ObamaCare A Bronze Trap For 1 In 4 Low-Income Insured

Jed Graham | Investors.com | May 22, 2014

In gauging whether ObamaCare exchange policies make health care reasonably affordable, federal enrollment data have been little help. They've offered no clarity on a key metric: the type of policies that households with modest incomes are buying.

But evidence from the one state that's breaking out such data suggests cause for concern: In Washington, one in four individuals in households earning less than 250% of the poverty level signed up for a bronze plan with a deductible of $5,000-$6,350 per person and $10,000-$12,700 per family.

Even after premiums, these households could face medical costs ranging from 17% to 40% of income before ObamaCare's nonpreventative-care benefits kick in. By any standard, these enrollees hailed by many ObamaCare defenders as success stories are woefully underinsured...