ROCKY HILL – A 57-year old waitress, Andrea Bryant from Manchester is the first person to apply for Connecticut's new, affordable health care plan. Bryant has applied for coverage under the Charter Oak Health Plan at Town Line Diner, where the state officials had gathered to launch the plan. It is open to those who don't qualify for existing state programs and aren't insured through an employer. "I know I can afford this, and I'll be able to go to a doctor now," said Bryant, who has been uninsured since her husband's death, two years ago.
The state expects to serve a projected 19,200 adults during the first year, increasing to 47,200 in its third year. With annual deductibles ranging from $150 to $900, Charter Oak is just right for Bryant, who earns less than $15,000 a year. She said she went into debt when she caught pneumonia and sought medical care without health insurance. Now many people like Bryant, feel that health insurance is a big thing, especially for those with small incomes.
NEW YORK - Employer health care costs are poised to increase almost 10 percent in 2008, more than double the annual inflation rate. According to an industry report released; a study predicts that medical costs will increase 9.9 percent in 2008 and an additional 9.6 percent in 2009. "Health care providers, insurers and employers will have to monitor medical costs carefully if we are to avoid a resurgence of the double-digit annual increases seen in the past," said the leader of the Health Research Institute.
The report found two factors driving the increase: A hospital building boom, as hospitals replace facilities and add centers for outpatient treatment and private rooms. An increase in the expenses those with insurance are paying for those without. Cost-shifting from the uninsured, Medicare and Medicaid will account for nearly one in every five dollars spent by private insurers in 2009, according to the study, as the federal government under funds public insurance programs and the number of people with private insurance continues to decrease.
One of the things employers are doing in response is increasing wellness, prevention and disease management programs, which they say not only keeps employees healthy but also increases productivity. The survey was done on more than 500 employers and health plans, with total coverage of more than 11 million people by PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Tommy Picchietti who is reached the limit of his parents' health insurance coverage when he was 9 months old. By that time, he'd already taken up an open heart surgery and been on a ventilator with other complications related to his treatment for heart disease -- a condition Tommy developed as the result of an immune disorder he'd been born with. Through health insurance his parents were able to cover their son's medical expenses for a few more years after their insurance ran out. But when the insurance expired, they weren't left with many options.
In 2006, Picchiettis' parents heard about a state program called All Kids which provides health coverage to uninsured children at a reduced cost. Now they pay a $100 monthly premium that allows Tommy to keep getting the highly specialized care he needs. The state estimates that between 200,000 to 250,000 children lack health insurances. A 2006 study from Families USA reported an even higher number: 376,000. Many of these children have parents who make too much to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to pay for private insurance, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services says. Not having insurance increases the odds which a child won't get recommended health screenings and immunizations. Uninsured kids, like uninsured adults, are also much more likely to be hospitalized for preventable problems.
The number of youngsters without health insurance climbed again in 2006, so 38% of high school graduates and 34% of college graduates will spend some time uninsured in the year after graduation, a new report shows. According to the latest federal data, there were 13.7 million Americans aged 19 to 29 without health insurance in 2006, up from 13.3 million in 2005. Public programs such as Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program end coverage at the age of 19 and voluntary employer-provided insurance is tied to the ability to get a job, and the jobs available to youngsters tend to be those that don't carry benefits. While young adults are less likely to need health care, "they do use the health-care system," the report's co-author, Sara Collins said. "Losing coverage at this time can affect your ability to transition effectively into a situation of health care."
And when young people do require health care, it can be because of a major accident, in which costs can be "catastrophic," she said. "And it is never a good idea to be without health insurance, no matter what your age." Two-thirds of the young adults who went without health insurance for some time went without needed care because of cost, the report said. Half reported problems paying medical bills or said they were paying off medical debts over time. Some action is being taken to remedy the situation, Collins said. Twenty states have passed legislation requiring insurance companies to extend coverage of minors after age 18 or 19. The age limits in state laws range from 24 in Delaware, Indiana and South Dakota to 30 in New Jersey.
On the federal level, a law has been proposed which would have dependent children of government workers covered to age 25. Extending the age limit for federal programs such as Medicaid would have the greatest impact, because such programs cover poorer people, Collins said. "This is a problem facing people at all income levels, but the largest number of uninsured are in lower income families," she said. Raising the age limit for those programs would cover up to 7.6 million uninsured young adults in families who have incomes below 200 percent of poverty, the report said. States could help by having the colleges and universities which they fund offer insurance to students, both full time and part time, the report said.
The issue calls for a public-private approach, said Robert Zirkelbach, spokesman for America's Health Insurance Plans, a group in Washington, D.C., which represents 1,300 insurers covering 200 million Americans. The organization has made several proposals about better coverage for younger adults, including expansion of Medicaid to cover all members of a family, Zerkelbach said. "We need to make health-care coverage more affordable, that has to be done by reducing the underlying costs of medical care." AUSTIN – Texas' health insurance plan for teachers was launched 5 years ago to save teaching jobs in the smaller school districts which has rapidly evolved into one of the biggest programs, signing up nearly nine in 10 districts with 335,000 employees and dependents. Officials with the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, which oversees the TRS- Active Care health insurance plan for teachers, predict that it is only a matter of time before most public school employees join the program because of its cost benefits.
The plan has developed to about 900 districts; including Dallas, Arlington, Fort Worth, Richardson and Lewisville. A majority of school districts in Dallas County are in the program, as are most independent charter schools in the state. And as it grows, new battles over coverage, what teachers must pay, and how much the state contributes to fund teachers' health care could be ahead. "Eventually, you will see the plan cover all school employees in Texas," said Linus Wright, vice chairman of the TRS board and former superintendent of the Dallas school district. "Just as it happened in the Dallas school district, it is reaching a point in many districts where it is becoming too expensive to maintain a separate health plan."
Mr. Wright noted that premiums have held fairly stable in recent years. While premiums increased 7% for the plan's three coverage options before the current school year, there was no increase two years ago and there will be no increase for the 2008-09 school year. "It's unusual for a health plan to avoid premium increases these days," he added. "We have a very large group to keep premiums down, and the claims are carefully supervised." PENNSYLVANIA - A bill is still pending at the state Senate could address Pennsylvania's most critical health care crisis for the hundreds who don't have health Insurance, a top Department of State official told nursing students. Joined by about 250 nursing students and professionals at an informational session at the Crowne Plaza, Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs Commissioner Basil Merenda said that the bill will provide uninsured Pennsylvanians access to better health care.
Merenda said "As professionals who care for us, you know better than most how critical health care is," he also added "PA ABC would help uninsured Pennsylvanians get access to the medical care which could keep various illnesses and injuries from escalating to emergencies and help alleviate the demands our nurses already face."
In Pennsylvania, nearly 767,000 adults are uninsured. According to an advocacy group Families USA, about 710 working age Pennsylvanians died due to lack of health care in 2006. Of those Pennsylvanians who lack insurance, 70% said cost is the main reason, a state Insurance Department study found.
Governor Rendell's Prescription for Pennsylvania health care reform plan, which was introduced in 2007, would ensure access to affordable health insurance for all Pennsylvanians, improve the quality of care, expand access to health care and help bring health care costs under control for workers and employers. Kaiser Permanente is an integrated health care organization which is based in Oakland, California, founded in the year 1945 by an industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and a physician Sidney R. Garfield. Kaiser Permanente is an association of three distinct entities groups; the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. and its regional operating organizations, the Permanente Medical Groups and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals. As of 2006, Kaiser Permanente is operated in 9 states as well as in Washington, D.C., and this is the largest managed care organization in America. Kaiser Permanente has about 8.8 million health plan members, with 156,000 employees, 13,730 physicians, 36 medical centers, about 400 medical offices with annual operating revenues of $34.4 billion and a net income of $1.3 billion. The Health Plan and Hospitals operated under the state and federal not-for-profit tax status, while the Medical Groups are operate under professional corporations and for-profit partnerships in their individual regions.
Kaiser Permanente started at the height of the great depression with just one inventive young surgeon and a twelve bed hospital in the middle of Mojave Desert. When Sidney R. Garfield, MD, saw thousands of men occupied in building the Los Angeles Aqueduct, he also saw something else; a chance to offer health care for these working men. He borrowed money to construct Contractors General Hospital; six miles away from the tiny town called Desert Center and began to treat injured and sick workers. But the difficult part was financing and Dr. Garfield faced trouble obtaining the insurance companies to pay for his bills on time. And though not all of the workers had insurances, he refused to turn away any injured or sick workers. As a result, he was often not paid for his services and it wasn't long before the hospital's operating expenses were far greater than its income.
Today Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals has a single Board of Directors which is considered to be the ultimate governing body for Kaiser. The chairman of the Board is George C. Halvorson and he is the chief executive officer of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals. In this capacity, Mr. Halvorson is occasionally referred to as the CEO and chairman of Kaiser Permanente, even though he is not the director for any of the Permanente Medical Group boards or any of those organizations. C .Halvorson leads a national leadership team which manages hospital operations and health plans across all the Kaiser Permanente regions. The Board of Directors at Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospital consists of 14 members including Mr. Halvorson. Now Kaiser Permanente is administered through eight regions, this include one parent and five subordinate health plan entities with one hospital entity and nine separate affiliated medical groups. |
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