Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Obamacare Exemptions To Affordable Care Act Fines Exist, But Only For Certain People


Obamacare exemptions lists allow people to dodge the Affordable Care Act’s fines, but waivers are only an option for limited groups.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, an Obamacare delay bill attempted to avoid the 2013 government shutdown, but Congress couldn’t agree on what to do about the Affordable Care Act.

Of course, even a government shutdown won’t stop Obamacare since the IRS and state governments will remain operating in addition to three-quarters of Federal employees who are considered indispensable. The Obamacare marketplace under the Affordable Care Act’s state exchanges will be accessible come October 1 at www.healthcare.gov or by calling (800) 318-2596. All employed Americans are required to enroll by December 25, 2013 or face additional Obamacare fines.

Obamacare exemptions include religious objections to purchasing insurance (mostly intended for the Amish) or being a Native American (who are part of a separate healthcare system). The religious exemption is actually fairly broad since it affects anyone who is “conscientiously opposed to accepting any insurance benefits,” which some say would include Muslim groups.

Another set of Obamacare exemptions focus on individuals facing “hardships,” which includes being homeless, being in jail, recently filing for bankruptcy, being a recent victim of domestic violence, or having been evicted in the past six months. Individuals are also exempt from Obamacare penalties if they experience a lapse in health coverage of less than three months in a calendar year. And non-US citizens are of course exempt.

Other Obamacare exemptions focus on those too poor to afford insurance and seniors with a low income. Even if you are above the poverty line, if the cost of health insurance happens to exceed an eight percent household income threshold you are exempt from Obamacare through at least 2014 (this law might change).

Technically, anyone who makes less than $14,856 per year are exempt from Obamacare’s state exchanges but an extended Medicaid program is supposed to cover the poor for free. When Obamacare went to the Supreme court the Medicaid expansion requirement was overturned. This means that states can choose to reject the Medicaid expansion for the poor yet still receive full Federal funding under the Affordable Care Act. So you will need to check whether your particular state covers you underneath the Medicaid expansion if your income is less than 133 percent of the federal poverty line.

more at:

http://www.inquisitr.com/obamacare-exemptions-exist-but-only-for-certain-people


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