Obamacare Is Harming Us Beyond What we Could Have Imagined

I write a lot about Obamacare has hurt us. Every single day it become more and more apparent. As of yesterday, we are at $22,700.21 in out of pocket medical expenses billed this year. $7,143.93 in prescription copays alone. Those prescription copays do not go toward our deductible or our out of pocket max. Our deductible doesn't go toward out out of pocket max, so each time these are raised, it hurts families like mine with sick kids.

My oldest child is healthy, but recently had an illness while away at college. He went to the ER..... because we still have just over $404 to reach our family deductible and $2,254.19, we will have to pay the first $404 of the ER bill and then 20% of the bill left after. Our plan was an 85/15 before Obamacare. If we were able to keep our pre-Obamacare plan, we'd be paying less for this ER visit- but now out plan is 80/20. My middle son went to the ER this summer for an abscess - he'd already met his deductible and we ended up paying over $400.

I am glad my son went to the ER, don't get me wrong. I'm just explaining how families with sick loved ones need the healthy members to stay healthy. If you are a healthy family, chances are you don't understand how insurance works. My two youngest have both met their deductibles and OOP maxes, but the rest of us have not- it takes a third person to reach those before all of us are covered at 100%. This, along with the many things sick family members need that is not covered by insurance are why we are at almost 23K in OOP medical.

We'd be in a better position had we not had a drop in flex. The Glycosade my son uses every night costs $125 per box and is not covered by insurance. The over the counter portions of the Mito cocktail they both take daily are not covered by insurance. Miralax, Zyrtec, arm braces, orthotics, several prescriptions, oral surgery and the extra dental visits their diseases require them to have- all not covered by insurance. Keep in mind that the first 10% of your AGI spent on medical cannot be deducted from your taxes. We are screwed. And you can only use that which you actually pay for in 2013. We can't afford to pay the entire 23K -

Here's a picture of our benefits page explaining what we still have left to meet our family deductible and OOP Max: