Even with the major advancements of the [[wp:Affordable Care Act|Affordable Care Act]] in 2010 Healthcare is (still) so broken in the US. (I'm trying on a mission to fix it.)
A couple points made in this article with regard to your personal health care data:
*The state and federal governments knows know more about you than you do.
*Your hospital and doctors know more about you than you do.
Perhaps improving patient access to patient medical data would improve healthcare outcomes!
In Massachusettsthe United States, individual health insurance is mandatory - or you will be fined when you file taxes. Of course everyone wants healthcare, so on the surface it's not too onerous to say that it's "mandatory". But, if you're not covered by an employer plan (because you were just laid off, self-employed, or work for a small employer, laid offwith < 50 employees), then you must obtain health insurance on your own. It is rather insane to tie health benefits to employment when employment changes routinely - whereas healthcare is something that you want to be continuous, permanent, and stable over time.
==MassHealth==
In order to determine eligibility (You must renew every year! Like doing taxes!) <ref>https://www.mass.gov/doc/130-cmr-502-health-care-reform-masshealth-eligibility-process/download</ref>, MassHealth initiates 'information matches'. They look you up electronically to match you in (emphasis added)
# '''the Federal Data Hub''', which matches with the '''Social Security Administration''', the '''Department of Homeland Security''', and the '''Internal Revenue Service'''; and # '''other''' federal '''and''' state agencies '''and''' '''other''' informational services.
What are these other (data) services? And what information do they have on me at say the Department of Homeland Security that would determine my health insurance eligibility? Since they try to automatically renew every year, and the recipient doesn't have to do anything if that match is successful, how does the recipient of benefits know that possibly the information is incorrect?
What if you move from one state to another? Perhaps you live in a border town where the 'next state' is next door. One of the many things you need to do is also renew and replace all you your health insurance and physician relationships in 45 days or less. It's just one of many examples why [[wp:Universal health care|Universal health care]] is the system in place in all other industrialized nations on earth (and even developing countries).
== Renewal ==
https://www.mahix.org/individual/ I assume this is the domain for the 'Massachusetts Healthcare Information Exchange'
{{#ev:youtube|EcwQIk9mb58}}
== Assistance == * You can call (and wait on hold, and not get the info you need)* You can visit an enrollement center (There are only 7 statewide. The nearest to me is over 30 miles away; approximately a 50 minute drive - during normal business hours so take an afternoon off work to get assistance.)* '''best option''' Make an appointment with a Certified Asistance Counselor (CAC), also called a 'navigator'. There are two agencies locally that are certified: '''[https://www.ajh.org Anna Jaques Hospital]''' (Newburyport), and the social services agency '''[https://pettengillhouse.org Pettingill House]''' (Amesbury) which has a food bank location in Salisbury.
== Affordable Healthcare ==
Under the bi-partisan Affordable Care Act (ACA), your employer's plan is considered "affordable" in 2024 if the lowest-cost plan (meeting the <abbr title="A health plan meets this standard if it's designed to pay at least 60% of the total cost of medical services for a standard population, and if its benefits include substantial coverage of inpatient hospital and physician services. Individuals offered job-based coverage that provides minimum value and is considered affordable aren't eligible for an Advance Premium Tax Credit.">minimum value standard</abbr>) costs less than 8.39% of your household's income. So, if the crappiest plan meeting minimum standards offered costs slightly less than 10% of your 'modified adjusted gross income', then it's affordable <ref>[https://www.mahealthconnector.org/esi-affordability-calculator ESI Affordability Calculator]</ref>.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Adjusted Gross Income || 48,255 || 130,000
|-
! 8.39% affordability threshold || 4,049 || 10,907
|-
! Monthly threshold || 337 || 909
|}
An interesting note: 1/12 is 8.33% So, basically you are expected to pay one month of your income towards health insurance. And 2024 is the first year in a decade where the rate was below 9%
<br /> === New in 2024 and 2025 ===Individual income limit is $72,900 (was $43,470 last year) for the ''''ConnectorCare'''<nowiki/>' insurance plans. All insurance companies participating in the Mass Health Connector must offer ConnectorCare plans. ConnectorCare plans offer low- or no-cost premiums, lower co-pays and no deductible. == Tools ==Get an estimate https://betterhealthconnector.com/get-an-estimate Plan comparison [https://ma.checkbookhealth.org/hie/ma/2024/index.cfm? https://ma.checkbookhealth.org/hie/ma/2024/] Healthcare plans are offered in "metallic" tiers like you're somehow winning medals in the Olympics instead of paying the world's highest costs for healthcare. The system is just another level of indirection. Personally, I think the lowest level of payout ('bronze') should start out at 80%, with additional tiers of 85, 90, and 95 - or even 100%. I mean why is it called 'platinum', better than 'gold', and only pays out 90%? Sounds like these plans are "platinum colored" rather than genuine platinum.{| class="wikitable"|+What Metal Tiers mean!Tier!Plan pays|-|Bronze|60%|-|Silver|70%|-|Gold|80%|-|Platinum|90%|} == Changes ==Someone must '''apply''', '''enroll''', and '''pay your first premium''' by the '''23rd of the month''' ''before'' your coverage can '''start the following month'''. For example, enroll and pay by April 23rd for coverage to start on May 1{{References}}