I went to this exchange they claimed that i owed 400.00 a month, just for this worthless crap that they pass for insurance. I only clear 1600 a month, for crying out loud. There is no check placed on what it is that these companies can demand through these exchanges. It is ridiculous…to say the least!

  2. Daughter just got booted off my plan. Now looking at the ripoffs going on with health insurance and medical services. She lives in a basement and makes $20 an hour. Her out-of-pocket (deductible + premiums) will be $10,000l the insurance would pay to go get a check up. I know of millionaire business people that show zero income and get family coverage for $30 a month. That should be criminal. Simple solution, base it on GROSS income, not NET. Of course the money that runs this country would not allow that to happen. This whole system will implode one day.

    Reply
  3. It seems that many people commenting here don’t understand the ACA. You should go here to see the kind of plans that you’re eligible for depending on your income and household size and the State where you live. https://savingtoinvest.com/obamacare-premium-tax-credit-ptc-to-offset-impact-of-health-insurance-premiums/

    I just used it to calculate premiums for a family of 4 making $80,000 a year in Arkansas that expects to have low usage of doctors. The premium came up $614 a month for a Bronze plan MINUS $283 a month (that’s the tax credit). So the premium being paid by the family would be only $331 a month. So I’m not sure whether the people who are claiming high premiums are even checking the marketplace to see if they qualify for a credit. Seems like many of you are just contacting regular insurance companies.

    If you have no income or income less than the income level that requires you to file a tax return, you are exempt from the penalty. If you have Medicare, that qualifies as minimum health insurance coverage and you are exempt from the penalty.

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    • I think we understand it pretty well. I just used it to calculate my premiums for my wife and I. Together we make $44,000 and we have to pay $178/month after tax credits for a plan that does not cover my medications or services until we reach the $12,000 deductible. No that $12,000 was not a typo. Mind you, our school loans are not taken into account either, each of us pays $700/month. So we essentially have to pay an extra $178/month for something that will only cover us in the VERY worst of situations, which if one of those situations arises we are screwed anyway because we have to reach a $12,000 deductible and have a 40% coinsurance. 40%!!!! The ACA is a joke. America is a joke. I go to the doctor once a year for my Crohn’s checkup and get the two same medications every month and now I have to pay a $115 penalty every month thanks to the ACA because that is my only viable option.

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    • I see that you have posted the same response to many people with many issues here. Your assumption that people who aren’t seeing the premiums and plans that you are seeing must be using private insurance carriers to get their quotes is wildly inaccurate. I know many people, myself included, who have used the ACA since it began and have seen horrible changes that have completely priced us out of coverage. Policy options and prices vary widely by state. Your numbers sound reasonable…mine and many others are nothing close to that. I have had to get new coverage with new carriers every single year because the insurers have either cancelled my plan or completely gone out of business. The first two years, I had hundreds of options. This year, I had only 32. I live in Texas, am a single mother with two dependents and a household income of less than $60K. A plan for myself only (my children are insured by their father) will run me anywhere from $400-800…that is with the $70 subsidy and a LOW usage filter. These policies have a minimum deductible of $6000, for just myself. This is NOT affordable.

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    • Yes i did that ecactly. With my tax credit it is 704. a month. Insane. 7500 deductible, just a stupid plan. The Communist aholes who wrote this mess do not even use it!

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    • The subject matter that everyone is leaving out of all these articles is that weather or not you can afford any of these health insurance plans, most of these $600 to $900 a month plans they speak of are catastrophic insurance plans! They don’t pay for shit unless it is major medical, & even then the insured pays the first $12000. Wow isn’t that a great deal? The whole system is crooked as hell !!!!!

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  4. OK so serious question: I don’t work for a company who has a health plan so I have to buy private insurance as apparently I make too much yet I am definitely middle class. Suppose I don’t get private insurance and save the $1630 per month for a $6500 deductible for a family of 5 very healthy people and we use that money to make our wellness visits and perhaps even a minor emergency room visit. What happens if God forbid, we have a major medical issue or accident? I don’t mean to sound ignorant but we’ve always had insurance so I’m honestly not sure what happens in that scenario today for people who don’t have insurance. Obviously, the hospital treats you but who is on the hook for the bill? Can this bankrupt you?

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    • I need this answer too! We’ve always had health insurance and we’re not crazy renegades. Our income is above any subsidy and paying these crazy premiums for essentially emergency only coverage is just INSANE. We have 2 children and because of our focus on nutrition and alternative care they are healthy. The tax penalty seems it will only be a third of what our expected sky-high premiums are going to be. REALLY?! *THIS* is better than it was 4 years ago when I had not only a CHOICE of reasonably-priced policies but I also had a choice of companies…which I no longer do! Our household budget could use those funds for all the things that keep us healthy that aren’t covered under insurance…but what would happen if…? Before all this madness, medical providers could refuse to see you if you didn’t have health insurance. Now? The game’s completely different. I don’t think we can be refused anymore…can we? And what would happen if we get a broken bone? Jesus help us figure out what to do!

      Reply
    • You need to go here to calculate whether you’re eligible for certain health plans and savings under the ACA: https://savingtoinvest.com/obamacare-premium-tax-credit-ptc-to-offset-impact-of-health-insurance-premiums/

      I just used it to calculate premiums for a family of 4 making $80,000 a year in Arkansas. The premium came up $614 a month for a Bronze plan MINUS $283 a month (that’s the tax credit). So the premium being paid by the family would be only $331 a month.

      It all depends on what State you live in, the total amount of your income, household size, etc. so you should use this calculator. If your State opted to run its own marketplace and not healthcare.gov, you’ll need to go there to see what kind of plans, premium reductions, savings, etc. you qualify for. However, this link will give you a good general idea of what you qualify for.

      Reply
    • You can negotiate with doctors’ offices, hospitals, etc. to get lower costs. My daughter had a situation where we had to take my granddaughter to the ER while she was out of state. Since the ACA does not allow for health insurance to cross state lines, the hospital could not charge her insurance and she was forced to pay out of pocket. When she explained this to the finance office at the hospital, they said the cost for out of pocket was actually about 90% less than the cost if they have to file with the insurance company. The hospitals charge extra if they have to file with insurance companies because it is such a nightmare to deal with them. It ended up costing less than $500 for the ER visit, x-ray, and doctors’ cost. The hospital could only negotiate their bills, but when my daughter got the bills from the radiologist and the ER doctor, which bill separately, she called their offices and negotiated with them. They lowered her bills by about the same 90%.

      The thing to keep in mind is that you only have to pay the penalty if you get a refund, because the IRS will simply take it before they give you the refund. If you plan your taxes so that you don’t get a refund, the penalty does not apply. I have simply had them take less out of my paycheck and I put that money they would normally have taken out into a savings account to pay any taxes due. You don’t add the penalty into what you owe on your taxes, you only apply it if you get a refund.

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  5. Yes I know what you mean. Mine alone will be 1,069.00 per month with B/C. Thinking about dropping it. I am not gonna pay for those who don’t have insurance. We can Obama this.

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  6. My husband an I just got our new premium for 2017 under Blue Cross….2016 = $906 2017= $1,314 44.90% increase
    We have the cheapest plan they offer. 2 doctor visit co-pays a year and nothing else until you pay out of pocket $6,800 each.

    Reply
    • See my comment posted. I think many people aren’t even checking to see if they can get a credit. If you go directly to an insurance company, you won’t get the credit.

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      • I did check for a credit. AND I spoke to someone who told me the same exact thing I already check on. $800 a month for two people with a $320 credit making our monthly premium not very affordable.. Why should we skimp on buying food and gas for our cars to pay that kind of money. And we never go to the doctor. thats bull. It is not fair for us to have to pay for others health coverage who have none. There has to be a better way.

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    • That’s more like a 45% increase, not 90%. Still an unacceptable increase though. I can’t think of one thing that went up 45% since last year. Medical/Insurance sector getting rich and we’re getting raped. Single payer system like other countries have done is the only answer.

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      • I lived in France which is single payer. Your “premium” is hidden in the astronomical taxes you pay on income. You’re still on the hook for 30% of your bill and there isn’t a maximum out of pocket so something catastrophic can still bankrupt you. Then there is quality of care no one talks about with single payer. I had immense pain in my jaw for two weeks. The country doctor said I had wisdom teeth (at the age of 26) that needed to be pulled. I have never developed any wisdom teeth. By the time I could see a dentist (a three week wait time) the pain went away. I’m 41 now, still no wisdom teeth. Then I broke my hand there. The emergency room staff set it wrong and now I’d have to re break my hand to have it set properly. Anyone touting single payer have never had to live with single payer. The answer is to realize insurance is for purely catastrophic events and anything else, like check ups, are to be payed out of pocket. When doctors and hospitals can’t bill an insurance company whatever they want they’ll have to lower their prices to an affordable out of pocket level. And ultimately the government needs to get the heck out of the business altogether and allow people to make choices that are right for themselves instead of making blanket one size fits all assumptions about what people need and stop acting like everyone’s mommy and daddy. Period.

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  7. I have not worked for the passed 3 years due to my knees going bad ,so no income to file for taxes. I was first forced on Medicaid for 2014 and refuse to have the state of Nevada monitor my checking account I did not receive any medicaid for 2015 and 2016. This next year I go onto Medicare and the penalty for not affording insurance is scary plus it affected my other plan choicenB, C, D, E ,F etc that I have to buy now that I will be getting state retirement while I wait a year to get Social Security. I could not use the medicaid due to the scariness of the Recovery Act of Medicaid 1993 since I own my home and cars and want my disable son to inherit my house should I passed away before him. This crazy government Obama care is a nightmare. Wonder who will own anything or how families afford to eat, have a place to sleep let alone any clothes to wear. Never dream this was my so called Golden Year goal is to give all I earned to the government.

    Reply
    • If you had no income or made income below the level required to file a tax return, you don’t have to pay a penalty. If you have regular Medicare, you don’t have to pay a penalty.

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      • I am sure the income he had was drawing of of a retirement account, sort of like what I had to do last year while out of work when the jobs dried up. (I had to draw out 33K last year and pay a 10% penalty for the luxury of having to live.) Now since I could not afford insurance for part of the year I am being raped again when I file my taxes because of this ACA penalty. So, not only do I have to pay the 10% penalty so that I did not lose my house and could afford to eat and pay for utilities, but now I have to pay the ACA penalty on top of that for the money I had to draw out. (That’s pretty messed up…)

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  8. Question regarding where and when to file for the following scenario: We are 62 and 61. My spouse has individual coverage in 2016 through marketplace and I am covered by employer. Neither of us qualify for subsidies due to household income of approximately $68,000. My employer does offer spouse and/or family coverage, but it is considered unaffordable under the aggregate of two because premiums for her would be over 8.16% of our household income for 2017, as they have been for prior years. (Just became aware of this.) We do not want to go into 2017 without coverage for her. She wants to have the option of purchasing a Catastrophic plan for 2017 and we know only that she must file for a ‘Hardship Exemption’, but we’re confused as to if we file an application through the Marketplace based on projected income for 2017, or have to wait until our 2016 taxes are filed and complete form 8965, Part III?
    Thank you for any help and/or direction.

    Reply
  9. My husband is disabled and I work part time. He receives medicare and I have insurance through obamacare. I pay $450 per month for health insurance which doesn’t really cover anything with a $4k deductible. I just received my estimated premium for 2017 which is $600 per month a $150 increase! I cannot afford to pay our bills anymore if 1/2 of my net income goes to insurance. But if I don’t I will have to pay $1500 in penalties. My husband’s income is fixed and i can no longer work full time because of back and neck injuries from rearend collisions i was in 20 years ago. Our income is not increasing but our taxes keep going up. How is this affordable?

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    • My husband and I are in the same boat except I am on disability due to progressive Multiple Sclerosis and not on Medicare yet. The only way we made it last year was for me to be in a drug trial so I got my meds, doctor visits, etc for free, but it ends in November 2016. My husband is self-employed and our premiums will now go from $906 per month to $1359 per month and the insurance is worthless.
      I need to see so many other specialist but all of our disposable income goes to pay our premiums and so I am just waiting to go on Medicare which is a shame.
      Now, we will not be able to pay our premiums in 2016 and stay in our home so we will just not have insurance.
      Our politicians have screwed us and Hilary wants to continue this BS. We all need to stand up and say NO MORE screwing with our lives.
      And, to all of the defenders of this fraud…..my guess is that you are not paying this kind of premium.

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    • I’m sorry, but this is absolutely criminal that Obama is getting away with punishing people for something like this.. I mean, think about it, you’re being punished and fined an amount that’s equal to an entire 2 week paycheck.. Can he do this?? Can he really do this and get away with it??? This is just so wrong and for the record, I’ll be fined $695 for 2016.. How much is it for 2017?? A $1000.00??? At what point does someone step in and stop this madness???

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    • Pam, what type of social security is your husband getting? SSI does not count as income but SSDI does. You may also qualify for a Low income exemption if the lowest cost premiums are more than 8%.of total income. Meaning If both you make $30,000 x 8% = $2400 ($200 mo.) max per year in insurance premiums.

      Reply
    • This doesn’t make sense unless your income is very high. If your husband has regular Medicare, he’s considered covered by minimum essential healthcare coverage. If you’re only working part-time, you should be eligible for the premium tax credit which would substantially lower your monthly premium. You can only get this tax credit, however, if you apply for health insurance through healthcare.gov. If you’re applying for insurance directly to an insurance company, you won’t get that credit. Many people say they are getting Obamacare, but this isn’t true if they aren’t using healthcare.gov to get their insurance. I suggest that you go here: to see more on https://savingtoinvest.com/obamacare-premium-tax-credit-ptc-to-offset-impact-of-health-insurance-premiums/ if you qualify for the tax credit.

      Reply
      • SETT55, I am not sure where you are getting your information. We have gone through the application process on the website. Our income is not very high. We only qualify for a small subsidy. But even with the subsidy, our premiums for a healthy family of 6 would be $1,200 per month, with a $12,000.00 deductible. That is absolutely insane! Why pay that premium when I can’t even use the insurance?

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      • Obama care ain’t worth a crap..we have like 4 choices this year all with very high deductible. The 2017 increase takes back what they are crediting. Also no one around here accepts the insurance. “We don’t accept Obama care” Just not worth it.

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  10. Question for a tax professional…What is the 2017 penalty amount going to be if 1) Filing Joint (only husband and wife) 2) Wife does not have a job 3) Husband does work, but his employer pays for his health-care, but not hers 4) Husband cannot afford to add her to the policy.

    What will the penalty be for 1 of the ‘Joints’ to not have coverage. Plus, is filing joint considered “Family” when figuring Non Health Insurance Tax Penalty assessment????

    I mean holy S**t more than $2000 for a family that doesn’t carry health insurance!?!?!? You’re right Darlene, Extortion by HIGHLY organized Criminals that is worse than the Mafia…and LESS transparent if you can believe that!

    I hear of people going to places like South America to have PLANNED surgeries/procedures done and they still only pay about 1/2 what it would cost here WITH insurance…not only that, but the health-care provided is far superior to here. AND, that includes all Airfare, Hotel, and travel expenses. For example, expected Mothers are gong abroad to deliver their children. If that doesn’t scream BROKEN SYSTEM, then I don’t know what does.

    BROKEN SYSTEM OBAMA…and way to pass it on a Sunday when we were all looking the other way!

    Reply
    • Mark, The filing status does not matter with healthcare, it is the total household income. If the working spouses plan exceeds 9.5% of income you may be able to opt out and go for a cheaper government plan.

      Unless you make a fair amount of money with dependent children I doubt you’ll get near the $2000 tax penalty.

      Sorry, too many variables to give a direct answer.

      Reply
    • You are fined per person that does not have insurance. The ones that have insurance are not fined. The 2017 tax year fine has not yet been set. For the 2016 tax year it is $695 per adult, or 2.5% of your income above 20,300 to a max of the cost of a bronze plan, whichever is greater. Maybe you can qualify under one of those exemptions and skip the fee for not having insurance for your wife.

      Unfortunately employer coverage is considered affordable for the entire family as long as the employee only premium meets the affordability requirement. Dependents do not qualify for any subsidy if the employer offered coverage meets the requirements. The “family glitch” in the ACA isn’t helping you at all!

      Reply
      • I am in the exact same scenario. The employee-only plan at my employer is reasonable — same cost as the 2.5% penalty actually — so it only makes sense to buy it. However, adding my spouse increases the monthly premium 3.5x and we don’t want to pay that. So if I buy the employee-only premium, will my wife still be hit with the 2.5% penalty? If so, that would double the cost ($2300 for my insurance + $2300 for wife’s penalty). In that case I would waive insurance altogether and take the $2300 total household penalty. Can anyone confirm?

        Reply
      • That is a true statement… As long as the employee’s premium is under the 9.5% cap it is considered an affordable plan, but when a family plan costs 30% of your income and you still have a $6000 single deductible or a $12000 family deductible, what good is the insurance at all? We are paying $1700 a month for what amounts to catastrophic coverage. We are being RAPED by these worthless insurance plans… I don’t know about you, but $1700 is nearly double my mortgage… I can’t afford to continue to buy this crap when it doesn’t help anyone but the insurance carrier…

        Reply
  11. Obamacare passed into law when both the Senate and the House of Respresentatives were controlled by the Democratic Party. No member of the Republican Party voted in favor of Obamacare. Not…One…Republican…Voted…for…Obamacare.

    Reply
  12. Yes, I will be voting republican this year.. I am an independent, but I did vote for Obama and was all for Obamacare until I found out that we are getting raped by the insurance companies. They should have put a cap on the insurance costs so we COULD get affordable healthcare. It was not only Obama but the whole congress party( majority Republican) that change and voted for this BS. And yes, this is extortion by organized criminals(worse than the Mafia), in my opinion. My husband lost his job back in 2008 and I did without insurance for over 4 years because of house payments and bills and food that were priority. He is working now and I am losing my job. My utility and insurance bills have gone up so it will be even harder to pay for medical insurance. I really don’t know where the money will come from to pay for medical insurance if I cannot even afford to pay my bills. I do not like Trump, but I will vote for him if he repeals Obamacare.

    Reply
    • No republican voted in favor of obamacare. The bill passed in 2010 when democrats were in control of the senate and house of respresentatives. No republican…not one.

      Reply
      • Thank you Stephen for clarifying that NO REPUBLICAN voted for ObamaSCARE! I just checked my premiums for 2017. I currently pay $273.00 per month for a $4500.00 deductible. (I have NOT used my insurance at all this year because I am in good health…but I am required BY LAW to have health insurance). My 2017 premiums (To renew my current plan) jump to over $777 per month and my annual deductible sky-rockets to $14,300!!!! CRIMINAL EXTORTION OF YOU ASK ME!!!

        Reply
  13. Wish “Obamacare” would be called what it really is; “Extortion-Care” …. no public option, no choice other than the criminal insurance industry …

    Reply
  14. I had been receiving free care but when I went to have my tax done the preparing took 85.00 from my return. Was that right?

    Reply
    • Yes, it is right because you have a choice to either do it yourself or pay someone to do it for you, unile Obamacare you are forced to get it or pay a penalty…. That’s called extortion

      Reply
    • Indeed! And what’s to stop them from enforcing penalties for not buying specific foods, clothes, housing, etc.??? NOTHING!!! YOUR VOTE MATTERS!!!! ESPECIALLY IN THIS COMING PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION!!!! This IS the tipping point for America!!!

      Reply
  15. This is not fair at all. Why do I have to get penalized just because I do not have insurance? I am healthy. I take care of my self. I exercise. I eat healthy food. I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. What do I need insurance for? I have always liked Obama but because of this, but I wont be voting for Democrats this year to get this crazy thing repealed.

    Reply
    • Same here. So much for “freedom”. I really hope that next president will revoke this nonsense! And it’s not healthcare — it’s sick care that healthy people don’t need!!!

      Reply
      • Did you pay attention in history or political science? Presidents cannot “revoke” laws passed by Congress (and not later vetoed). Once it has become law, as with the Affordable Care Act, only Congress can undo it.

        And a question for you — if healthy people are seriously hurt in a car accident, who pays for their treatment?

        Reply
        • “If healthy people are seriously hurt in a car accident”, they pay for their treatment. You see, some people do take responsibility for things that happen to them. I know I would, or my family and friends would see to it that my bills would be paid. This argument that any accident or emergency room visit is never paid for is a straw man. Most decent people pay for their care.

          But know with my insurance going from $147.00 (pre ACA) to $598.00 (just got my new price from Providence Health Plans of Oregon) I will probably be thinking about paying the penalty because it is a lot cheaper.

        • If you don’t pay the penalty there is nothing the IRS can do to collect it other than deduct it from a refund (if you have one coming) Look into it. I just found this out!

        • Who pays? Depends upon the terms of their automobile policy…but most auto policies I’ve seen include medical care for not only the policyholder but for anyone else harmed…including the uninsured…which is rare given in my state we’re all also mandated to have auto policies. However, my auto insurance doesn’t cost me all of my income!

    • So you don’t have fire insurance on your house or apartment because you are ‘so careful with fire’? That makes no freaking sense. As a society, we decided that if you happen to get really sick or get in a bad accident (yes it happens to people who exercise and eat healthy food), we are not going to leave you to die on the street. You’ll get coverage. And for that, you must pay into the system. Move to Somalia if you like your ‘freedom’ so much. It’s very free there. Pretty much no government at all.

      Reply
      • Jeff, there is a group of people who fall right on the edge here – they are defined as the middle class but really they haven’t seen increases in their salaries in a while when compared to the cost of living increases. If one works for a small employer or two, they may offer the minimum insurance and the employee may get 50% of the bare minimum offerings covered. Should the employee need to be hospitalized, it could cost them up to $6250 for an individual and double that for families in deductibles up front. There is a gap here that needs to be addressed for these high cost deductibles. I work in the industry. The hospitals are doing well. Big Pharma is doing very extremely well, and they have incredible influence. The act was closed to 1000 pages which our government admitted to not reading through and there is room for improvement.

        I will tell you that I see many getting insurance who have not paid anything into the system. Those in the middle class have paid into it and I am concerned there will be nothing for them when it is time to access.

        Reply
        • Maybe the CEO’s of big insurance companies need to help their companies by not taking huge salaries and bonuses! They seem to be the ones getting rich during Obamacare!

  16. I lost my job in July 2015 so I lost my coverage because it was paid for by the my job and when I tried to apply for a new health insurance I was told its late now and i can only do so starting in 1/1/16. Am I going to get penalized for not having insurance for the rest of 2015?

    Reply
    • Loss of health insurance because of loss of job qualifies you to get insurance through obamacare without waiting.

      Reply
    • Is this board off kilter?
      Your post is dated last Sunday but you mention 2015?

      Either way you have 3 months penalty free to change or register for a new healthcare plan anytime of the year with a “life change”, which means within 90 days of losing a job.

      Reply
  17. I have always voted democratic, however, this year because of the penalties obamacare has put on the working class, I will vote republican in order to get obamacare repealed. I will just hope that the powers that be will have some kind of control over crazy ideas.
    Us American people should have paid better attention to the obamacare issues, but, when you are working 2 jobs and have a family to raise, there is very little time left, which our government knows.

    Reply
    • I never voted for democrats because they support big corporations (big greedy insurance companies in this case) and “choke” small businesses like mine. Now this spread out on everyone :(

      Reply
    • BS!! I guarantee you waste many hours each and every week watching ignorant, mindless TV shows, so because of lazy scumbags like YOU that didn’t bother to research this fraudulent Act or to listen to those of us that DID, now the rest of us have to suffer for YOUR stupidity, and slothful laziness. Suck it up. YOU put us here, sh!t-stain.

      Reply
  18. Anyone know what happens if you have one child over 18 that does not carry insurance because his paternal father did not do it? Should you just let him claim himself going forward to avoid paying fine on entire households income?

    Reply
    • That could be a cheaper option as individual penalty can be less than family. But does he file a tax return? Also he cannot be claimed as a dependent (and get all the benefits) and file an individual return

      Reply
    • I am exactly in that situation. My adult son had some medical problems so he had been out of work and I’ve been supporting him AND paying medical bills for several years. Here is the catch 22…… he has NO income,, so when he tried to get Obama care they told him to try for Medicaid.. then Medicaid wants to know what I make and says he doesn’t qualify– I cannot afford to buy insurance for him– they send us round and round,,, Last year I paid out of pocket 26,000 for surgery he needed( I took it out of my retirement savings–I am currently retired).. I claimed him because of this and granted it helped my taxes to declare him, but I had to pay 982 dollars for his not having insurance. This year same thing— I paid several thousand in doctor bills.. he still can’t get insurance– I cannot afford what they want in premiums and they say he needs Medicaid–they send him back to Obamacare–just like last year– Well this year my penalty was 2200 dollars!! That is outrageous. I am a 64 yer old retired womane who worked my whole life. I have paid out of pocket for care for my son as he tries to get employment. Neither he or I have ever received any welfare or similar things…yet they are penalizing me like this. In order to pay what I owe.. I will have to take more money out of my retirement savings.

      Reply
        • You needed to go another way. Coverage for him could have been received under the ACA with discounts but only if you talk with someone that knows the law. Let me know if you want to know more.

  19. I agree I get penalized for paying cash for mine and my son’s Dr. Visits! And now I have to pay a fine in top of that!

    Reply
  20. I was penalized like 270$ for only having health Insurance for six months of the year. So stupid! What happened to only getting penalized for not having it at all.

    Reply
  21. Hi, I work as a union laborer. I was sent a letter in the mail stating I was covered for 8 months. Do I just pay for the 4 months that I wasn’t covered?

    Reply
  22. obamacare is a socialist program. How dare he make Americans pay NOT to have health insurance. Thankfully, this socialist, enemy coddling , capitalism hating, America hating (and I could go on) will be gone soon. He’s done nothing but ruin the Country I love. Now we must defeat ole Hillary so obamacare can be repealed and our right to bear arms is protected; & lets not forget how our Troops have suffered between their pay/benefits and they do not have what they need to do their job. Obamacare & welfare are growing, while SS recipients received no raise in benefits. People pay into SS, taxpayers pay for welfare for lazy people and illegals; ultimately, Obama has screwed hard working Americans. Repeal obamacare!! God bless America & Our Brave Troops

    Reply
    • No, Obamacare is a facist program. All these billions are not going to the government, they are going to the private health insurance companies. The problem is that people keep confusing health CARE with health INSURANCE, two very different things. The corporate owned government forced this on us so that billions of our tax dollars are transferred directly to the giant heath insurance companies. And don’t forget, John Roberts, a republican appointee, is solely responsible for this monstrosity not being ruled unconstitutional because of the evil mandate, which he ruled to be a tax rather than a what it is, a penalty.

      Reply
    • It’s cheaper but still the idea of being penalized just because you did not but an insurance, that’s what is not acceptable. Pretty soon, we will be penalized for not taking a shower everyday.

      Reply
  23. Hay B O (Barack Obama) your insurance sucks to expensive and covers nothing by the time you reached the deductible your broke. We people need to show these heartless people who the boss is .

    Reply
    • I did say the same thing ..ppl with preexisting health condition attacked me big time! Im like really??? I recently joined HealthCareMinistry..Sharing program…better donate money for a good cause then to this moron..or to whoever who doesn’t want to work and get free health insurance…nuh…..Ok. So he did what he did I guess…but why make the premiums and deductibles go so high?????? 12k for an individual and 350$ premium…WTF? middle working class can’t not afford that! He aimed this on lower income class…so they would get off free…all for votes! what country we live in!

      Reply
  24. I’m sickened by the change in Obamacare from 2015 to 2016! Shame on the bastards that even came up with Obamacare. So many lives have been affected by this. We now need to decide which bills can wait and which ones need to be paid, how we will be able to pay rents, mortgages, cars, insurance..etc… to accommodate for this “Jokeomacare! Nice for the rich and government officials that don’t have a worry in the world. My family and I will be going “solo” in 2016. Bring on the fines. I will not pay into this bullshit system. I pray that Obamacare is repealed and replaced with a more suitable plan and that it happens very quick.

    Reply
  25. Why in the world is health insurance being funneled through the workplace in the US??? Auto insurance is not done like this. This is TERRIBLE for businesses and also gives larger companies an unfair advantage by creating higher costs percentage wise on the smaller businesses. Why should someone working at a larger company having cheaper insurance than someone at a smaller company. Again no sense at all. It also creates a massive amount of paperwork that slows down company operations.

    Take businesses out of the health insurance equation! Keep the insurance markets unsubsidized and have it be individual point of sale.

    Reply
    • I’d LOVE to see personal responsibility come to health insurance. I AGREE – GET THE BUSINESSES OUT! It started out as an optional employment perk and it’s just twisted into a nightmarish pretzel. I wonder where the support would come from to get employers OUT and let the policy-holders IN?! THEN…maybe we could afford coverage and balance things backwards. I agree that keeping people from healthcare who have health issues is wrong…the only thing worse is THIS nightmare.

      Reply
  26. This is Bull, ObamaCare is the biggest joke of this country I have ever seen. This so called President OBAMA has done nothing for the American hard working people. It is bull when working people have to put out over 5000.00 or more a year for Medical Insurance that pays not a dam thing until you meet high deductibles. Look you worse president of american history, if you wanted to raise taxes you should had just raised them. Better yet you want to do something good, resign.

    Reply
  27. Obama, its easy to force people to pay for something when it doesn’t effect your pocket. Lord knows you don’t have to pay for you health insurance. Middle class suffers from your bullshit and executive orders. I can’t wait until we get another president in there to whipe out all of your bullshit “Obamadontcare about middle class” plans. You gave it a good run but it seems like your final stretch and decisions are becoming less and less impressive.

    Reply
  28. So do u only get charge fee per month u don’t have it or by the dead line even if I get it in February would I still b charged the whole fee

    Reply
    • When I tried to do me 2016 tax return I was told that since I only had it 4 mon. last year I had to pay a penalty of 495.00 for the 8 mon. I did not have it. Since I don’t have any state help and I didn’t cost the tax payers any money(I paid my dr. bills out of pocket) why should I have to pay?

      Reply
    • you would be liable for 1/12 of the penalty as it is prorated assuming you keep your coverage from Feb through end of year.

      Reply
  29. If 8%of my yearly income cannot afford the lowest priced plan am I Exempted? Does that mean If the lowest priced plan costs $8000 yearly and my income is $99500 yearly I am exempt from the fine?

    Reply
  30. just curious but how are families who cant afford healthcare going to beable to afford a 2 thusand dollar penlty??? doesnt make alot of sense

    Reply
    • If you had no insurance for all of 2016, you will be fined $695 per month..there is a worksheet to figure out what your fine would be..brings it down from the $695 amount each month. My husband and I had no coverage for 9 months of 2016, our fine comes to $1042 after doing the worksheets..there are 3 worksheets to do, you take figures from one and go to another and back and forth…loads of fun!

      Reply
  31. I just got penalized and I have insurance!!! My tax lady told me since I made 30,000 this year and only payed 104.00$ a month I am receiving a 750.00$ fine because the government feels I should be paying 170.00$ a month! This is all bullshit!

    Reply
    • That can’t be right. You’re either not getting all the facts or your tax lady is screwing you. What type of coverage do you have?

      Reply
        • Denise, she is correct. This is one of the “things”, we were warned was coming and was all over the news (not so much the liberal press) over the new year.

    • Sadly, that is correct. You awarded a tax credit based on your income. So whatever yearly income you put when you completed your healthcare application that’s the amount that was taken until you file your taxes of course. At the end when you sign your application it lets you know that you when you file your taxes that amount will be compared to the amount entered. and if you recorded less or what you really earn, you will owe money and it comes out of your taxes. But if you recorded more than what you really make, you will be owed money and that will be added to your tax return. I’m sorry they took so much from your tax return.You should have looked into exemptions, see if you may qualify to avoid fees.

      Reply
    • Same thing happened to me 2 years in a row. I prepared my own taxes . I make the same as you . One year I paid around 120.00 a month for a silver plan , the following year I paid about $ 190.00 a month for the silver plan ( hoping to not owe in around $750.00 again). Still had to pay in around $750.00. I even made almost $1,000.00 less this past year in addition to paying in more per month and they still charged me almost exactly the same dollar amount. Both years, never even used the insurance. Wish I had never got it and just paid the fines instead. I would have thousands of dollars in my bank account that are now forever gone. I had such good insurance through my workplace before all this and my young adult children were able to be covered through me as well. Really stinks.

      Reply
    • That is simple, when you initially signed up for the plan, you were asked if you want to take the tax credit off each month of your insurance payment, you chose to do so. At the end of year, when your actual income was higher than your estimated income that was stated on healthcare.gov, you owed back the tax credits that were overpaid. You could corrected this situation by logging back into healthcare.gov when you realized that your income would be higher and adjusted your income. It would have adjusted the remaining tax credit you were owed (which of course was less than your initial signup.

      Reply
  32. How is the penalty calculated if out of a family of four, only one parent was without insurance for the whole year? We did not qualify for subsidies, but insurance and deductibles were so expensive for just one of us and children.

    Reply
    • This is the exact situation I’m in, except we are below the poverty level. I hope someone does come along to answer your question.

      Reply
      • Zee – So two answers. First the individual mandate is based on individuals. So even you have insurance and your family doesn’t you may still face a penalty. For any month during the year that you or any of your family members don’t have minimum essential coverage and don’t qualify for a coverage exemption, you are required to make an individual shared responsibility payment when you file your tax return. The payment is reported on Form 1040 in the Other Taxes section and on the corresponding sections on Form 1040A and 1040EZ.

        In general, the annual payment amount is the greater of a percentage of your household income or a flat dollar amount, but is capped at the national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace.

        Jess – If you are below the poverty level you should get subsidies via the premium tax credit. Or you may be able to claim a hardship exemption as outlined in the post.

        Reply
  33. Nobody seems to understand a key reason for the trouble the world is in today. It is due to OVER POPULATION. We have TOO MANY people and not enough resources of any kind. Our fresh water resources and food supply can’t keep pace and don’t expect Health Care to keep pace. Go figure idiots. The world’s population doubled from 1910-1960, then DOUBLED AGAIN from 1960-2000. This had never happed in all of human history until after 1900. Look it up. Keep on having those babies and adding to the planets troubles! Alas nobody wants to FACE THE TRUTH!

    Reply
    • Trouble is most folks that say that aren’t willing to give up their seat or putting another baby on board. So we really need to get answers and solutions toward dealing with a huge population..Healthcare the BEST solution is to find ways to increase the number of people educated in working in those fields perhaps paying off student loans over time for work in free clinics or finding some way of increasing the number of teachers and classes in the healthcare field- implementing high tech classses online classes testing etc to effectivly bring good teachers to a higher number of students in a shorter amount of time — In EFFECT increase supply so the cost can come down. Reduce the amounts of tort claims while possibly increasing the number getting more people damaged by negligence defect etc relief while putting that relief in more realistic amounts so that the companies that insure against those type claims can more affordably insure your providers.. THERE are many things we could and SHOULD do within the realm of capitalist solutions. Socialists have never had effective solutions !! If someone puts just a few ticks on a goat and send it scurrying a 20 mile path toward you — you end up with a goat that is pretty healthy and prolly a few healthy ticks — same situation but this time they cover the goat with ticks — you better look out cause only the ticks with be coming and they will be coming for you! lol

      Reply
  34. How can you get health insurance if they keep telling you that you don’t qualify because you supposedly you make too much money. I make 20.000.00 a year. This is bull crap! I work and pay taxes and can’t afford health insurance. Where is out rights! We shouldn’t be made to have this.

    Reply
  35. my son is 32 lives with me and i claim him he dont work and dont have health care ins. will i be fined for hom if o claom him

    Reply
    • Yes, unless you take a chance and lie, it’s as simple as checking a box, that’s what I’m going to do for my wife.

      Reply
  36. Affordable health act is anything but affordable!!! The cheapest my husband and myself can get is $781 a month!!! And the insurance is useless!! How in the world can a working family afford this?? We need change America!! We have no choice but to pay the fines for not having insurance. We can in no way pay these outrageous rates.

    Reply
    • Agreed Mimi!
      My husband and I pay $1,068 per month but when we reach our deductible of $6,800 each we can actually use it…..useless is right! It is terrible and I can not fit it into our budget no matter how much I cut.

      Reply
  37. How will the IRS know whether I had coverage in 2015 or not? What if I just lie and check the box that says I was covered? Are they really going to take the time to verify 150 million tax returns health coverage info?

    Reply
    • Yes, the IRS will verify. You might not get penalized right away but will receive a letter by the end of the year with the fee you owe for not having insurance as well as penalties…

      Reply
    • If you are W-2’d it shows if you had health insurance or not….I agree and resent the fact we are “forced to take health insurance” that is useless and unaffordable! how they ever though this was affordable should be “forced” to pay for everyone’s health insurance……I can’t wait till Obama is out of office.

      Reply
  38. I’m still in shock and awe that our Congress sold us out to the insurance industry. How unamerican, selfish and duplicitous of them. My premiums tripled after Obsmacare in 2015. Now they have gone up another 25% for 2016. I can no longer afford it and will cancel coverage. Thanks Federal government.

    Reply
    • Pre-Obamacare plan – including dental with ABCBS of Va. $401/mth with $750 deductible.
      Same plan under Obamacare – $1187/mth w/o dental and $4200 deductible.
      New plan under Optima first year – $529/mth and $6000 deductible/$6200 OOP
      New Plan Under Optima 2nd year – $593/mth and $6250 deuctible and $6350 OOP
      If you don’t have insurance, then they will fine you and hold & or use your tax refund if you get one.

      A SMART PERSON would make sure that based on your income, you only pay in what you will owe or even less than what you will owe. They can’t take what they don’t have yet!

      Reply
  39. Does “Medically Needy” count as insurance according the the ACA? Meaning does it meet the minimum coverage amount or whatever?

    Reply

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