Dealing with Obamacare

So, my situation is basically that I'm self employed right now because of various different factors. In any case, I might make enough this year to qualify for subsidies, but I might not. If I take those subsidies and don't make over the poverty rate, I am poor and owe the government a good deal of money come tax time.

I am concerned about the security holes in the website, and I also don't want to take charity any more than I have to. Before this, I was paying for a catastrophic plan for about 50 bucks a month or so. Nothing flashy, nothing fancy. But now? Even the catastrophic plans are 150-200 a month in my area. My state didn't expand Medicaid, either.

I'm in a bad situation, I have no idea which way to go, and I have four days to decide. I'm sure I'll come down on one side or the other, but it's not really fun.

Anybody else in a similar tough situation?

I'm in the same boat myself. My husband's work is seasonal at times (saw mill) and his income can vary by as much as $10,000-$20,000 a year. I do not work and we have a daughter. In the middle of the scale, my daughter and I do qualify for a subsidy but we also face being stuck with a huge bill at the end of the year. I would rather pay the small penalty for not having Obamacare than I would owe the IRS a ton more money than I could pay and having them levy every asset I have.

Like most... we need insurance, but the risk in situations like this is too much to even attempt IMO. My subsidy was tiny and my premium was still pretty steep at any rate.

I think there's going to be quite a few surprised folks at the end of the year when they find out they have been paying the premium, but will STILL owe the IRS at the end of the year for taking too much of the subsidy and failing to educate themselves on the "rules" of using it. As with any government regulation, they have gone above and beyond to make this as confusing and vague as possible.

I hope you can work something out. I won't be taking the risk myself.

I am also self employed. Remember, the penalty is taken out of your tax return. If you are self employed and getting a return, you are doing it wrong. Screw obama care! I will not participate. I will not subsidize a program that strips me of my rights and privacy. The government cannot force me to engage in commerce. I don't care what scotus says, that is Un-Constitutional.

Well, I thought that they were using the "honor" system this year.
All you have to do is check the box, stating you "tried" to get on the site and get healthcare, then no penalty this year.

Win win! No paying for healthcare, and no penalty.

reply to post by DarthMuerte

Cool, WHEN you have something that cost thousands and thousands and yet thousands more dollars than you can afford happen, just let the tax payers pay for it. Don't bother getting insurance. Almost every human being at some point in time is going to have a VERY costly health issue, for gosh sakes an MRI is $3000 just for the test, that breaks down to $250 per month , JUST FOR THE TEST NOT TREATMENT. So you really think $300 per month for one person is too much for health care? I am far from rich, but have insurance.

One of the problems is not just the cost of coverage, but even with coverage the out of pocket expenses can go into the thousands. High deductables and all. I'm still undecided even at this late date. My Ex, who has coverage still pays thousands out of pocket and we just discovered that our local hospital will no longer take his healthplan. What the ...????