November 9, 2017

Three Things to Know About Obamacare

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Here are three little public service announcements about Obamacare:

  • Enrollment is ahead of last year. But after the first week, things will get tougher. If you know anyone who uses Obamacare, tell them to get going NOW NOW NOW. Most of them have only until December 15 to sign up, and that will arrive sooner than they think.
  • Shop around! THIS IS IMPORTANT. The premium hikes due to Donald Trump’s elimination of the CSR subsidy have a very different effect on different plans. You might be able to get a bronze plan for free. You might be able to get a gold plan cheaper than a silver plan. If you’re lazy and just renew your current plan, it could cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars.
  • If you don’t get a subsidy, DON’T SHOP ON THE OBAMACARE EXCHANGE. Premiums have gone up a lot thanks to the CSR business, but if you go to a broker you’ll probably find off-exchange plans that aren’t affected by it. This could save you a ton of money. And if you don’t get a subsidy, there’s really no point to enrolling in Obamacare anyway.

Oddly enough, most people who qualify for subsidies will probably be able to buy health insurance more cheaply this year. But only if they shop around. I know that’s a pain, but it’s more important than ever thanks to Trump’s sabotage, and it means starting your shopping early. Be sure to spread the word.

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So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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