First Year Changes Under Obama's Health Care Reform Bill

Welcome back to my Blog on 2010 Health Care Reform Legislation! After making my first post with a video from last fall of President Obama promoting his health care reform bill -- and promising to post another video -- I was informed that watching the President pitch his health care reform package isn't much of a draw! Therefore, I'll simply provide a summary of the first-year health care changes he mentioned in his March 6, 2010 address and mention to his loyal fans that the video can be found at the White House Blog.

Quoting the President on first-year health care changes:

• "Small business owners will receive tax credits to purchase health insurance."
• "Thousands of uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions will finally be able to purchase coverage."
• "Insurance companies will no longer be allowed to deny coverage to children with pre-existing conditions."
• "They will no longer be allowed to drop your coverage when you get sick."
• "This year, all new insurance plans will be required to offer free preventive care to their customers."
• "There will no longer be lifetime limits or restrictive annual limits on the amount of care you receive."
• "Young adults will be able to stay on their parents' insurance policy until they're 26 years old."
• "There will be a new, independent appeals process for anyone who feels they were unfairly denied a claim by their insurance company."
• "Finally, seniors who fall into the gap in coverage known as the donut hole will receive $250 to help them pay for their prescriptions."

To learn more about how 2010 health care reform legislation impacts you, please visit:

http://www.ahinsuranceservices.com/healthcarereform.html

In my next post, I'll review the impact of health care reform on the Medicare program. Stay tuned!

Until next time,

Andrew Herman

How Will 2010 Health Care Reform Legislation Impact You?

Welcome to my Blog on 2010 Health Care Reform Legislation that became law in March of this year!

Like it or not, health care reform is here to stay. My blog will pay special attention to the impact of the health care reform bill on Medicare, since that program is near and dear to so many here in the Sunshine State.

One of the features I plan to offer regularly is "What's New This Week." In these posts I'll share something noteworthy for the upcoming week or provide an update on an important topic discussed in a prior post

So, What's New This Week? On June 10, a $250 rebate check might be coming in the mail! That's if you have a Medicare Part D drug plan and you've already entered the dreaded coverage gap, or donut hole, this year.

According to Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Medicare beneficiaries need not take any action to receive their rebate since its issuance is based on Medicare billing data.

The $250 rebate checks to be mailed throughout the remainder of 2010 mark the first milestone of a 10-year timeline over which the Medicare Part D coverage gap will be eliminated. Next year, a 50% discount will apply to brand name drugs for those who are in the coverage gap.

To learn more about the Medicare Part D program, including how the coverage gap works, please visit our Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage page.

For the record, I'm posting a video of President Obama speaking about the health care bill back in September:

In this address, the President mentioned a number of key elements of his package including:

• No more denial of coverage for pre-existing conditions
• No dropped coverage when you get sick
• Elimination of yearly and lifetime caps on coverage
• Cap on out-of-pocket expenses
• Required coverage for preventive care
• New Insurance Marketplace (Exchange)

Most of the proposed elements of President Obama's plan became law with the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), revised by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and signed into law on March 30, 2010; however many of the important plan provisions don't go into effect until 2014 or later.

Look for another post this week, this one featuring a more recent video of the President speaking about health care reform changes that are effective in the first year following passage of this historic bill.

Until next time,


Andrew Herman