Headlines about "Health plans - policy"
Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
Most Patients Happy With German Health Care
Excerpt: "Mention European health care to an American, and it probably conjures up a negative stereotype -- high taxes, long waiting lines, rationed care. It's not that way in Germany. Very little tax money goes into the system. The lion's share comes, as in America, from premiums paid by workers and employers to insurance companies." (Morning Edition via National Public Radio)
[Guidance Overview] Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Health and Welfare -- Updated July 2, 2008 (PDF)
23 pages. Excerpt: "These charts summarize selected federal legislation that would affect employee benefit programs. The bills included on the charts are based on judgments regarding the prominence of the issue, the likelihood of enactment, and the influence of the sponsors." (Towers Perrin)
Doctors Increasingly in Favor of Major Reforms to the U.S. Health Care System
Excerpt: "Doctors have historically been the watchdogs of the U.S. medical system, with the American Medical Association scaring New Dealers into dropping national health coverage from the Social Security Act and then the AMA shredding Harry Truman's reform efforts in the late 1940s. But a new poll and other significant indicators suggest that doctors are turning against the health-insurance firms that increasingly dominate American health care." (The American Prospect via Physicians for a National Health Program)
Sen. Kennedy Leads Renewed Effort on Universal Healthcare
Excerpt: "Senator Edward M. Kennedy's office has begun convening a series of meetings involving a wide array of healthcare specialists to begin laying the groundwork for a new attempt to provide universal healthcare, according to participants." (The Boston Globe)
Financing the U.S. Health System - Issues and Options for Change
Excerpt: "This report . . . examines the economic and policy implications of various options for restructuring the health care finance system, exploring the principle alternatives proposed by 2008 presidential candidates Senators John McCain and Barack Obama." (Bipartisan Policy Center via Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)
State and Federal Approaches to Health Reform: What Works for the Working Poor?
Excerpt: "We compare and contrast the labor market and distributional impact of three common approaches to state and federal health insurance expansion: public insurance expansions, refundable tax credits for low income people, and employer and individual mandates." (National Bureau of Economic Research; paid subscription or individual purchase required to retrieve fulltext)
2008 Presidential Election: Candidates Health Care Proposals (PDF)
9 pages. Excerpt: "After a long primary election season, Barack Obama (D) and John McCain (R) are the presumptive U.S. presidential nominees. Both candidates have articulated a position on health care reform, though some of their proposals are more detailed than others." (Hewitt Associates)
A Look at the Candidates' Stands on Health Care Reform and Retirement Savings
Excerpt: "What seems certain is that political change is not only in the air, it is likely to find its way into the workplace in a significant way over the next four years." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Opinion] Tame Health-Care Gorilla With New Medical Plan
Excerpt: "When it comes to health care, we're heading into an economic cul-de-sac. Health care will become one of the most onerous personal- finance issues in coming years unless the system is changed to ensure universal access, cost control and long-term financing." (Bloomberg)
EBSA Seeks Nominations for ERISA Advisory Council
Excerpt: "The terms of five members of the Council expire on November 14, 2008. The groups or fields they represent are as follows: (1) Employee organizations; (2) employers; (3) corporate trust; (4) investment management; and (5) the general public. The Department of Labor is committed to equal opportunity in the workplace and seeks a broad-based and diverse ERISA Advisory Council." (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)
Massachusetts Health Insurance Experiment Still Faces a Huge Challenge — Costs
Excerpt: "Most of the newly insured are lower income residents who qualify for low- or no-cost coverage through the state and there were more uninsured than the state anticipated. Both factors pushed costs to $625 million the first year, up from estimates of $472 million, according to figures from the state agency overseeing the program." (USA TODAY)
[Guidance Overview] Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated June 25, 2008, for Health and Welfare Plans (PDF)
11 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding health and welfare benefit plans. (Hewitt Associates)
[Opinion] The Battle to Save Medicare
Excerpt: "Reader Jack Wajda, 69, of Orlando, a retired AT&T executive and financial planner, identifies the single greatest problem with the American health-care system as well as anyone. He writes: 'To allow private for-profit insurance companies to decide whether and what type of care we receive is incomprehensible to me.'" (Saul Friedman via Newsday)
A Discussion of International Health Systems for Single Payer Advocates
Excerpt: "Bottom line: The most important point for single payer advocates is that every country with universal coverage has a non-profit insurance system. No country uses for-profit, investor-owned insurance companies such as we have in the U.S. (although they do have a small role in selling 'gap' coverage)." (Physicians for a National Health Program)
The Dutch Health Care System
Excerpt: "Why should we care how they deliver health care in a tiny country most of us will never visit? Few European health care systems have garnered the kind of attention from Americans that the Dutch system has received. -- especially from folks not known for their Euro-philia, including the Bush Administration. In the fall, the White House sent a delegation to the Netherlands to learn more about the Dutch system. The Wall Street Journal also has praised the Dutch system for accomplishing 'what many in the U.S. hunger to achieve: health insurance for everyone, coupled with a tighter lid on costs.'" (The Century Foundation)
[Opinion] Financing the U.S. Health System - Issues and Options for Change (PDF)
36 pages. Excerpt: "This report is part of a series commissioned by the BPC to advance the substantive work of the Leaders' Project on the State of American Health Care. It is intended to serve as an analysis of potential financing options for the nation's health care system . . . ." (Bipartisan Policy Center)
[Opinion] When Moving Away from Employer Based Coverage: Don't Forget Public Opinion
Excerpt: "As discussion of moving away from the employment-based system continues, not very much attention has been paid to a giant question: How will the public (and voters) feel about such a big change? Health reformers have learned the hard way in the past that whatever the appeal of policy proposals on their merits, they ultimately have to be acceptable to the public or they will not fly." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Opinion] Is It Time to Require All Employers to Provide Health Care for Their Employees?
Excerpt: "Should Congress, as part of a broader health care reform proposal, consider adopting a Federal 'pay' or 'play' approach whereby all employers would have the choice of providing benefits that cost X (e.g., X cents/hour, X percentage of payroll) or contributing an equivalent amount to a public insurance pool under which all individuals without insurance would obtain coverage? If employers should continue to be in the mix at all in the future, would that be a fairer way to equalize the funding of the system, rather than letting employers that voluntarily provide coverage for their employees continue to subsidize other employers that don't through cost-shifting?" (Pension & Benefits Blog)
[Opinion] Let's Stop Pretending That Pensions Don't Matter
Excerpt: "If retirement income security and the health care crisis, which are joined at the hip, are not dealt with soon, our nation will experience severe economic consequences we have not seen in quite a while." (Cypen & Cypen)
[Opinion] United States Conference of Mayors Endorses HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act
Excerpt: "The next politician who tells you that national health insurance is not politically feasible, tell him or her to discuss that opinion with the nation's mayors. For those who say that all politics is local, national health insurance is the only reform that is politically feasible." (The United States Conference of Mayors via Physicians for a National Health Program)
Mental Health Parity Bill Moving Closer to Final Passage
Excerpt: "House and Senate negotiators have resolved the remaining differences in the benefit-related provisions in mental health care benefits parity legislation . . . ." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
America's Health Care Crisis: Cities on the Front Lines (PDF)
24 pages. Excerpt: "This spring, Families USA surveyed a sample of mayors from around the country on the topics of health care and the uninsured. The survey results show that, although each city's involvement in health care issues is different, cities organize, fund, and deliver a wide range of health care services for their citizens through public hospitals, clinics, and a variety of other health safety net programs." (Families USA)
Employers Look to Retain Health Care Benefit Offerings as Congress Plans Reform
Excerpt: "With the advent of a new Congress 18 months ago, many senators, representatives and advocates pressed for major health care reform before the 2008 presidential election. Those heady days dissolved into a legislative grind." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
Washington Post Reports Next President Likely To Have 'Tough Time' With Efforts To Finance Health Care, Other Proposals
Excerpt: "The major presidential candidates have made a number of promises on health care and other issues in their campaign speeches, but whoever 'wins the White House this fall ... is likely to have a tough time enacting expensive new initiatives' because 'tax collections are slowing, the budget deficit is rising and the national debt is approaching $10 trillion,' the Washington Post reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Bush Signs Bill Extending Mental Health Parity Act Through End of 2008
Excerpt: "Legislation that extends the Mental Health Parity Act's (MHPA) sunset date until Dec. 31, 2008, was signed June 17 by President Bush. The Heroes Earning Assistance and Relief Tax (HEART) Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-245) extends the MHPA provisions of ERISA, the Public Health Service Act and the Internal Revenue Code, which had expired Dec. 31, 2007." (Thompson Publishing Group Inc.)
[Opinion] The Uninsurables
Excerpt: "While much of the health care reform debate centers on the 47 million uninsured Americans, there is an equally important subgroup that must be part or the solution - the uninsurable - i.e., those who have been denied health insurance coverage because of a pre-existing medical condition, or whose condition results in premiums much higher than the standard." (The Washington Times via Council for Affordable Health Insurance)
[Guidance Overview] Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated June 18, 2008, for Health and Welfare Plans (PDF)
10 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding health and welfare benefit plans. (Hewitt Associates)
Health Care Reform has Surfaced As an Issue for U.S. Presidential Aspirants
Excerpt: "Most of the political focus . . . has been on the approximately 18% -- 46.5 million, according to statistics from the Census Bureau -- that do not currently have health insurance. That number includes some 9 million under the age of 18 -- and, doubtless with some overlap, roughly 10 million non-U.S. citizens." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
ERIC's Health Policy Conference Features Foremost Health Policy Leaders
Excerpt: "ERIC's Health Policy Conference held June 11 in Washington, DC, featured many of the nation's leading health policy stakeholders who discussed consumer directed health plans, the Patient Centered Medical Home, designing and implementing wellness programs, health care reform proposals, compliance with new legislation, and cutting edge strategies in employee benefits. . . . [links on the target page] include the presentation materials of the speakers, and other background information." (The ERISA Industry Committee)
Sen. Baucus and CBO Director Orszag Discuss Independent Health Policy Board
Excerpt: "Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) at a hearing on Tuesday expressed interest in a federal health board that could make controversial health policy decisions without interference from special interests, CQ HealthBeat reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
CBO Testimony: The Long-Term Budget Outlook and Options for Slowing the Growth of Health Care Costs (PDF)
14 pages. Statement of Peter R. Orszag, Director, on The Long-Term Budget Outlook and Options for Slowing the Growth of Health Care Costs before the Committee on Finance, United States Senate, June 17, 2008. (U.S. Congressional Budget Office)
GAO Testimony: Long-Term Federal Fiscal Challenge Driven Primarily by Health Care (PDF)
21 pages. Excerpt: "GAO was asked to provide its views on the long-term fiscal outlook. This statement addresses four key points: (1) the federal government's long-term fiscal outlook is a matter of utmost concern; (2) this challenge is driven primarily by health care cost growth; (3) reform of health care is essential but other areas also need attention which requires a multipronged solution; and (4) the federal government faces increasing pressures yet a shrinking window of opportunity for phasing in needed adjustments." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
[Opinion] ERISA Wouldn't Block Single-Payer, Dan Weintraub Says, But Others Say Different
Excerpt: "An important provision of the ERISA regulations is that self-insured plans of large employers be exempt from state regulation. In fact, comprehensive reform proposals, such as the single payer model, are often rejected simply because the design would not comply with existing ERISA regulations since exempt programs would be folded into a state regulated system." (San Diego Union Tribune)
Policymakers' Interest In Health Care Reform Intensifies
Excerpt: "At this point, however, few lawmakers seem to know where to start tinkering with a health-care system so vast and so complex -- and so critical, . . . to 'economic growth, wages and living standards, and government budgets.'" (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Intel Executive Vents About Health Care Debate at Senate Committee Event
Excerpt: "A prominent business leader expressed frustration with the focus and pace of health care reform deliberations in Washington on Monday, June 16, at an event designed to prepare a foundation for congressional action next year." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
[Opinion] Testimony--Public Programs: Critical Building Blocks in Health Reform
Excerpt: "Currently, most Americans either have group health insurance through employers (55 percent) or are covered by Medicare or Medicaid (22 percent). Building on the strengths of these sources of coverage has many advantages: it minimizes disruption in current coverage, it builds on what works, and it requires minimal new administrative mechanisms." (The Commonwealth Fund)
Bipartisan Symposium Convened by Senate Finance Committee on Health Care Reform
Excerpt: "At the end of the day, Democrats and Republicans appeared to agree on this much: All Americans should be insured, but they should have a choice of private health plans competing in the market alongside government programs." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Opinion] CBO Statement: Opportunities to Increase Efficiency in Health Care (PDF)
10 pages. Statement of Peter R. Orszag, Director, on Opportunities to Increase Efficiency in Health Care, at the Health Reform Summit of the Committee on Finance, United States Senate on June 16, 2008. (U.S. Congressional Budget Office)
Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing Scheduled for June 11, 2008, Suspended
The hearing, 'Short-change for Consumers and Short-shrift for Congress? The Supreme Court's Treatment of Laws that Protect Americans' Health, Safety, Jobs and Retirement' was suspended because of an objection on the Senate floor. (U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary)
Public/Private Health Systems Promote Innovation
Excerpt: "The United States can learn from the experience of Australia, England and continental Europe where blended public/private health care systems effectively deliver universal health care coverage, according to research for a new book ['Global Health Care Systems: A perspective on issues, practices and trends among OECD nations'] recently released by Aon Consulting." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
EBRI Testimony: Trends in Employment-Based Health Benefits for Workers and Retirees (PDF)
Statement for the Senate Finance Committee Health Reform Summit 2008, held June 16, 2008, at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC, submitted by Paul Fronstin. (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
Prepare for Launch: Health Reform Summit 2008 to Be Held June 16
Excerpt: "On June 16, 2008, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley are co-hosting a bipartisan summit at the Library of Congress to discuss options for health care reform in 2009. 'Prepare for Launch: Health Reform Summit 2008' is part of the Finance Committee's year-long series of hearings, roundtables, and events to prepare for congressional action on health reform." (U.S. Senate Committee on Finance)
Employers Wary of New Role Embodied in Presidential Candidates' Health Care Platforms
Excerpt: "'Rather then focusing on how the proposals will affect their benefit designs, employers are asking broader questions about how the proposals will redefine their role, and whether the [Employee Retirement Income Security Act] will change,' says Steven Wojcik, vice president of public policy at NBGH." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
[Opinion] Massachusetts's Pioneering Plan to Provide Universal Health Coverage Off to Good Start
Excerpt: "The state requires that all residents take out health insurance or suffer tax penalties if they don't. It also requires employers to offer coverage to their workers or make alternative payments if they don't. As it enters what could be a critical year in determining its viability, the plan can claim some substantial successes." (The New York Times; free registration required)
New Jersey Lawmakers Sanction Benefit Reform Package
Excerpt: "Despite a fierce battle by Garden State unions, a New Jersey state Senate committee has approved a package of six reform proposals for pensions and health care coverage for future government workers." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated June 11, 2008, for Health and Welfare Plans (PDF)
10 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding health and welfare benefit plans. (Hewitt Associates)
Senate Committee Hearing - 47 Million & Counting: Why the Health Care Marketplace is Broken
Held June 10, 2008, in 215 Dirksen Senate Office Building; member and witness statements are linked. (U.S. Senate Committee on Finance)
Surprising Lessons on Health Care Reform from Small Island of Taiwan
Excerpt: "In the middle of May, two Taiwanese officials, Hou Sheng-Mou and Michael S. Chen, came to Washington facing a tough assignment: promote single payer health care in a city where it's widely regarded as a non-starter in the debate over revamping the U.S. system. Their visit didn't command much attention from reporters covering that debate; countries like the Netherlands or Switzerland that have universal coverage based on strong private health care systems loom larger as potential models for a U.S. overhaul." (Congressional Quarterly Inc.)
Estimates of the Potential Reduction in Health Care Costs from AHIP's Affordability Proposals (PDF)
11 pages. Excerpt: "AHIP's affordability proposals1 could yield substantial savings for the U.S. health care system, provided that a large-scale and coordinated set of public and private initiatives is launched in the coming years. Taken together, AHIP's proposals have the potential to trim national health expenditures (NHE) by as much as 9 percent by the year 2025, compared with current baseline trends." (America's Health Insurance Plans)
House Bill Would Allow Small Businesses to Form Statewide, Nationwide Pools for Purchasing Insurance
Excerpt: "A bipartisan coalition of House members on Tuesday introduced a bill (HR 6210) that would allow small businesses to form statewide or nationwide pools to purchase insurance and provide them with tax credits to lower the cost of coverage, CongressDaily reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Opinion] Perspectives on State Health Reform
Excerpt: "Drawing on recent Foundation state surveys and analysis of state actions on Medicaid and State Children's Health Insurance Program through recent economic cycles, the essay highlights the difficulty of achieving national health reform state by state, but concludes that 'a small number of pacesetting states can serve as laboratories for national health reform.'" (Drew Altman via Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Opinion] Comparing John McCain's Health Care Plan to Barack Obama's Plan
Excerpt: "As voters, you have a huge and critically important choice on health care. There are dozens of details upon which they differ and for those I would point you to my comprehensive posts on the McCain Health Care Plan and the Obama Health Care Plan. But to understand their big idea differences, I would point you to our pension system to better understand where McCain and Obama are going on health care." (eMaxHealth.com)
Aetna Proposes Health Insurance Reform That Would Preserve Employment-Based System
Excerpt: "Reform is needed to fix the crisis of the uninsured, but it requires a joint effort of government and the private sector and should preserve the nation's employer-based health insurance system, Aetna Chief Executive Ronald A. Williams told a congressional panel Tuesday." (The Hartford Courant)
Highlights of Recent News About Small-Business Health Coverage
Excerpt: "Summaries of recent news about two efforts to contain health care costs for small businesses and their employees . . . ." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Many People Base Life Choices on Ability to Retain, Obtain Health Insurance
Excerpt: "Anxiety over becoming uninsured or paying higher premiums is causing some people -- 'especially those with health problems' -- to go to 'great lengths to get or keep job-based health coverage,' the Wall Street Journal reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
The Politico Examines Prospects for U.S. Health Care System Overhaul
Excerpt: "The Politico on Tuesday examined how 'the skyrocketing cost of health care is putting everyone in a much more chatty and cooperative mood' about overhauling the U.S. health care system. According to The Politico, different stakeholders in the past 'have opposed policy proposals that weren't ideal, instead choosing to do nothing.' However, the 'status quo is a policy choice in itself that has major consequences . . . ." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Health Insurance Coverage of Young Adults (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "Among young adults, the likelihood of coverage varies across a number of different characteristics, including income, citizenship status, and whether or not they are full-time students. Young adults with incomes less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) are 2.6 times more likely to be uninsured compared with those with higher incomes . . . ." (Urban Institute)
Dubai Gets New Health Care Plan
Excerpt: "From January 1, 2009, all residents of Dubai will compulsorily have to be part of a Health Funding System which will entitle them to affordable basic healthcare within the emirate. In a major announcement made by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) yesterday, Director-General of DHA Qadhi Saeed Al Murooshid said the new system will be compulsory for everyone." (Khaleej Times)
Underinsured Trends Among U.S. Adults, 2003 And 2007
Excerpt: "With health insurance moving toward greater patient cost sharing, this study finds a sharp increase in the number of underinsured people. Based on indicators of cost exposure relative to income, as of 2007 an estimated twenty-five million insured people ages 19-64 were underinsured--a 60 percent increase since 2003." (Health Affairs)
Pay or Play: State Mandated Health Care Laws (PDF)
Pages 7-10 of 11 pages. Excerpt: "Currently, twenty-eight states (see http://www.epionline.org/hc_symposium.cfm) have introduced legislation that requires employers to: (i) pay for a minimum level of health care benefits for their employees; or (ii) pay an assessment to the government sponsoring the law. These laws not only increase the cost for employers doing business in these states, but also increase the burdens imposedon human resource personnel, often requiring additional reporting and disclosure requirements." (Proskauer Rose LLP)
The links shown above have been gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com. Each article's publisher is shown above in parentheses. Opinions expressed in each article are those of the article's publisher, not necessarily those of BenefitsLink.com, Inc. or any web site that displays these headlines in a "frame." You should contact the listed publisher for copyright information about any particular article or to inquire into the right to use the article in any manner.