Health Care Reform and how it may affect you in the future

I saw a tweet that led me to an article on CBS Money Watch, Health Care Reform: What You Should Do To Prepare Now.

Though I have been following the reform quite closely, I did learn a few things. I did already know that my FSA was going to be affected, and not in a good way. I couldn't help thinking back to Obama's promise to not raise my taxes... only to find out that this will in a round about way. We defer money, pre-tax, into a FSA each year to offset medical costs, including OTC medicine. Capping us actually is just a way of taxing us.

Your doctor doesn't want to waste time writing you a prescription for Ibuprofen when you can buy it over the counter. He will now! For those who take Ibuprofen regularly for pain, which is me and my spouse, those OTC bottles of pain relievers can add up to a nice chunk of change. I also must take Lactaid or another lactose enzyme to digest dairy or suffer the unhappy consequences. That isn't cheap either. At $10 a box once a month, you do the math.... For me, it isn't a "medical" necessity. However, if I don't want to break every bone in my body by the time I'm 50, I might want to consume foods with a healthy dose of calcium every once in a while.

So really, capping FSAs is actually a detriment to us. It's just a hidden tax on an item that I'd hazard a lot of other so-called middle class Americans use to better afford health care.

What I really liked about the article I linked to above was how it was organized. You get the what, when and how it affects you. You should check it out and take note of any changes coming your way.