There used to be a song that said, “I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden.” A rose garden though is what many of the American people thought they were getting with the Affordable Healthcare Act, also known as Obamacare.
Americans are not getting universal or free healthcare with the 2,500 page act as some people think that they are. Really, they are not even getting affordable healthcare. They are getting forced to pay a premium that most probably can’t afford with less than the best coverage that will probably provide them no real benefit.
It appears that the only people getting a “rosy” deal is the Congress and their staffers and the President and the White House staff along with big business while the rest of us, who are forced to participate in the health care exchange will not get the same thing by a long shot. While Congress and the White House have not exempted themselves from Obamacare in an effort to look like they are doing the same thing that they are requiring the average American to do, they have certainly made sure that they are getting a better deal than the majority of the American people.
There are four tiers of insurance coverage under the Affordable Healthcare Act: platinum, gold, silver, and bronze. The Federal Office of Personnel Management (OPM) said that only gold tier plans are available to members of Congress and their staffs. Gold coverage plans offer better coverage and are more expensive.  Approximately 80 percent of medical expenses are covered under gold plans while the policyholder only pays 20 percent. Bronze plans only cover about 60 percent of the costs after the deductible is met. To cap it all off, 72 percent of the cost of the gold plan is being paid by the federal government, the employer of Congress and the White House.
Most Americans will get bronze or silver plans, neither of which are really “affordable” if Americans are having to pay out of their pockets to avoid the fine. Many individuals will pay approximately $7,500 per year out of their pockets.
Some bronze plans may have cheaper month to month rates, but they also come with ridiculously high deductibles. Those who are forced to sign up for one of these plans would have to face something catastrophic before they could ever even reach the deductible. Some of the deductibles on these plans are as high as $8,000-$10,000. Insurance premiums will increase for all Americans, and many are struggling to pay for what they have now and do not need added expense with the state of the economy. It is inevitable that premiums will go up because companies are being required to cover high-risk individuals.
Also, limited Medicare payments to doctors will eventually drive up the cost of health care for everyone. Higher premiums and higher medical costs will not make healthcare more affordable so the law is having the opposite effect of what it is intended to do.
Small businesses will also suffer from negative effects when the employer mandate to provide health insurance to full-time employees goes into effect in 2015. Some small businesses will be forced to drop the insurance they provide employees and will choose to pay the fine because it will be cheaper. Others may have to reduce workers to part-time employment to avoid having to pay the insurance benefits. This will not help small businesses or employees and their families.
Those people who are fortunate enough to currently have “high-end” insurance plans will be charged  a 40 percent excise tax starting in 2018, which will increase the cost of their coverage.
So is the picture rosy and bright for most Americans in terms of their insurance coverage and healthcare costs? The answer is no—not unless you are a member of Congress or their Congressional staff or the White House. If Obamacare is to be the law of the land, then it should be fair to everyone and everyone should be on an equal playing field. Clearly, this is not the case. Class lines will still exist under the Affordable Health Care Act—those who can afford to do better will have better and others will suffer and be forced to take on expenses that they cannot afford. Is this really fair? Shouldn’t we all be getting the same deal whether we are the average man on the street or a member of Congress or the Beltway clique?
If our country is “dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal” as President Abraham Lincoln once said, then in the Affordable Health Care Act, where is the equality?