Sterling warns Obamacare could make healthcare unaffordable for some Vermonters
For years, “Susan” paid $30 a month to insure herself through the Vermont Health Access Plan, or VHAP. She went off the state-run program when she landed a job with health insurance. But she has since left that position for seasonal work without benefits, so she’s applied to get back on the state health care rolls.
But even if Susan could afford the $152 monthly premium for Catamount Health, a state-subsidized plan for Vermonters who make too much to qualify for VHAP, she’ll likely face further cost hikes next year — $13 to $60 more each month, and up to $4500 a year for copays, deductibles and prescription drugs.
Susan commutes 80 miles to her seasonal job and cleans condos at a time-share resort on weekends. She’s not sure her income — $32,000, plus child support for her 16-year-old daughter — can absorb the modest health insurance hike. She’s considering going without.
“You just hope nothing happens,” says the 39-year-old mom from central Vermont, who asked that her real name not be used because it might negatively impact her future professional opportunities.
The reason for the cost hike? Obamacare and Vermont’s impending introduction to the health care exchange.