Health Care Blog

Breaking it Down: The Health Care Law and Cost Control

Posted by Chris Stenrud on March 22, 2012 at 9:30 AM EST

For too long, too many hard working Americans paid the price for policies that handed free rein to insurance companies and put barriers between patients and their doctors. The Affordable Care Act gives families the security they deserve. The new health care law forces insurance companies to play by the rules, prohibiting them from dropping your coverage if you get sick, billing you into bankruptcy because of an annual or lifetime limit, or, soon, discriminating against anyone with a pre-existing condition.

The new law also includes a number of key provisions designed to help make health care more affordable – and help address the drivers of health care costs. The new health care law is already making a difference. Many Americans are seeing lower costs, and health care spending growth in 2009 and 2010 decreased to record lows.

Here are more ways the law helps control costs for families and small businesses:
1. The law’s small business tax credit has lowered health insurance costs for small business owners. On average, small businesses have paid about 18 percent more than large firms for the same health insurance policy. If you have up to 25 employees, pay average annual wages below $50,000, and provide health insurance, you may qualify for a small business tax credit of up to 35 percent (up to 25 percent for non-profits) to offset the cost of your insurance. This will bring down the cost of providing insurance.
2. Holding insurance companies accountable for how they spend your premium dollars. In 2011, if health insurers don’t spend at least 80 percent of your premium dollar on medical care and quality improvements rather than advertising, overhead and bonuses for executives, they will have to provide you a rebate for that excessive overhead. The first rebates will be made in the summer of 2012.
3. Preventing insurance companies from raising rates with no accountability or transparency. In every State and for the first time ever, insurance companies are required to publicly justify their actions if they want to raise rates by 10 percent or more. These efforts are paying off. In the last quarter of 2011 alone, States reported that premium increases dropped by 4.5 percent. And, in States like Nevada, premiums actually declined.
4. Recommended preventive benefits without deductibles or copayments. Millions of Americans with Medicare and private insurance have seen their out-pocket costs go down to zero for recommended preventive care like flu shots or cancer screenings now covered with no cost sharing under the law. This puts more money back into people’s pockets, while making sure they get the preventive care they need.
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MarkCare: Making Health Insurance More Affordable for Small Businesses

Posted by Colleen Curtis on March 22, 2012 at 8:23 AM EST

Mark Hodesh, the owner of a home-and-garden shop in downtown Ann Arbor, MI, thinks there’s a lot of misinformation about the Affordable Care Act and its impact on small-businesses like his: “A lot of people say it’s a job killer. In my experience, it’s a job creator.”

To maintain a strong staff for the past 12 years, Mark works to provide health care coverage to his full-time employees and sees it as a key component to the store’s success. As Mark says, “We rely on long-term, well-informed good employees to compete with our box-store competition. The best way I know how to attract and keep good people is to have a good benefits package. Health care is a big part of that.”

The Affordable Care Act allows employers to claim a tax credit for up to 35 percent of their health insurance premiums. Mark says that while his insurance rates have skyrocketed over the past 10 years, the tax credit gave him the ability to hire another employee to his current staff of twelve.

Includes Video

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Health Reform in Action: A Mother's Story

Posted by Colleen Curtis on March 21, 2012 at 2:44 PM EST

Tracy Muñoz realized our health care system needed to change the hard way: Her family had to take drastic financial measures to pay thousands of dollars for surgery that her private insurance wouldn't cover. Before the Affordable Care Act, this Norfolk, VA mom worried that her five children would face the same pressures, especially one son who, as a part-time college student, was not eligible to stay on the family's insurance plan.

"What if something happened to him and we wouldn't be able to pay for it?" was a constant concern. "If they don't have insurance, it is just like them driving around without car insurance, you're worried that somebody will get hurt."

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, which allows young adults to remain on their parents' plan until they are 26, Tracy has peace of mind knowing that her children have coverage as they begin to make their way in the world. When she heard two years ago this week that President Obama had signed health care reform into law, her first thought was, "Oh my goodness it happened, it really happened."

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The Affordable Care Act: Making a Difference for African-Americans

Posted by Valerie Jarrett on March 21, 2012 at 10:47 AM EST

Ed. note: This is cross-posted from the The Grio

It has been two years since President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, and already, the new law is improving the lives of African-Americans.

Since March 2009, more than 2.4 million African-American seniors with Medicare have received free preventive services such as diabetes screenings. About 410,000 more African- American young adults who would otherwise be uninsured gained coverage due to the law. In addition, 5.5 million African-Americans with private health insurance now have coverage for preventive services without paying an extra penny at their doctor's office.

And 10.4 million African-Americans with private insurance coverage no longer face lifetime limits thanks to the new health care law -- in other words, your insurance company can no longer drop your coverage at a time when you need it most.

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Raising the Voices of Women in the Health Care Reform Debate

Posted by Sara Finger on March 21, 2012 at 10:19 AM EST

As if it wasn’t enough to be thirty-five years old, in my dream job and absolutely loving what I do for a living, it’s incredibly rewarding to be recognized as a Champion of Change. Through my dedication to a healthier tomorrow for Wisconsin women, I have the honor of working each day to make our state and our nation a better place for my sisters, my mother and my 2-year-old daughter. There is no other work more important to me.

While seeking a Political Science undergraduate degree, I realized that I didn’t want to just lobby on someone’s behalf – I wanted to empower individuals to be their own advocates. I am motivated by the power of educating, equipping and mobilizing the voices of many to speak as one in order to create change. In creating change, it’s important to realize that some voices are quieter than others, but no less important. In an effort to make all voices heard in health care policy discussions, the Wisconsin Alliance for Women’s Health, is dedicated to empowering and activating a broad base of advocates including health care professionals, clergy, legislators, other community leaders and rural and urban women and families of all ages, races, faiths, education, orientation and backgrounds. Through many successful coalitions, we have been able transform many ordinary citizens into potent forces for change as they raise their voice for policies that move Wisconsin toward a healthier future.

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Catering to Womens' Needs: The Fruits of ACA Regulations

Posted by JoAnne Fischer on March 21, 2012 at 10:10 AM EST

Birthing is a powerful experience whether it results in a baby or an organization. As Executive Director for the past 23 years, I am grateful to have been a midwife to Maternity Care Coalition (MCC) and to work with passionate and talented people and to advocate for women and children every day. I have always felt that childbirth is one of the most memorable and culturally significant times in a person’s life. Unfortunately, we as a culture have not adequately supported women during this period. MCC plays a vital role in the community, connecting women to the services and programs they need for a healthy start to their babies’ lives.

When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed in 2010, we knew that MCC needed to play a key role in explaining it to our community. Since then we have provided leadership at the local and state level by educating the public and stakeholders about the provisions of the legislation that impact mothers and babies. These provisions include workplace protections for breastfeeding, home visiting programs for families, perinatal depression research, pregnancy assistance funds, insurance coverage for maternity care, and equitable Medical Assistance reimbursements for Certified Nurse Midwives and Birth Centers. We have also developed a strategic advocacy agenda with our coalition partners—Raising Women’s Voices for the Health Care We Need and the Pennsylvania Health Access Network—that is inclusive of women’s specific health needs.

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