By Jueseppi B.
On 48th birthday of #Medicare today, we reaffirm our commitment to reliable, affordable health care, both today and for generations to come
— Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (@SenatorShaheen) July 30, 2013
Obama on the House GOP: “Wasting the country’s time by taking something like 40 meaningless votes to repeal #Obamacare is not a jobs plan.”
— The White House (@whitehouse) July 30, 2013
October 1st, 2013 is open enrollment into The Affordable Health Care Act (ObamaCares)
January 1st, 2014 Pre-existing Conditions Go Away!!!
Understanding the Affordable Care Act | HealthCare.gov
Uploaded on Jun 30, 2010
http://HealthCare.gov/law/introduction/
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Affordable Care Act. The law puts into place comprehensive health insurance reforms that will hold insurance companies more accountable and will lower health care costs, guarantee more health care choices, and enhance the quality of health care for all Americans.
The Act will not be implemented all at once. Portions of the law have already taken effect. Other changes will be implemented through 2014 and beyond. To track our progress, return to this site regularly for the latest updates.
The Affordable Care Act In Plain English
Published on Nov 3, 2012
Dr. Valerie Arkoosh explains the provisions of the Affordable Care Act and its impact on various patient groups.
Health Reform Explained Video: “Health Reform Hits Main Street”
Uploaded on Sep 17, 2010
July 18, 2013: UPDATED ANIMATION NOW AVAILABLE. View the newest YouToons video, “The YouToons Get Ready for Obamacare” on YouTube: http://youtu.be/JZkk6ueZt-U
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Health care reform explained in “Health Reform Hits Main Street.”
Confused about how the new health care reform law really works? This short, animated movie — featuring the “YouToons” — explains the problems with the current health care system, the changes that are happening now, and the big changes coming in 2014.
Affordable Health Care Act Explained by Dr. Amer Kaissi
Published on Sep 15, 2012
On Sept. 11, 2012, the League of Women Voters of San Antonio hosted a discussion on Health Care Reform After the Supreme Court Decision.
The factual, non-partisan talk on the strengths and weaknesses of the Affordable Care Act was led by Trinity University‘s Dr. Amer Kaissi.
The Affordable Health Care Act (ObamaCares)
The Official HHS Guide to Obamacare
The Affordable Health Care Act (Law)
The Affordable Health Care Act ~AKA~ “ObamaCares” Part 1
The Affordable Health Care Act, AKA: “ObamaCares” Part 2
Obamacare Is the Right’s Worst Nightmare – Paul Krugman
Republicans Hold America Hostage – ‘Government shutdown looms over ObamaCare’
House GOP To Hold 40th Obamacare Repeal Vote
‘Obamacare Turns The GOP Against Tax Breaks For The Middle Class’
Affordable Health Care Act Upheld: POTUS Obama Dances!!
Obamacare’s foot soldiers train to enroll the masses
(Reuters) – Nahla Kayali is a foot soldier for Obamacare.
She is among the first wave of 2,000 community organizers in California getting trained to persuade more than 1 million uninsured people in the state to sign up for subsidized health coverage under President Barack Obama’s reform law.
Kayali and her cohorts begin their mission next month, armed with flyers, pamphlets and a small army of volunteers who speak 13 languages.
“We’re getting consumers and small businesses the toolsto enroll, and trying to eliminate the barriers to enrolling,” said Kayali, 55, who runs a non-profit that provides social services to Arab Christians and Muslims in Orange County, just south of Los Angeles. “We’re going to break down the stigma – any barrier, whether it’s a language barrier or a cultural barrier.”
Among U.S. states, California will have the largest force deployed in a massive national outreach effort costing hundreds of millions of dollars. These thousands of foot soldiers will have to promote the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in the face of widespread political opposition and public skepticism.
Their work is key to the success of the new law in its first year, when the Obama administration seeks to enroll as many as 7 million people, including 2.7 million young and healthy people who are cheaper to insure, for 2014.
Oregon and Vermont have already begun training their enrollment advisers, while Connecticut and Washington are just starting up and other states, including Illinois and New York, will commence later this summer.
The playbook for these ambassadors focuses on two main points: First, tell people how they will benefit from Obamacare; second, stay away from divisive political talk.
“There is a major effort … to try to educate Americans,” said Michael Sparer, head of American health policy and management at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. “There are extraordinary levels of confusion over what the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, does and does not do.”
Opponents of the health reform law have criticized the public funds spent on mobilizing tens of thousands of people like Kayali into what they say is a highly politicized campaign. Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, says it may not work despite the expense.
“They’re trying to sell millions of people something that they’ve already shown they don’t want … and they’re trying to do it in a very confused and politically polarized atmosphere,” he said. “They don’t realize what they’ve got themselves into.”
A CONCERN FOR EVERY COMMUNITY
The outreach advisers will counsel Americans on what kind of coverage they need, what kind of subsidies they may qualify for and how to sign up. Some are paid through federal grants or by private organizations, while others are volunteers. Hospital staff, already schooled in helping uninsured patients determine whether they are eligible for government programs like Medicaid, are expected to lend a hand.
California is spending $140 million on enrolling consumers and small business owners for the state’s new healthcare exchange, including $86 million worth of advertising time, said Dana Howard, a spokesman for the Covered California exchange.
The ad campaign will roll out during the fall, Howard said, so the information is fresh in consumers’ minds as enrollment begins in October. Along with television, newspaper and website ads, it will include social media campaigns on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter, he said.
When they hit the streets, however, they may meet considerable obstacles, from the political to the personal.
Kayali expects to find resistance from Arab immigrants who fear government assistance could make them vulnerable to corrupt politicians – as they might have been in their home countries.
“They’re afraid it might affect their legality, and they are afraid the government will want something from them in return,” she said.
It was to learn how to deal with such skepticism – among other obstacles – that Kayali and several hundred other non-profit administrators sat in a medical center training office in a Los Angeles suburb last week.
“Never make any political representation in any presentation,” trainer Laquetta Shamblee told the group. “We don’t make political statements even if we have a political opinion.”
JUST THE FACTS
Shamblee also admonished trainees to keep their groups’ political materials – on immigration, Middle East policy or other issues – away from events where they promote the Affordable Care Act, along with any statements about the law or Obama.
“Everybody has a cell phone, and we don’t want to be on ’60 Minutes,'” she said.
Shamblee, who has a background in healthcare advocacy, said the state is not offering trainees lessons in how to counter potential opponents who might approach them at schools, churches or other places they set up tables. They are being advised not to engage in potentially inflammatory talk at all, but simply provide factual information about how to get health insurance through the exchange.
“Once people get the details, if it’s something that benefits their families they will look into it,” she said.
In Los Angeles County, Tina Wong will field a team of Spanish-speaking ambassadors going door-to-door to offer information to Latino consumers.
Like Kayali, she expects to find resistance: In Los Angeles County, 11 percent of the adult population is undocumented – ineligible to purchase insurance from the exchange and at risk of deportation if their status becomes known. That may prevent many families from signing up – even if some loved ones, including U.S.-born children, are eligible.
“Our biggest obstacle will be fear among parents who are undocumented to enroll their children,” said Wong.
She is acutely aware of how divided American families may be about the law, as her husband, a Republican, staunchly opposes Obamacare and believes that the uninsured should not rely on the government for health coverage.
(Additional reporting by Caroline Humer in New York; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Douglas Royalty)
Thank you Reuters.
White House takes aim at Obamacare opposition’s economic claims
(Reuters) – The White House on Monday shot back at critics who claim Obamacare is leading to higher healthcare costs, slower job growth and rising numbers of part-time workers, saying the latest economic statistics show none of those effects.
Nearly one-third of the sharp rise in part-time workers seen in employment numbers for June was due to federal employee furloughs caused by automated spending cuts, rather than employers shifting to part-time workers due to concern about President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law, a senior administration official said.
The official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity, also predicted that July job numbers due on Friday would show a similar increase in part-time workers due largely to the furlough of 650,000 Defense Department employees.
Federal furloughs are the result of automated across-the-board spending cuts, known as the sequester, which went into effect earlier this year after Republicans and Democrats in Congress failed to agree on a deficit-reduction package.
Republicans and other critics of Obamacare have cited the jump in part-time workers as evidence that employers have been cutting back on hours to avoid higher healthcare costs under Obamacare, which will require businesses with 50 or more full-time workers to provide health insurance in 2015.
The White House on Monday released data that it said shows no evidence that the law known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has accelerated healthcare costs, reduced full-time employment or punished small businesses including restaurants.
The data showed that personal expenditures on healthcare goods and services grew at 1.1 percent during the year ending in May, the lowest rate in 50 years measured by the inflation gauge known as personal consumption expenditures.
Alan Krueger, chairman of White House Council of Economic Advisers, said in a government blog posting that slower healthcare cost growth could remain for some time.
“The fact that the slowdown in cost growth reflects changes in both prices and utilization of medical care — and that the slowdown is apparent in many different aspects of the healthcare system — further suggests that structural changes are under way,” Krueger said.
Figures released by the White House also showed slower growth in health insurance costs for small employers and a faster rate of job growth among businesses with low rates of employer healthcare coverage. Healthcare reform opponents have pointed to both groups as being hard hit by higher costs and slower job growth as a result of Obamacare.
(Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Ken Wills)
Thank you Reuters.
A MORE SECURE FUTURE
What the New Health Law Means for You and You
ACA & MEDICARE
Nearly 50 million older Americans and Americans with disabilities rely on Medicare each year. The new health care law makes Medicare stronger by adding new benefits, fighting fraud, cutting costs, and improving care for patients.
HEALTH REFORM MYTHS
There’s a lot of misinformation out there. For too long, too many hard working Americans paid the price for policies that handed free rein to insurance companies. President Obama’s health reform law gives hard working families the security they deserve. The Affordable Care Act holds insurance companies accountable, lowers health care costs, gives Americans more freedom and control in their health care choices and improves the quality of care.
The Affordable Care Act: Strengthening Medicare
Fighting Medicare fraud has long been a top priority for President Obama. This new infographic describes how the Affordable Care Act – the new health care law – is helping the Obama Administration crack down on Medicare fraud and make Medicare even stronger.
For too long, too many hard working Americans paid the price for policies that handed free rein to insurance companies. President Obama’s health reform law gives hard-working families the security they deserve. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 3.1 million more young adults have health insurance on their parent’s plan, three million seniors have received a 50 percent discount on their prescription drugs, and millions of Americans now have access to no-cost preventive services to help them stay healthy. Abusive insurance practices are becoming a thing of the past. Additionally, the Affordable Care Act helps small businesses with the cost of providing health insurance for their employees and helps doctors and other health providers care for their patients more effectively.
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law, putting in place comprehensive reforms that improve access to affordable health coverage for everyone and protect consumers from abusive insurance company practices.
For those Americans who already have health insurance, the only changes you will see under the law are new benefits, better protections from insurance company abuses, and more value for every dollar you spend on health care. If you like your plan you can keep it and you don’t have to change a thing due to the health care law.
For the uninsured or those who don’t get their coverage through work, a key component of the Affordable Care Act will take effect on October 1, when the new Health Insurance Marketplace open for business, allowing millions of Americans to comparison shop for a variety of quality, affordable plans that best meet their health care needs.
Understanding the Reforms
Here are the key facts about the Affordable Care Act.
- Stronger Consumer Rights and Protections
- 105 million Americans no longer have lifetime dollar limits on their coverage.
More than 17.6 million children with pre-existing conditions can no longer be denied coverage.
Learn more
- 105 million Americans no longer have lifetime dollar limits on their coverage.
- More Affordable Coverage
- Better Access to Care
- Stronger Medicare
Consumer Rights and Protections
In the past, insurance companies could take advantage of you. They could deny coverage to children who had asthma or were born with a heart defect, put a lifetime cap on the amount of care they would pay for, or cancel your coverage when you got sick just by finding an accidental mistake in your paperwork. The Affordable Care Act creates a new Patient’s Bill of Rights that protects you from these and other abusive practices.
End to Pre-Existing Condition Discrimination: Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage to children because of a pre-existing condition like asthma and diabetes, providing peace of mind for parents of the more than 17.6 million children with pre-existing conditions. Starting in 2014, no American can be discriminated against due to a pre-existing condition.
End to Limits on Care: In the past, some people with cancer or other chronic illnesses ran out of insurance coverage because their health care expenses reached a dollar limit imposed by their insurance company. Under the health care law, insurers can no longer impose lifetime dollar limits on essential health benefits and annual limits are being phased out by 2014. More than 105 million Americans no longer have lifetime limits thanks to the new law.
End to Coverage Cancellations: Insurance companies can no longer drop your coverage when you get sick due to a mistake you made on your application.
More Affordable Coverage
The law helps you by bringing down health care costs and making sure your health care dollars are spent wisely. Insurance companies will now be accountable to their customers for how they are spending premium dollars, and how much they are raising rates. Plus, the new law will help lower costs through new tax credits and new marketplaces where insurers will have to compete for your business.
Value for Your Premium Dollar: Thanks to the Affordable Care Act’s 80/20 rule, if insurance companies don’t spend at least 80 percent of your premium dollar on medical care and quality improvements rather than advertising, overhead and bonuses for executives, they will have to provide you a rebate. In 2012, 8.5 million people received half a billion dollars in refunds.
Stopping Unreasonable Rate Increases: In every State and for the first time ever, insurance companies are required to publicly justify their actions if they want to raise rates by 10 percent or more.
Small Business Tax Credits: Small businesses have long paid a premium price for health insurance – often 18 percent more than larger employers. The tax credit will benefit an estimated 2 million workers who get their insurance from an estimated 360,000 small employers who will receive the credit in 2011 alone.
Better Access to Care
The health care law builds on what works in our health care system. And it fixes what’s broken by providing you with more health insurance choices and better access to care.
Free Prevention Benefits: Insurers are now required to cover a number of recommended preventive services, such as cancer, diabetes and blood pressure screenings, without additional cost sharing such as copays or deductibles. Already, 54 million Americans with private health coverage have gotten better preventive services coverage as a result.
Coverage for Young Adults: Under the law, most young adults who can’t get coverage through their jobs can stay on their parents’ plans until age 26 – a change that has already allowed 3.1 million young adults to get health coverage and given their families peace of mind.
Coverage for Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions:Before the law, many Americans with pre-existing conditions were locked or priced out of the health insurance market. More than 50,000 Americans with pre-existing conditions have gained coverage through the new Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan. This temporary program makes health coverage available and more affordable for individuals who are uninsured and have been denied health insurance because of a pre-existing condition. In 2014, insurance discriminating against anyone with a pre-existing condition will be illegal.
Affordable Insurance Exchanges: Affordable Insurance Exchanges are one-stop marketplaces where consumers can choose a private health insurance plan that fits their health needs. Starting in 2014, they will offer to the public the same kinds of insurance choices members of Congress will have. Exchanges will select health plans qualified to offer coverage; facilitate consumer assistance, shopping and enrollment; and coordinate eligibility for the Exchange and potential premium assistance. Already, 33 States and the District of Columbia are on their way to building Exchanges, having received at total of nearly $670 million in Exchange Establishment Grants.
Strengthening Medicare
Nearly 50 million older Americans and Americans with disabilities rely on Medicare each year, and the new health care law makes Medicare stronger by adding new benefits, fighting fraud, and improving care for patients. The life of the Medicare Trust Fund will be extended to at least 2024 as a result of reducing waste, fraud, and abuse, and slowing cost growth in Medicare. And, over the next ten years, the law will save the average person in Medicare $4,200. People with Medicare who have the prescription drug costs that hit the so-called donut hole will save an average of over $16,000.
Lower Cost Prescription Drugs: In the past, as many as one in four seniors went without a prescription every year because they couldn’t afford it. To help these seniors, the law provides relief for people in the donut hole – the ones with the highest prescription drug costs. As a first step, in 2010, nearly four million people in the donut hole received a $250 check to help with their costs. In 2011, 3.6 million people with Medicare received a 50 percent discount worth a total of $2.1 billion, or an average of $604 per person, on their brand name prescription drugs when they hit the donut hole. Seniors will see additional savings on covered brand-name and generic drugs while in the coverage gap until the gap is closed in 2020.
Free Preventive Services: Under the new law, seniors can receive recommended preventive services such as flu shots, diabetes screenings, as well as a new Annual Wellness Visit, free of charge. So far, more than 32.5 million seniors have already received one or more free preventive services, including the new Annual Wellness Visit.
Fighting Fraud: The health care law helps stop fraud with tougher screening procedures, stronger penalties, and new technology. Thanks in part to these efforts, we recovered $4.1 billion in taxpayer dollars in 2011, the second year recoveries hit this record-breaking level. Total recoveries over the last three years were $10.7 billion. Prosecutions are way up, too: the number of individuals charged with fraud increased from 821 in fiscal year 2008 to 1,430 in fiscal year 2011 – nearly a 75 percent increase.
Improving Care Coordination and Quality: Through the newly established Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, this Administration is testing and supporting innovative new health care models that can reduce costs and strengthen the quality of health care. So far, it has introduced 16 initiatives involving over 50,000 health care providers that will touch the lives of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in all 50 states.
Providing Choices while Lowering Costs: The number of seniors who joined Medicare Advantage plans increased by 17 percent between 2010 and 2012 while the premiums for such plans dropped by 16 percent – and seniors across the nation have a choice of health plans.
RECENT HEALTH CARE NEWS
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July 30, 2013 at 5:15 PM EDT
Secretary Sebelius: Medicare Helps Millions
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July 30, 2013 at 11:19 AM EDT
President Obama Meets with Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
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July 29, 2013 at 5:31 PM EDT
What the Affordable Care Act Really Means for Job Growth
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Health Care News:
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President Obama Meets with Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
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Learn More about Health Reform
- How is the Affordable Care Act helping you? We want to hear your story. Share it here
- Health care reform gives seniors new preventive benefits, prescription drug discounts and more options for long-term care. Learn More
- Small business owners who provide health insurance for their employees can receive tax credits. Learn More
- Young adults can get coverage through their parent’s plan until the age of 26. Learn More
- People with pre-existing conditions can get health insurance. Learn More
- Health care reform is helping doctors offer better care to their patients. Learn More
- The Affordable Care Act prohibits health plans from putting a lifetime dollar limit on most benefits you receive, and restricts annual dollar limits. Learn More
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Reblogged this on idealisticrebel and commented:
loving this. questions are one of my favorite things. Peace, Barbara
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I am honored you reblogged this my dear Ms. Barbara. I hope you are enjoying your Tuesday.
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