Idaho Helps Murder Obamacare With Illegal Fuck-You Plans Penalizing Pre-Existing Conditions.

Almost literally, in the case of health insurance

Back in January, Idaho Gov. Butch Otter signed an executive order that would allow the Idaho Department of Insurance (DOI) to approve private health insurance plans that ignore some of the insurance requirements set by the Affordable Care Act under the assumption that while Obamacare is still the law, the Trump administration is likely to look the other way. Under the new rules, the Idaho Statesman explains, insurers can:

• carve out benefits, like maternity coverage. However, any insurer offering state-based plans must have at least one with maternity, which includes prenatal care.

• restore co-pays for preventive care, such as colonoscopies.

• limit annual claims to $1 million, at which point those high-cost patients would be moved onto ACA-compliant plans sold through Idaho’s health insurance exchange.

• deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, to a limited degree.

• In maybe the biggest change, a person can end up paying higher premiums because of a history or high risk of expensive medical conditions. In order to get the state-based plans, people can be required to fill out a questionnaire that asks about past health care claims, disorders and treatment[.]

This is exactly what Yr Editrix has been warning would happen since the Trump War On Obamacare began, by the way, SHE WANTS IT KNOWN.

The DOI regs wouldn't allow lifetime caps on medical expenses (yet) and unlike the Bad Old Days, denials of coverage for a pre-existing condition wouldn't be permanent (yet): A denial would only apply to people who had been uninsured for 63 days in the previous year. And the block on coverage could only apply for a single plan year, so the next year a person could get coverage. But as we note, the rules DO allow insurers to charge more, forever, for those with pre-existing conditions, and to charge men less than women since they wouldn't have to be covered for all those icky ladyparts problems or maternity care.

Otter's executive order is a nice little gift to the campaign of Lt. Gov. Brad Little, who's already busy bragging that the order has "ended Obamacare" in Idaho:

By ending Obamacare for many Idahoans we are restoring choice and affordability back into the healthcare marketplace. It’s unfortunate but not surprising that congressional democrats disagree with a majority of Idahoans. #idpol  #idleg  #idgop LINK:  https: //t.co/Cp4qFo8DwO   pic.twitter.com/Aq3XMNa3k8 

— Brad Little (@LtGovBradLittle) January 31, 2018