Health Care Reform Summary

Posted by IQ HSA on April 19, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Health Care Reform Summary

Part I.

Health insurance plan changes that impact individuals and employers (both fully insured and self-funded plans unless otherwise noted) over the next few years:

IMMEDIATELY:

Federal rate review. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will establish a process for federal review of fully insured premium rate increases.

IN 90 DAYS:

Internet portal. By July 1, an Internet portal will be created for consumers and small businesses to shop for health Insurance.

High-risk pool. $5 billion has been appropriated to create a temporary high-risk insurance pool to help adults with pre-existing conditions get coverage if they have been uninsured for six months. The program will be effective through 2013.

Reinsurance for early retirees. A temporary reinsurance program will be established for employers providing coverage to early retirees over age 55 who are not eligible for Medicare. The federal government will provide $5 billion to fund the program. Participating employers or insurers will be reimbursed 80 percent of retiree claims between $15,000 and $90,000. The program will be effective through 2013.

IN SIX MONTHS:

Effective for new private health insurence plans or health insurance plans renewed six months after the enactment date unless otherwise noted (includes “grandfathered plans”):

Lifetime and annual limits. Plans may not impose lifetime limits on the dollar value of essential benefits. Annual limits will be restricted (to be determined by HHS).
Rescissions. No rescissions are permitted, except in cases of fraud or intentional misrepresentation.
Health Insurance Coverage for adult children. Children may stay on their parents’ policies until age 26 if health insurance coverage isn’t available through their work, regardless of their marital status. Any employer contribution toward the insurance premium is a tax-deductible business expense for the employer and not taxable income for the employee.
Pre-existing conditions. Health Insurance Plans may no longer impose pre-existing condition exclusions for children under 19.

Effective for new small business group health insurance plans or health insurance plans renewed six months after the enactment date (does not include “grandfathered plans”):

Preventive services. New health insurance policies must cover the full cost of preventive care as recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, recommended immunizations, preventive care for infants, children and adolescents, and additional preventive care for women
Appeals. New minimum requirements for internal and external health insurance claims appeals processes.
Patient protections. Plans that require or provide for a primary care provider (PCP) designation must allow each member to designate any in-network PCP, or pediatrician for children, accepting new patients. Plans may no longer require an authorization or referral to an Ob-Gyn. Prior authorization or increased cost-sharing for emergency services is also prohibited.
Nondiscrimination rules. Nondiscrimination rules that apply to self-funded health insurance plans are expanded to group fully insured health insurance plans. Plans cannot base an employee’s eligibility or continued eligibility on hourly or annual salary.

This summary provided by Humana One Health Insurance and Humana Small Business Health Insurance.

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AT&T Will Record A $1 Billion Expense Related To Health Care Law

Posted by IQ HSA on March 29, 2010 · Leave a Comment

The AT&T write-down is the largest reported so far. Caterpillar this week recorded a $100 million charge in the first quarter and Deere & Co. said it will report a one-time $150 million expense.

Among its many changes, the new health-care law eliminated a tax deduction that companies used to cut the cost of drug-benefit programs for retired workers. President Obama signed the massive health-care overhaul into law earlier this week in a big victory for ruling Democrats.

The health reform bill eliminated a subsidy for companies that operated as a double deduction. Companies such as John Deere and Caterpillar will face new costs up to $150 million, Ellen Schultz reports.

Yet companies that still offer retiree drug benefits, mostly older industrial concerns or those with unionized employees, say the end of the deduction could force them to alter their benefit plans. In other words, they might curtail or even cancel them.

“As a result of this legislation, including the additional tax burden, AT&T will be evaluating prospective changes to the active and retiree health care benefits offered by the company,” AT&T said in a filing with the government on Friday.

An AT&T spokesman declined to comment further on the filing.

Earlier this week, Verizon Communications sent a letter to employees suggesting that changes to their health-care plans could be afoot. AT&T and Verizon are the two largest phone companies in the U.S. and include a substantial number of unionized workers.

Several million retirees are estimated to receive drug benefits from a few thousand companies. If those retirees were shifted to the federal Medicare program, the government would to pick up the expense. Whether savings from elimination of the subsidy would offset those higher Medicare costs is unclear.

Under the old law, companies received a federal subsidy worth up $1,330 per retiree if they provided former workers with drug-care benefits. At the same time, however, companies could deduct the value of the subsidy from their taxable income.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs on Thursday said the government merely eliminated a tax loophole that effectively allowed a company to benefit twice from one law.

The AT&T announcement is sure to cause a ripple in Washington. Republicans have already assailed the administration for what they say are excessive costs saddled on business by the health-care law. The issue is sure to be part of their campaign against Democrats in the fall elections.

Democrats say the health-care law will become more popular over time and they point out that it also includes substantial new subsidies for business.

“There’s $10 billion in health-care reform for support for businesses with early retirees,” Gibbs said.

Jeffry Bartash is a reporter for MarketWatch in Washington.

The people we work with are saving an average of $2,208/year on their health insurance premiums without sacrificing benefits. You owe it to yourself to find out how a HSA can benefit you. Contact us today at 602-510-7507 or info@iqhsa.com. To receive quotes for individual/family health insurance in Arizona click here.

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Business Owner on Health Care: “I’m Confused”

Posted by IQ HSA on March 25, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Published: Wednesday, 24 Mar 2010 | 5:00 PM ET

By: Jane Wells
CNBC Correspondent

Madelyn Alfano is no dummy. This native of Hoboken has spent the last 25 years building up a successful chain of restaurants in Los Angeles called Maria’s Italian Kitchen. She’s President of the LA chapter of the California Restaurant Association.

But ask her what she’s supposed to do next to expand healthcare coverage from 50 fulltime employees to all 400 of her workers, and she draws a blank. “I just read a 30-page summary of what the healthcare bill is supposed to do and mean,” she says. “And I read it again. I read it two times, I was so confused.” She knows that within four years she will need to provide coverage, but she has a lot of questions. For example, if she has a part-time waiter who works a second job at another restaurant, “Who pays for that?” She’s also concerned that she’ll be paying workers comp, sick days, general liability, AND healthcare. “Something’s gotta give.”

The situation has her pausing expansion plans.

Alfano is just one of many business owners now trying to figure out what’s next. Here’s more of what she had to say.

The new healthcare law also mandates that any restaurant chain with at least 20 outlets must supply calorie information to customers. Alfano says that’s already the law in California, and the restaurant association supports this. But she’s worried she might get sued. Here she explains why:

Finally, the restaurant industry has been one of the hardest hit businesses in this recession. Madelyn Alfano explains how she managed to turn a profit and not lay off a single employee.

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The President Signed Health Care Legislation Today

Posted by IQ HSA on March 23, 2010 · Leave a Comment

The President signed the Health Care Legislation into law today. Here is a summary of the changes the initial version of the law will enact:

Mandate everyone must get insurance
Result in about 30 million additional people becoming insured
Subsidize coverage for people who can’t afford insurance; increase the number of people eligible
for Medicaid
Raise money to pay for these things through new fees, taxes and cuts to Medicare Advantage
Change the payment formula for Medicare Advantage
Make many changes in the way insurance companies operate, from saying they have to sell insurance to everyone, regardless of pre-existing conditions and health status, to selling insurance to individuals and small businesses through an exchange

The reconciliation bill, if it passes the Senate, would adjust many of those provisions and dates of enactment, although the broad strokes of the bill would remain the same.

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Side By Side Comparison Of Current Health Care Proposals

Posted by IQ HSA on March 22, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Passing comprehensive health care reform has been a priority of the President and Congress. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Affordable Health Care for America Act on November 7, 2009 and the U.S. Senate passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on December 24, 2009. On March 18, 2010, Congressional leaders introduced the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, which modifies certain provisions in the Senate bill. The following summaries of these three bills focus on provisions to expand health care coverage, control health care costs, and improve the health care delivery system.

[Note: The reconciliation bill makes changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed by the Senate. The summary below includes the Senate bill language and incorporates changes to particular provisions made by the new legislation. The changes are identified by italicized text. If a provision was not addressed by the reconciliation bill, the Senate bill language has remained unchanged.] CLICK HERE to view side by side comparison.

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