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Healthcare Reform

Whether you ask a Democrat or a Republican their opinion on the state of healthc are, you’ll find many who think the current system is flawed. However, the similarities may stop there. As you probably already know, the current health care system isn’t necessarily the most affordable. In fact, according to recent studies, our health care system is one of the most expensive in the world. Among the members of the United Nations, the US spending on healthcare is the second highest in the world ( according to the World Health Organization or $2.26 trillion – $2,260,000,000,000). Yet, there are still 47 million people that are uninsured.

Obamacare

imageOne of the reasons President Obama was elected into office was his stance on healthcare reform. Since he has come into office, the President has made it one of his top priorities to pass a bill that would change the current system.

In his proposal, he has pushed for reforms that would increase stability by measures such as: preventing insurance companies from denying coverage to people with preexisting conditions; limiting discrimination based on age or gender; or keeping insurance companies from dropping coverage when people get sick and keeping prices down when they do.

In addition, Obama would like to increase the quality of care and increase the choices available to those without coverage. In order to do so, reforms that he’d like to see happen include: creating an “insurance exchange,” a market that lets people or small businesses without insurance compare and shop for plans all in once place; providing money, through tax credits, to people and small businesses who can’t necessarily afford insurance; and offering a “public option,” healthcare that would be targeted towards those that can’t afford the current options. Of course, reforms don’t come about without a cost.

The debate

imageRepublicans and moderate democrats alike won’t hold back on telling you their opinion on the health care reforms that Obama is trying to pass. Part of the issue is that a large scale reform, as Obama proposes, would require funds that the economy doesn’t really have available at the moment. Current proposals by the Senate would require spending of $871 billion, while the House of Representatives would need $1.052 trillion.

The arguments don’t just stop at the costs of the plans.  Other issues include whether health care is a right of all citizens, how accessible will it be, how quality will be affected, and what bounds the federal government may cross to regulate coverage.

While the arguments are many, the outcomes of recent events have got opponents rethinking their stances. As a bill is likely to pass, the attitude has shifted to one of “I’d rather see a bill pass that I’ve helped shape than one without anything that I’d like.”

Current status

imageOn November 7, 2009, the House of Representatives passed the Affordable Healthcare for America Act. The Senate passed its own form of a healthcare reform bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on December 24, 2009.

Now both the House of Representatives and Senate must meet to come to an agreement on what the final act will look like. A couple of critical issues that have come up in negotiations: funding, the “public option,” and funding provided to those who can’t afford coverage.

 

Funding

imageIn terms of funding, both bills propose that the taxes that would likely affect individuals with higher incomes. In the House of Representatives’ version the funds would come from a 5.4% tax on individuals with yearly incomes of $500,000 or families with a total income of $1,000,000. In contrast, the Senate plans on a tax that would apply to high-cost insurance plans provided to groups by employers. A 40% tax would be applied to “Cadillac” insurance plans with premiums of over $8500 for a person or $23,000 for a family.

Public Option

imageThe “public option” has been a big debate because the House of Representatives managed to pass a bill that included a “public option”  targeted towards those that can’t afford private insurance options. However, in order for the bill to pass in the Senate, the public option was dropped.

What to expect

Negotiations are looking in favor of the Senate bill, as there was greater difficulty getting their version to pass.

Future negotiations are ongoing, with a hope for a final bill sometime February in time for Obama’s State of the Union address. 

How it could affect me

Governor Edward G. Rendell has vocalized a stance towards providing affordable and quality healthcare to Pennsylvanians under his “Prescription for Pennsylvania” plan. In this plan, the governor set out to: provide affordable coverage to every resident, increase the availability of health care, improve the quality of healthcare, and promote preventative health.


If you’d like to express your opinion, possible options include contacting your congressman or senators (see links below to find out how).

Keep up with the debate