Understanding facts is therapeutic in itself ~ what I'm waiting to see is if these converts will ever recognize that they have been intentionally misled via distortion, manipulation, and flat-out lies for no reason other than hatred and ego ~ ~ there are "live links" to more/corroborating information in the original ~ Sooz

Replacing poor insurance plans with good ones
10/29/13 09:22 AM
By Steve Benen

We’ve known for several years that once the Affordable Care Act is implemented, substandard insurance plans would be replaced with better, stronger coverage. Nevertheless, as lots of folks learn that their old plans are being replaced, this has led to a variety of overheated reports featuring shocked consumers. (That insurers routinely dropped Americans’ coverage under the old system is often overlooked.)

Leading much of the coverage is a woman named Dianne Barrette, a 56-year-old resident of Winter Haven, Fla., who’s made a flurry of television appearances after Blue Cross/Blue Shield informed her that her old plan is being replaced with a new one, and her new coverage will be more expensive. “What I have right now is what I’m happy with, and I just want to know why I can’t keep what I have,” she said on CBS. “Why do I have to be forced into something else?”

To his credit, the Washington Post’s Erik Wemple took a closer look at the anecdotal evidence.


If this woman had a serious ailment and was forced to stay in the hospital for a while, her old plan would have likely destroyed her financial life permanently, leaving her bankrupt. Now, thanks to “Obamacare,” in the event of a disaster, she’ll be protected with coverage her insurer can’t take away – with no annual or lifetime caps.

In other words, the new horror story for critics of the health care law features a middle-aged woman trading a bad plan for a good plan, and health care insecurity for health care security.

What’s more, while much of the coverage of Barrette’s situation has focused on the higher monthly cost of her new, better insurance plan, there’s another detail that’s been overlooked by some: she’ll be eligible for subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. The cost of the coverage isn’t what she’ll actually have to pay out of her own pocket.

If it seems like this keeps coming up, with Republicans and news outlets latching onto anecdotes that seem to cast the health care law in a negative light, only to look much better upon closer scrutiny, that’s because this keeps happening. If the law were as awful as detractors claim, shouldn’t it be easier to find legitimate victims?

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/replacing-poor-insurance-plans-good-ones

Good example of why "converts" are the GOP/TPers' worst nightmare ~ YAYYY! ~ there are "live links" to more/corroborating information in the original ~ Sooz

‘Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise’
11/05/13 09:59 AM
By Steve Benen

We talked last week about Dianne Barrette, a 56-year-old resident of Winter Haven, Fla., who’s made a flurry of television appearances after Blue Cross/Blue Shield informed her that her old plan is being replaced with a new one, and her new coverage will be more expensive. Her situation quickly made her a media darling, appearing on multiple national programs on multiple national networks.

Barrette joked at one point, “You guys are going to be sick of my face.”

Upon further inspection, the story of this “Obamacare victim” was far different from what those initial interviews suggested. Barrette had an awful insurance plan that left her one serious ailment away from bankruptcy. The Affordable Care Act offered an upgrade at a discount – she’s eligible for a subsidy under the law.

Jonathan Cohn did some additional research, discovered that Barrette could sign up for a vastly better plan than she has now, and it’d cost her between $50 to $150 more per month, depending on how much coverage she was prepared to buy. Cohn asked Barrette directly if this would appeal to her, given her personal circumstances.


So let me get this straight. Several major news outlets told the public last week that Dianne Barrette is an example of an American consumer poised to lose big as a result of the Affordable Care Act. This Florida woman, we were told, is the quintessential example of someone disappointed by “Obamacare” and its effects on her personally.

And now that she’s received some additional information – details that weren’t included in last week’s coverage of her situation – this alleged victim of the law is starting to realize that maybe the Affordable Care Act is going to work in her favor after all.

So here’s my next question: will those same shows that presented Barrette as a victim last week tell the rest of the story, or will they move on to other folks who reinforce a pre-determined narrative?

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maybe-its-blessing-disguise