Is Obamacare causing a PILOT shortage?

It sounds strange that Obama's health care legislation could affect something as unrelated as the airline industry but, all on has to do is connect the dots to see the connection.

American Airlines to reduce July flying

American Airlines says it will reduce flights in July partly because of a shortage of pilots due to more of them calling in sick.

The 1 percent reduction in July's schedule follows a 1.5 percent cutback in June, which was also blamed partly on higher usage of sick leave by pilots.

A union spokesman said Wednesday that pilots could be taking care of elective procedures before American raises their premiums and co-payments.

Gregg Overman, a spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, said the union doesn't track use of sick leave by its members, but he said any increase might be related to American's proposal during its bankruptcy process to make employees pay more for health care.

"Some pilots who postponed elective surgery might be going ahead before their co-payments go up and their premiums go up," Overman said.

AP

Sure, they try to paint it as a result of a bankruptcy process but, even insurance execs admit that the Obamacare legislation is driving up prices and may force more employers to either raise premiums or drop coverage on all employees leaving them to the government run plan.

Obamacare Makes Healthcare Less Affordable, Execs Tell House Panel

“There’s no question the PPACA has, to this date, bent the health insurance cost curve north, not south,” Edward Fensholt, senior vice president of Lockton Companies, LLC, the world’s largest privately held insurance brokerage and consulting firm, told the subcommittee. “As additional taxes, fees and mandates on employer-based health coverage come on line, we fear the health insurance affordability forecast will continue to deteriorate.”

Fensholt pointed to a number of ObamaCare mandates already in force that have increased employers’ health insurance costs by “2–3 percent.” Among these are requirements that health plans cover "children" to age 26 on their parents’ plans, ignore preexisting conditions when covering children, eliminate lifetime and some annual benefit caps, and cover various preventive services. In addition, he maintained, a new rule requiring employers to offer the same level of health coverage at the same cost to all employees will likely become so expensive that many “employers will simply have to terminate their existing group coverage” — leaving all their employees, rather than just some, uninsured.

Beginning in 2014, he noted, “health plans must reduce waiting periods to 90 days, and auto-enroll eligible full-time employees in available employer-based coverage.” Some industries, he said, have “6-month or even 12-month waiting periods” and “can expect to see significant cost increases” — perhaps as high as 25 percent — under the new mandate. Overall, Lockton’s clients are looking at a 4.4-percent cost increase as a result of this mandate.

New taxes on medical devices and third-party medical claims administrators are expected to increase group health insurance costs by an additional two to three percent, Fensholt stated.

The New American

They can try to hide the fact that Obomacare is a total disaster for the American people by trying to blame increasing costs on bankruptcies (there's a lot of them going around you know) and greedy capitalists but, when you come right down to it, business people will do what they have to do to keep their businesses profitable. If the new legislation makes it too expensive to supply their employees with medical coverage, they will either have to increase the cost to their employees or drop the coverage all together.

Who can blame the pilots for wanting to take care of things before all those new fees and co-payments kick in?

How is Obamacare which isn't even in effect yet the blame for pilots calling in sick? Did some obamacare worker place calls backwards in time and tell these pilots to call in sick? I don't think so.

If insurance companies are jacking up their rates to companies then it is the insurance companies that are being greedy. To blame something for prices going up that isn't even in effect yet is laughable at best.

reply to post by buster2010


That's kind of the point - Obamacare does nothing to limit price gouging or pretty much anything related to how much insurance costs. It's net effect is everyone is jacking up prices and the smart people are trying to get healthcare options done now before the government starts rationing it out. Maybe Obama and his genius administration should have seen this coming and done something about it?

reply to post by buster2010


That's fine, don't even read any of the supporting information I posted in the OP there.

The pilots are calling out sick because they are having medical procedures done before their health plans change because they know their premiums and co-pays will go up. They're all rushing to get things done before the changes take effect and they will be forced to pay more out of pocket.

Keep in mind that these are polits who, on average, make over $100k a year. If changes in the healthcare industry as affecting them this way, imagine how they'll affect regular people making less than $50k a year.

If you read the New American Article, you will see that new requirements already rolled out are starting to result in price hikes today, as in right now. Add to that, the increased reporting requirements for the insurance companies, the doctors and businesses and you have the perfect storm brewing.

It won't be long before nobody, not even pilots making six figures, can afford to buy their employer provided healthcare.

What we are seeing is just the tip of the iceburg. I predict it won't be long before many more professions will begin to experience this phenomena as they realize that healthcare will soon become unaffordable. Everybody will be running to the docs to get every little problem imaginable taken care of before their insurance runs out or gets too expensive to use.

reply to post by FortAnthem

Sure, they try to paint it as a result of a bankruptcy process but, even insurance execs admit that the Obamacare legislation is driving up prices and may force more employers to either raise premiums or drop coverage on all employees leaving them to the government run plan.

Sure, you can just completely make up crazy stuff...doesn't mean it's true.


I love how some people try sooooo hard to blame Obama for some things...even when the reason is exactly spelled out in the article.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

I love how some people try sooooo hard to blame Obama for some things...even when the reason is exactly spelled out in the article.

Yeah, its spelled out by a union rep (In Obama's pocket) in an article by the liberal AP (also in Obama's pocket).

Why should I doubt anything I read in the MSM, especially when it comes from a source friendly to the administration?

I'm just off my rocker, I guess.

reply to post by FortAnthem


So, you post an article from the mainstream media, but then when it is shown to not say what you think it says, you discount it as untrue?

reply to post by stanguilles7


I pointed out that the MSM article tried to spin the story to make people think this wasn't the result of Obamacare. I never said the MSM article was fully accurate.

I even posted proof that Obamacare is causing prices to rise and you would think that anybody with two brain cells to rub together would be able to figure out what is going on here.

I guess my expectations for you folks were unjustified.

Originally posted by FortAnthem
reply to post by stanguilles7

 

I even posted proof that Obamacare is causing prices to rise

No, you posted someone's opinion.

Consistency FAIL>

No.

The Affordable Care Act does not cause a pilot shortage.

reply to post by spinalremain


Sure, go ahead and laugh at the tinfoil hat guy.

Just mark my words though; as Obamacare continues to raise insurance rates and co-pays you will see this seasonal trend, not just in pilots but, in all professions. You will see an annual labor shortage in all sectors of the economy as the annual benefits enrollment period comes around.

Employees, knowing that increases in their payroll deductions and increased co-pays for care will soon be coming, will all seek to get every last little thing taken care of possible as the increases loom on the horizon. They'll use their sick time and will create temporary labor shortages in all fields.

Many will be faced with the possibility of having to give up their coverage because of skyrocketing prices and will seek to get every penny's worth out of their current coverage before having to give it up.

Obomacare will be an unmitigated disaster if allowed to run its course. I still can't understand how liberals can support this legislation when all it does is force everyone to shell out money to greedy corporations.

Neither side won when this legislation was shoved down the nation's throat. Only the mega-corporations will benefit from it, as they always do in our corrupt system.