Health care reform concern, can someone explain this to me?

United States
April 6, 2010 11:01pm CST
Alright, I saw an article on yahoo news. Here's the link http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/109234/health-care-reform-tax-hikes-on-the-way?mod=insurance-health It basically lists some changes directly made, it's number seven I'm wondering about. 7. A ban on using funds from flexible spending accounts, health reimbursement arrangements or health savings accounts for the cost of over-the-counter medications, starting in 2011. Am I understanding that right? Does that mean if I have a few hundred dollars in a checking account or something I can't pay for over-the-counter medications? What is a health savings account? Is that something set up by like an insurance company, and if you need a medication or something, or want it, you can simply use that extra stuff in there to go do it? But now you can't buy over the counter medication like claritan or ibprophen? Also, number 11, I've heard of this one before, I have a major problem with it, Just asking extra questions about it now. 11. A new tax on individuals who don't obtain adequate health coverage by 2014. The tax is be phased in over three years, starting at the greater of $95, or 1% of income, in 2014, and rising to the greater of $695, or 2.5% of income, in 2016. Starting in 2014, if I were homeless and jobless for some strange reason, and didn't qualify for medicare or something, Would they be able to charge me 695 $ even though it's clear I have no income? Is there anything that supposedly blocks that from happening? (P.s. number 12 seems to relate to this one a bit.) Thanks ahead of time :)
1 person likes this
2 responses
@laglen (19759)
• United States
7 Apr 10
I was about to respond, then I saw metallions response. Essentially I would have echoed what he said.
• United States
7 Apr 10
I was also about to respond when I read TheMetallion's response and he gave a clear explanation.
• United States
7 Apr 10
Your checking account is not a flexible spending account. A flexible spending account is a job benefit in which you can set aside a portion of your income to go to certain medical expenses. That money is not taxed, and any unspent portion of that amount is forfeited to the government at the end of the year. If you're homeless, you're very unlikely to qualify for some form of public aid. The insurance mandate is one of the Republican ideas that got included in HRA. Hopefully, it will be replaced with a public option or single payer system before coming into effect.
• United States
7 Apr 10
Excellent response.