Posts Tagged ‘Health’
Health Insurers Predict They Will Pass On Health Law’s New Tax To Consumers
November 4th, 2011
A report financed by insurance trade group America’s Health Insurance Plans predicts that premiums will increase by about 2 percent in 2014, and 3 to 4 percent by 2023.
Bloomberg: Health Law Premium Tax Will Boost Small-Group Coverage Costs, Insurers Say Health insurance premiums for people buying coverage through small-employer markets will increase by as much as 3.7 percent, or $3,100, over 10 years as a new tax takes effect in 2014, a study by U.S. insurers found. The analysis by America’s Health Insurance Plans, a trade group, shows the new tax on insurers would be passed onto consumers and boost premiums for individuals and families, as well as seniors and the disabled who participate in Medicare Advantage plans and the government’s prescription drug program.
Tags: Health, Health Laws
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Perry Takes On Romney’s Massachusetts Health Reforms
August 26th, 2011
GOP presidential hopeful Rick Perry criticized the Massachusetts health overhaul that became law while fellow candidate Mitt Romney was governor. Meanwhile, news outlets are fact-checking statements about related reform initiatives — such as Texas’ tort reform law, and members of Congress appear to be taking a less-is-more approach to August town hall meetings.
The Boston Globe: Perry’s Critique Of Romney Health Law Has Practical Focus Governor Rick Perry of Texas tepidly criticized Mitt Romney’s Massachusetts health care plan yesterday, but the two GOP rivals remain in general agreement over the Bay State’s right to develop its signature health care law. “Massachu
Tags: Health, Massachusetts Health
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Health Insurance Exchanges: A Race to the Bottom
July 21st, 2011
President Obama says that his health plans popularity will grow once its provisions start being implemented. But peculiar rules tucked into the legislation are likely to make the entire scheme even more disliked as its implementation approaches.
At the heart of the Obama plan are 50 state-based exchanges where insurers will be able to sell health plans inside new marketplaces. The health plans that insurers market will have to comply with a strict set of government rules on the minimum benefits that they need to offer, and the amount of money that plans can spend on overhead and take for profits. Th
Tags: Health, Health Insurance
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AHRQ News And Numbers: Employees’ Share Of Health Plan Premium Costs Up Dramatically
June 24th, 2011
Employees of private-sector companies contributed up to 121 percent more in 2009 for their yearly share of their employer-sponsored health insurance coverage than they did in 2001, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
By comparison, the total average annual premium for employer-sponsored health plans, which includes both the cost to the worker and to his or her employer, rose at a slower pace during the same period.
Data from the federal agency found that the average annual premium share for workers with employee-plus-one coverage soared 121 percent – from $1,070 to $2,363, while the average annual contribution for workers with family coverage went up nearly 100 percent – from $1,741 to $3,474. Read full post…
Tags: Health, Health Plan
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AARP Urges Congress To Reject Legislation That Could Leave Hundreds Of Thousands Without Health Coverage
May 9th, 2011
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AARP today voiced its opposition to legislation that would eliminate the Medicaid Maintenance-of-Effort (MOE) requirements included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that is being considered in the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee.
The legislation, H.R.1683, could lead to the loss of vital protections for health care access for older Americans, persons with disabilities, and children, effectively allowing states to cut eligibility for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Read full post…
Tags: Health, Thousands Health
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(Mis-)Using the Tax System to Subsidize Health Spending
April 24th, 2011
Health reform created the opportunity to redirect tax incentives to promote greater equity, efficiency, and choice in insurance markets. The opportunity, however, has largely been lost. First, tax credits for insurance will be available only through new health insurance exchanges, not to workers with coverage through their employers, which discriminates against one group of low-income people over another based on where they work, not what they can afford. Second, the “Cadillac” tax on high-cost insurance is intended to improve incentives for efficiency in the health system, but it is only a half step that also creates new inequities. Thi
Tags: Health, Health Spending
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Health Centers Serve 2.7 Million Low-Income Uninsured Workers, An Estimated 1 In 4
March 19th, 2011
A new policy research brief released today by the Geiger Gibson/RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services evaluates the consequences of the proposed reductions in federal health center funding on access to health care for low-income workers.
The brief, titled “The Role of Community Health Centers in Addressing the Needs of Uninsured Low-income Workers: Implications of Proposed Federal Funding Reductions,” estimates that of the 11 million uninsured, working, low-income Americans, 2.7 million receive their care in community health centers. The $1.3 billion reduction in FY 2011 health center funding approved by the U.S. Read full post…
Tags: Health, Health Centers
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Depression: take charge of your mental health
March 2nd, 2011
I have been talking a lot about mental health these days. Because it is just as important to take care of yourself mentally and it is to take care of yourself physically. At work we had a presentation by a local therapist about depression. This article is adapted from her presentation. Not really an upper right? But what she said was interesting. A lot of people would not admit that they are depressed. Thoughts of shame and guilt flood their mind. While breaking your leg seems to be an acceptable ailment, depression is not. Insensitive people might say, “Get over it; it’s no big deal.” But to those who suffer from depression, it is a big deal.
Some studies say that more than 9 million Americans suffer from depression. And t
Tags: Health, Mental Health
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