Posts Tagged ‘individual mandate’
Thank you, Congress, for doing what’s right
Author : OurHealthCareSource.com
Mar 23rd, 2010 | by
On behalf of the 15 million Americans who will be eligible for Medicaid as a result of health care reform…we thank you.
On behalf of the children that need health care to support every possible opportunity for a successful and productive life…we thank you.
On behalf of Americans who must choose between buying food and getting health care…we thank you.
On behalf of the senior citizens who are wondering how to maintain their health on a modest budget…we thank you.
Despite the contentious year-long debate, Congress has done what’s right for the American people. Making health care a right – not a privilege – is a fundamental element that has been sorely missing from the ideals of our nation…until now!
Was this the best possible outcome? Probably not.
Does the new legislation fix every problem that ails the current health care system? No, not really.
But it is definitely a start. We elected our leadership to do what is best for the American people given the challenges our country is currently facing. Right now, what is best has arrived in the form of a new and improved health care system that will turn away no one; that will take care of our children; and most importantly, that is in reach to all Americans.
CareSource applauds our Congressional leaders for the following provisions included as part of health reform measures:
- Expansion of Medicaid to everyone (under age 65) below 133% of the Federal Poverty Level by 2014– removing categorical eligibility which currently forces many individuals in poverty to go uninsured.
- Creation of state-based health exchanges through which individuals can purchase coverage, with premium and cost-sharing credits available to individuals and families with incomes between 133 percent and 400 percent of the poverty level, or $14,404 to $43,320 for individuals and $29,326 to $88,200 for a family of four.
- An individual mandate for all to ensure all Americans participate in the insurance risk pool resulting in lower cost coverage options for all. Requires insurers to cover those with pre-existing conditions, removes lifetime limits, prohibits rescission of coverage and mandates prevention services be covered at 100 percent.
- Equalization of treatment of managed care and fee-for-service under the Medicaid drug rebate program.
- Closure of the Medicare prescription drug “doughnut hole” by 2020.
- Reauthorization of the Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan program.
- Improved coordination for Medicare and Medicaid dual-eligibles.
Each of these provisions propels our country into a new era in health care for which we should embrace and build upon. There are many that vow to fight the passing of this bill, and that’s to be expected. But we should applaud all of our policymakers for remembering why and how this nation was created…to be a land of opportunity, of freedom, and of equality. Thank you, Congress, for doing what’s right for all people.
Article Tags
congress • cost of health care • drug rebate program • Federal Poverty Leve • fee-for-service • health care costs • health care exchange • health care reform • health insurance • individual mandate • managed care • Medicaid • Medicare • Medicare Advantage • michigan medicaid eligibility • ohio medicaid eligibility • poverty level • state based health exchanges
Health Reform is a Civil Rights Issue
Author : Toni Bigby
Jan 18th, 2010 | by
Martin Luther King, if he had been given the time, must eventually have tackled the health care issue as an essential civil right. As a nation, we’ve focused so much on the tactics and details—public options, mandates, “Cadillac plans” and so on—that we may be forgetting why increasing health care accessibility is important to us as a nation.
So this is just a reminder for all of us: without health care, personal growth and success are limited indeed. Children with sensory or behavioral problems are not treated, or whose simple illnesses are not cared for, cannot learn. Adults with a chronic disease (like diabetes or asthma) can earn a living—but only if they have the care and medications they need. Families that lose a parent to a disease that could have been cured if caught earlier, suffer consequences that can hardly be measured – stability, opportunity, potential.
If we are serious about equal opportunity, education, stable families, social justice at any level, we must embrace health care accessibility as an essential civil right.
