The Freelancers' Union is dropping its health insurance plans. That means that 25,000 or so people who get that coverage in New York will be affected. The reason for the end of coverage is simple: Obamacare. Under the impact of the law, the Freelancers' Union was going to have to raise premiums by roughly 15% over last year, and even that raise might not have been sufficient. As a result, the Freelancers' Union threw in the towel. Its members will now have to buy insurance on the Obamacare exchange.
For those of you who are not familiar with the Freelancers' Union, it is not a typical sort of union. It is rather more like a trade association whose members work as private contractors for a whole host of employers across New York. For example, workers at many magazines published in Manhattan work on a daily rate rather than as full time employees. Many folks in the arts also work on a freelance basis. After the recession, the number of people with consulting businesses rose dramatically. These businesses typically have no employees other than the owner who works on a freelance basis for his or her clients. And all of these many freelancers were able to get good group health insurance policies through the Freelancers' Union, at least they could until now.
Now obviously, non of the people whose policies will be cancelled will have to go without insurance. They can get coverage through the Obamacare exchange. The problem, however, is that the policies they will get will be more expensive and offer less coverage. Many hospitals in New York are not covered. Large numbers of doctors in New York are not covered. In New York, Obamacare policies do NOT allow the insured to visit doctors or hospitals outside the network.
In a way, this move by the Freelancers' Union is interesting. As a group, the members of the Freelancers' Union are probably much more Democrat than the public as a whole in New York state. Well now, they are getting what they voted for. I wonder how many of them will like it.
For those of you who are not familiar with the Freelancers' Union, it is not a typical sort of union. It is rather more like a trade association whose members work as private contractors for a whole host of employers across New York. For example, workers at many magazines published in Manhattan work on a daily rate rather than as full time employees. Many folks in the arts also work on a freelance basis. After the recession, the number of people with consulting businesses rose dramatically. These businesses typically have no employees other than the owner who works on a freelance basis for his or her clients. And all of these many freelancers were able to get good group health insurance policies through the Freelancers' Union, at least they could until now.
Now obviously, non of the people whose policies will be cancelled will have to go without insurance. They can get coverage through the Obamacare exchange. The problem, however, is that the policies they will get will be more expensive and offer less coverage. Many hospitals in New York are not covered. Large numbers of doctors in New York are not covered. In New York, Obamacare policies do NOT allow the insured to visit doctors or hospitals outside the network.
In a way, this move by the Freelancers' Union is interesting. As a group, the members of the Freelancers' Union are probably much more Democrat than the public as a whole in New York state. Well now, they are getting what they voted for. I wonder how many of them will like it.
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