Even before the last tidbits of silver and gold confetti could be swept away following New Year's Eve celebrations, Americans were already starting off the year with fresh ObamaCare surprises.  Some of the new "enrollees" in President Obama's signature law are showing up at hospitals in parts of the U.S. and are being met with confusion as to whether or not they're actually insured.  Because of this, some are just leaving without needed treatment to avoid the enormous out-of-pocket expenses that would be incurred (which they would most likely pay anyway due to ObamaCare's high deductibles), as Rick Moran discussed in this AT piece highlighting a Northern Virginia hospital. 

And in Chicago, a doctor decided to move forward with a patient's scheduled surgery not knowing if the costs would be covered by insurance:

Paperwork problems almost delayed suburban Chicago resident Sheri Zajcew's scheduled surgery Thursday, but Dr. John Venetos decided to operate without a routine go-ahead from the insurance company. That was after Venetos' office manager spent two hours on hold with the insurer Thursday, trying to get an answer about whether the patient needed prior authorization for the surgery. The office manager finally gave up.

[snip]

Venetos, a Chicago digestive system specialist, described "tremendous uncertainty and anxiety" among patients calling his office recently. Some thought they'd signed up for coverage but hadn't received insurance cards yet. Others had insurance policies that were canceled and weren't sure if their coverage had been reinstated after Gov. Pat Quinn decided to allow one-year extensions of canceled plans.

Venetos said he has decided to take a risk and provide care for these patients, at least until there's less confusion about coverage.

So what exactly will happen once tens of millions of Americans start losing their employer-sponsored health plans due to ObamaCare, thus adding even more confusion to a once-working system?  This is serious stuff, and if it continues, people will start dying in sizable numbers. 

Just imagine if this disaster known as ObamaCare were instead BushCare under the previous administration.  Rest assured, if people were to begin dying due to these same disastrous policies under George W. Bush, Americans would be reminded daily of the body count, just as they were during the Iraq War when he was commander and chief.  Of course, not only would we be hearing about the daily BushCare body counts (along with his dwindling poll numbers); we would also be glued to the TV watching simultaneous impeachment hearings.

Don't hold your breath while waiting for the mainstream media to provide any real tally of future ObamaCare-caused carnage.

By the end of 2014, perhaps Americans will be singing "Auld Lang Syne" while reminiscing about what once was the greatest health care system in the world.

Scott blogs at www.politiseeds.com.