10/31 Health Insurance / Medical Insurance News From Medical News Today

Please add updates@feedmyinbox.com to your address book to make sure you receive these messages in the future. Health Insurance / Medical Insurance News From Medical News Today House Speaker Pelosi's Health Reform Bill Sets The Gold Standard For Health Reform This Year October 30, 2009 at 10:00 am House Speaker Nancy Pelosi today unveiled her health reform bill that will be debated on the floor of the House of Representatives next month. The following is the statement of Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, about this development: "The House health insurance reform bill sets the gold standard for legislation that deserves to be adopted this year. "The bill will provide America's families with peace of mind. In Senate, Centrist-Liberal Rift Broader Than Just Public Option October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am Though the question of whether Democratic leaders would include a public option in the Senate's health reform bill has held the spotlight, a variety of other big issues also remain unresolved, The Hill reports. For instance, "Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y. Senators Who Support The Public Option Hope Resistant Moderates Will 'Come Around' October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am "Democratic Senators in favor of including a public insurance option in health care reform expect resistant moderates … to come around once they see the details of the final legislation," Roll Call reports. Centrists such as Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., have suggested that they may not support reform with a public option. "Senate Democratic Conference Vice Chairman Charles Schumer (N.Y. Health Bills Present Formidable Challenges To Number Crunchers October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am The House Democratic leadership is expected to unveil its health-overhaul legislation Thursday, the Associated Press reports. The next step will be for the merged bill - consolidated from three separate committee reports - to go to the Congressional Budget Office for a cost estimate, before lawmakers vote. Health Bills Limit Out-Of-Pocket Costs, But There's A Catch In The Fine Print October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am Health care bills pending in Congress could limit the out-of-pocket costs for consumers, but some of the fine print may cause sticker shock. "Consumers would be spared having to pay huge medical bills under Democratic health care legislation that's moving through Congress, as lawmakers agree on the need to put limits on how much people would pay out of their own pockets," McClatchy reports. Current, Former Mass. Governors Agree: Feds Should Do More Than Their States' Model To Address Costs October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, and former Gov. Mitt Romney, a Republican, both say that federal health reform plans should do more to address rising costs than their state's initiative. "Unlike the Massachusetts plan, which focused first on getting residents to sign up for insurance and only now is turning to cost containment, federal legislation must include measures to trim medical costs if it wants to garner and keep public support, Patrick said," China's Health Care System Is Also In Disarray October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am The Washington Post reports: "China's health-care system is in disarray, a side effect of the market reforms that have spurred private enterprise and rapid growth since 1980. Before then, state-owned companies offered cradle-to-grave care, part of a system based on danwei, or work units, that provided health, education, pensions and other benefits. Today's Opinions And Editorials October 30, 2009 at 7:00 am A Practical Reform: Indian Country As The 51st State Kaiser Health News The federal government could treat Indian Country, at least for health programs, as the 51st state. This seems to me a practical application of the nation-to-nation relationship (Mark Trahant, 10/29). Fine Print: Finance Bill May Cause Consumer Sticker Shock October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am Kaiser Health News staff writer Julie Appleby reports on how the fine print of the Senate Finance Committee's health bill could impact some lower- and middle-class consumers. Proponents of the measure "say the legislation will limit the amount that lower- and middle-income people must pay for health insurance to a maximum of 12 percent of their incomes. Pelosi Chooses Compromise Approach To Public Option In Reform Bill October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am A health care reform bill set to be unveiled this morning will include a government-run public option for health insurance that will negotiate rates with insurers, much like private insurers operate. A Look At The Public Insurance Options - What Exists And Who Would Have Access Under Proposed Reforms October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am One news outlet studies the practical meaning of public insurance option by examining some of the approaches that are already in existence. Meanwhile, another examines the number of people who would have access to the public plan. And a former insurance executive takes issue with the industry's current stance. Shocked By Re-Emergence Of Public Option, Business Groups Push Back October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am Business leaders who thought they had dodged a bullet when the Senate Finance Committee decided against offering a government-run public option as part of their health bill are pushing back after the plan's re-emergence. The Wall Street Journal reports that several groups, including the Business Roundtable and the U.S. Iowa Medical Home Provides Lessons For Health Care Reform October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am The Associated Press looks at what benefits medical homes may bring to health care by looking at one in Iowa: "A thousand miles from the health care debate in Washington, Dr. Don Klitgaard and his colleagues are carrying out their own reform in a small Iowa community. Insurers Brace For Increase In COBRA Claims October 30, 2009 at 6:00 am The nation's ailing economy continues to affect insurance companies, which could also face a wave of costly COBRA claims as policyholders rush to get treatment before government subsidies expire. The Associated Press reports: "The government's effort to help workers keep health benefits after they lose a job could wind up costing WellPoint Inc. Appropriations Chairs Weigh Small Omnibus Combining HHS, Other Spending Bills October 30, 2009 at 5:00 am The fiscal year 2010 Labor-HHS-Education spending bill (HR 3293) will likely be rolled into a small omnibus package with other remaining appropriations bills to allow quick passage by the end of the calendar year, CQ Today reports. While the House has passed all 12 of its bills, the Senate has passed only seven and has five remaining. Abortion Issues Unresolved As House Prepares To Unveil Health Reform Bill October 30, 2009 at 4:00 am House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday was set to unveil a health reform bill that includes the more moderate version of a public option and an expansion of Medicaid eligibility levels to 150% of the federal poverty level, though "sticking points in the legislation involving abortion and immigration remain unresolved," the Study Shows Lack Of Insurance May Have Figured In Nearly 17,000 Childhood Deaths October 30, 2009 at 3:00 am Lack of health insurance might have led or contributed to nearly 17,000 deaths among hospitalized children in the United States in the span of less than two decades, according to research led by the Johns Hopkins Children's Center. According to the Hopkins researchers, the study, to be published Oct.   This email was sent to zackmania84@gmail.com.  Create Your Account Don't want to receive this feed any longer? Unsubscribe here.