1/31/14

Opt Out Of 'Individual Mandate'? "Now Anybody Can Get An ObamaCare Exemption", Says 'Health Freedom' Group

...Now ANYBODY Can Get An ObamaCare Exemption onenewsnow.com

A health freedom group is sharing information about a 14th hardship exemption in ObamaCare.

Healthcare.gov lists 13 hardship exemptions*. But Twila Brase, president and co-founder of Citizens' Council for Health Freedom, says her organization discovered a 14th exemption upon looking at the actual hardship exemption form [pdf] needed to claim an exemption.

"... What we found when we looked at the application form for exemptions was this 14th one, which says you've experienced another hardship in obtaining health insurance," she tells OneNewsNow. "So suddenly, here we have essentially an open door for anybody to walk in and say I experienced a hardship, here's what it is and I want to be exempt from having to purchase health insurance or pay the penalty."

In many cases, a regulator would say someone needs to prove that he or she is experiencing a hardship to be exempt – but Brase says that's not the case with the 14th exemption. "It says, Please submit documentation if possible. That's the first place in the entire exemption document that they say please; and the second thing it says is if possible," she describes. "So anybody can go on this hardship declaration form and essentially say, You know, I have this hardship and I'm sorry I have no documentation."

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*The other exemptions (13) from healthcare.gov (linked above)

1. You were homeless.
2. You were evicted in the past 6 months or were facing eviction or foreclosure.
3. You received a shut-off notice from a utility company.
4. You recently experienced domestic violence.
5. You recently experienced the death of a close family member.
6. You experienced a fire, flood, or other natural or human-caused disaster that caused substantial damage to your property.
7. You filed for bankruptcy in the last 6 months.
8. You had medical expenses you couldn’t pay in the last 24 months.
9. You experienced unexpected increases in necessary expenses due to caring for an ill, disabled, or aging family member.
10. You expect to claim a child as a tax dependent who’s been denied coverage in Medicaid and CHIP, and another person is required by court order to give medical support to the child. In this case, you do not have the pay the penalty for the child.
11. As a result of an eligibility appeals decision, you’re eligible for enrollment in a qualified health plan (QHP) through the Marketplace, lower costs on your monthly premiums, or cost-sharing reductions for a time period when you weren’t enrolled in a QHP through the Marketplace.
12. You were determined ineligible for Medicaid because your state didn’t expand eligibility for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.
13. Your individual insurance plan was cancelled and you believe other Marketplace plans are unaffordable.


fyi

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