Un-Affordable Act

“When One Penalty is Enough”

By The Editorial Board  

New York Times

February 19, 2015

Article Here  

           In this article the author is talking about the Affordable Care Act deadlines and fines. They are arguing to extend the deadline to sign up for insurance until after April 15^th this year. This argument is based on the fact that some people may not be aware of the fines associated with not having insurance until tax time this year, when 2014 charges are to be included in tax returns. The fine for not having insurance in 2014 is $95 or 1% of annual income, which ever is higher.

            The 2015 deadline to sign up for insurance was February 22 and the fines have been raised to $325 or 2% of annual income, whichever is higher. For someone making just $20,000 a year the cost of NOT having insurance would be $400.  That seems harsh and demanding. With over 85% of people qualifying to receive financial help with insurance coverage I’m sure many will opt to take the coverage instead of paying the costly fine, but for 2014 and 2015 fines, it will be too late.

            I agree with the author of this article. It seems fair to give people the chance to avoid those costly fines especially since I don’t feel this news been widely distributed. It is my first time hearing the amount of the charges and other than the small mention Obama made in a Buzzfeed video, I hadn’t realized that the deadline to sing up has come and gone. To be fair, I have insurance so I am in the clear but I imagine many others that will be affected were not aware of the logistics of the Act. 

            I decided to do a small poll among acquaintances. I asked 16 random volunteers to answer "Without Googling it.... Are you aware of the fine amount for not having insurance in 2014 under the Affordable Care Act? Do you know the date of the deadline to sign up for insurance in 2015?  Are you aware of the 2015 fine amount?" Out of 16 people 10 did not know any of the information asked. Just 2/16 people knew the correct cutoff date and fine amounts for 2014 and 2015. 3/16 knew just the deadline date and 1/16 knew just the fine amount. I also got a few interesting side notes out of the poll, one comment being that one self employed individual would like the date extended since she had not done her taxes yet and did not know the amount of money she made last year so she had to make up a amount in order to fill out the healthcare application. Another interesting comment was from an individual that is a nurse at a Hospital that works with uninsured patients often, she wasn't aware of the fines or deadline to sign up but mentioned that those patients are stigmatized.  

            This mandate is not new but since there seems to be a lack of public knowledge and this is the first time fines will be enforced I think it’s a wise suggestion to extend the 2015 sign up deadline until after the first round of fines have been charged. It would eliminate a lot of gripes and excuses and maybe remove some of the criticism toward the Affordable Care Act.

Keystone XL Pipeline Extension and its politics

Article Here      
      I bring up this article of the Keystone XL Pipeline Extension because there’s been a long-standing debate about it that may soon come to an end. On February 11, 2015 the House approved the Keystone XL pipeline project. The measure has now been sent to President Obama who has said he will veto it.

            I find it highly entertaining that Obama is yet again wielding his powers to veto and put Congress in check. The Keystone XL Pipeline extension issue in particular has got to be a tough one for Congress to swallow since they been putting pressure on Obama’s administration to pass required bills since 2011 and since this issue was a hot topic during the midterm elections.

            If you read about the history you quickly realize that a massive pipeline that goes from Canada thru the US to Texas has already been built. Basically meaning that this is not a new idea, but rather the Keystone extension is something that is being stopped in its tracks. There have been some environmental concerns about pathways and despite support from Congress, Obama is playing the long game on this one. He realizes that this is a short-sited goal that would put money in our pocket now but ignores long-term environmental effects.