Tag: Obamacare

Medicaid expansion in Pennsylvania

Medicaid expansion in Pennsylvania

Posted on by Jack

Bad news, then good news, and bad news again on medicaid expansion in Pennsylvania.

House Republicans followed through Monday on their threat to kill a provision written by the state Senate to require Gov. Tom Corbett to seek federal approval for an expansion of Medicaid eligibility to provide taxpayer-paid health care to hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians.

This from an article on the back and forth state of medicaid expansion in PA.

As part of health care reform (Obamacare), the federal government was going to pay to expand medicaid. But since this is a joint program between the federal and state governments, the states need to be willing participants. Seems an inexpensive way for the states to help their poorer residents. The federal government pays 100 percent for the first three years, starting next year, and 90 percent after that.

But 21 states governed by Republicans refused this deal. There are 6 states that haven’t decided yet and Pennsylvania is one of them.

I live in Pennsylvania so I’ve been paying attention to the see-saw here. First our Republican governor says NO. Then the state Senate says YES . Then the state House says No (see the quote above).

So I don’t know what will happen but I suspect the needy in Pennsylvania will be the losers.

Preventive services under the Affordable Care Act aka ObamaCare

Preventive services under the Affordable Care Act aka ObamaCare

Posted on by Jack

Much has been made of the many preventive services under the Affordable Care Act aka ObamaCare and there is a long list. But buyer beware.

Over 60 preventive services are covered but how it is covered may be up to the terms of the specific insurance policy that you purchase. For example, take BRCA and Breast Cancer.

Mutations (genetic changes) in the BRCA gene have been related to very high risks of Breast and Ovarian Cancer. Angelina Jolie tested positive for the BRCA gene and there has been pretty extensive new coverage about that.

So the health act does require that insurers pay for “BRCA counseling about genetic testing for women at higher risk” but says nothing about covering the actual test itself. I suppose that means the testing coverage is up to the insurance company.

Low increase in employer health care: The good and bad

Low increase in employer health care: The good and bad

Posted on by Jack

The good news is 2012 saw the lowest increase in in health insurance costs for employers since 1997. That is certainly good news for employers. But the bad news is that this is largely the result of switching employees to lower cost plans. Almost certainly, bad news for employees. These finding are in a press release by Mercer , who conduct the National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans. More details are in the press release and even more in the detailed report.

Here are a few more articles on this I’ve run across:

Businessweek even suggests some employers may drop health-care coverage .

Since the trend among employers seems to be to lower costs and decrease benefits (or increase the employee’s share), I am wondering if our dependence on employer-provided health benefits as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) is such a good idea.

Health Insurance Exchanges on Obamacare and Republican Medicare

Health Insurance Exchanges on Obamacare and Republican Medicare

Posted on by Jack

I do not understand why Paul Ryan, Romney-Ryan ticket, and perhaps Republicans in general seem to believe that having health insurance on exchanges for Medicare will somehow bring down healthcare costs though the magic of the marketplace. But having health insurance on exchanges in Obamacare will not also drive down health care costs.

I hope this is one on many mysteries that will be explained in the next few days or maybe months.