One of the primary tenets of the Affordable Care Act legislation (Obamacare) is guaranteed healthcare insurance for all Americans. This insurance is expected to have lower premium rates than individually-purchased healthcare insurance policies – although the jury is still out on exactly what those rates will be. When the Health Insurance Marketplaces begin operation next month we’ll learn more about how this new health insurance delivery will be priced, compared with employer-provided health insurance or individually-purchased policies. If the rates are dramatically lower than the individually-purchased policy, an unintended result may occur: early retirement for many. (For more on this phenomenon, see “Obamacare could encourage more early retirements from baby boomers”.) Think about it – everyone knows at least one successful self-employed individual, and probably several, whose spouse works in a position with a large local employer (around here it’s likely the state, or a hospital or insurance company) – solely […]