Outline of Senate Finance Cmte's Bill

The Senate Finance Committee's bill prohibits insurance companies from excluding applicants with Pre-Existing conditions and does NOT allow insurance companies to charge higher premiums to those with PEC's!!!



GEORGE STEPHANOUPOLIS' 09/08/09 ARTICLE (www.abcnews.com )

Based on my quick read, Here are some highlights:

- By 2013, Americans would be required to have health insurance or pay a fine. Depending on income level, the fines could be as high as $3800 per family.

- Native Americans, the very poor and those with religious objections are exempt from this new mandate.

- There’s no mandate on companies to provide insurance to their employees.

- Health insurance companies bear a big share of the costs with two new taxes:
 A $6 billion annual tax that will be divided among companies based on market share
 A tax on so-called Cadillac plans; insurance plans valued at more than $8,000 for individuals or $21,000 for a family of four.

- Expansion of Medicaid to those up to 133 percent of the poverty level.

- Federal subsidies to help those up to 300 percent of the poverty level buy insurance

- No new government-run insurance program, aka “public option”

- As an alternative to the public option, the bill creates and funds non-profit “cooperatives” that will provide insurance coverage

- New regulations on insurance companies: e.g. Bans denial of coverage or higher rates b/c of pre-existing conditions. Insurance companies would still be allowed, however, to charge higher rates for smokers.

Personally, I won't support it, as written.

I mean, sure it's not a single-payer system, but it sure looks a lot better than the status quo.

it's a handout to insurance companies, and yet another huge hassle for people who have to work for a living.

Even if we established a single-payer government-run health care system, we'd STILL have to pay for it with taxes!
Health care is NOT free!

We will pay for health insurance either thru premiums to insurance companies or non-profit co-ops, or thru taxes to the government.

The Senate Finance Committee's plan for the most part is very reasonable. As for the mandate, subsidies will be available to those who can't afford insurance on their own and Medicaid will be available to millions more people.

it's ridiculous, and does not serve the insuree, but the insurer.

Of course it's not free. Nothing is. However, it IS outrageously over-priced, because of market manipulation by the same players who stand to profit from mandatory insurance.

I should have a right to choose if I want healthcare or not. I should not be forced to by some crap from an insurance company just because a bunch of corrupt government functionaries want to repay the people who gave them millions.

The purpose of the mandate is because every time someone without health insurance becomes ill and has to see a doctor, the people who already have insurance end up paying for it:

1)Uninsured patient goes to Emergency Room
2)Patient is unable to pay even a fraction of the enormous bill they receive
3)The hospital makes up for the lost revenue by charging more for services, thus increasing claim ($) amounts.
4)Insurance companies pass these higher claim expenses onto the consumer with higher premiums and less coverage.

We are required to buy car insurance for the same reasons.

Can I ask what is your suggestion as to how we can end the outrageous practice of prohibiting people who have pre-existing conditions from getting insurance? The new (and very large) expenses will need to be offset by increased revenue. And no, cutting executive pay won't solve the problem. The $5 million annual salary of an Insurance Co's CEO will come no where close to paying the medical expenses of even 100 cancer patients. Most of insurance companies annual revenue goes to paying claims (if you don't believe me, take a look at any publicly-traded insurance company's financial statements).

If you come to a wall made of solid steel which is blocking your path, what's the more pragmatic solution?
1) Trying to knock the wall down :banghead:
OR
2) finding a way to climb over the wall? :hide:

Both solutions will get us where we want to be, but which would be easier? Which would be less costly? Which is more realistic? :think:

(**Smiles added solely to add a little humor to a serious discussion.**)

Regulate the healthcare industry. It's out of control, and gamed to the hilt. All you do by making insurance mandatory is reward Big Med and punish the citizens.

I'm all for reigning in the rates that Healthcare related industries (hospitals, doctors, pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies, etc) can charge. That is where the system is broken.

If there is any mandate, it should be that insurance companies must provide comprehensive packages at affordable rates, and that they cannot deny or cancel people once enrolled.

There are many things that can be done to fix the problem of healthcare accessibility. Mandating that all citizens buy bogus health insurance is not one of them, in my opinion.

Everything you said is worth doing, but it is impossible to do it all at once. Ultimately, the cost of health care itself (the medical fees, not the insurance) will have to be brought down or our economy will collapse, however that is a monumental task which will take probably 10 to 20 years.

Such kind of major reform has to be done bit-by-bit. Let’s start now by 1) ending pre-existing exclusions and 2) making Medicaid more available (that, and raising the poverty threshold to a more realistic level). Baucus’ bill provides gov’t subsidies for anyone who’s income is 3 times that of the poverty level (and I’m certain that the progressives in the House will be able to get that raised even more before final passage).

Keep in mind also, that with more people buying health insurance, that will put downward pressure on premiums as more contributors will be in the pool and private insurers compete with each other for our business. Our problem isn’t the rich insurance executives, it’s you and I being able to afford health care when we need it. Health Insurance Reform is a great place to start.

Take care, buddy. Enjoy the president’s speech tonight. :)

For most people making less than thirty thousand a year that just doesn't help them because they usually don't pay taxes anyway.

I've heard both subsidies AND tax credits. I'll have to look at it again.

FYI...I make less than $35,000 a year, and believe me, I PAY TAXES--(federal, state, and local)! :wow: