News Count Me As Grateful For The Changes Coming In Us Health Care

[BloomInWinter]

It wonderful to hear that, @DharmaGirl!

 

[DharmaGirl]

I was so relieved that I was crying!

 

[The Albatross]

Hmmm. Happy for you all. Don't even get me started. I am still incensed and this is a hot topic for me... but really I guess I'm glad it's been helpful for you all.

 

[BloomInWinter]

There's an interesting piece in the New York Times debunking some errors in some talking points about the ACA.

"But premiums will shoot up next year! As premiums have turned out to be cheap — indeed, cheaper than initially projected — Obamacare skeptics slowly retreated to a new prediction: Rates would rise next year.

Another nope. As state-by-state information trickles in, it appears conservatives won’t get the premium spike next year, either. Insurers are jumping into the market, putting downward pressure on prices. Expected premium increases appear to be on par with, or perhaps a bit lower than, historic levels" and

"It is true that Obamacare is far more helpful to people lower down the income scale. The poorest people get Medicaid, which is free. Those higher up the income ladder get tax credits, which phase out at $45,000 a year for an individual, and $94,000 a year for a family of four. (I wouldn’t call people earning under those levels “poor.”) Of course, people who get employer-sponsored insurance also get their coverage paid for with “other peoples’ money.” The difference is that employer-sponsored insurance uses a tax deduction, which gives the largest benefits to those who earn the most money, as opposed to Obamacare’s sliding scale tax credit, which gives the most to those who earn the least."

Source: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/06/republicans-finally-admit-why-they-hate-the-aca.html

 

[BloomInWinter]

Regarding the rules to helps smokers who wish to quit:

"The American Lung Association commends the Obama Administration for today’s lifesaving announcement,” said Harold Wimmer, National President and CEO of the American Lung Association. “Quitting is hard and the Lung Association knows that making sure everyone has access to all quit smoking medications and counseling is critical to saving lives.”

The guidance issued today defines what an appropriate comprehensive quit smoking benefit is. According to the Obama Administration, a comprehensive benefit includes coverage of:

1. All medications approved by the FDA as safe and effective for smoking cessation
2. Individual, group and phone cessation counseling
3. These quit smoking benefits should be offered at least twice a year to smokers, recognizing not everyone quits on their first try
4. Plans should not require prior authorization for these benefits

The ACA also requires that these benefits be provided at no cost to the patient – so no copays, coinsurance or deductibles should be charged." Source: Link Removed

Now three of my friends are trying again to quit smoking, and they are receiving much better support. I hope they make it.

 

[BloomInWinter]

Re: Mental Health & the ACA. They also give a link for any consumer to file an appeal for coverage at http://parityispersonal.org

To be clear, it is up to providers whether or not they will accept patients covered by the ACA and Medicaid. They have always had this choice. Should a provider refuse to take ACA payment, that is not the fault of the ACA.

"Long-awaited improvements in insurance coverage for mental conditions and addictions are expected to become more widely available this year as a result of two major steps that the Obama administration has taken.

The president’s signature Affordable Care Act includes mental health care and substance abuse treatment among its 10 “essential” benefits, which means plans sold on the public health care exchanges must include coverage.

In addition, rules to fully carry out an older law — the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 — were issued in November, after a long delay. The parity law says that when health insurance plans provide coverage for mental ailments, it must be comparable to coverage for physical ailments. For instance, plans cannot set higher deductibles or charge higher co-payments for mental health visits than for medical visits, and cannot set more restrictive limits on the number of visits allowed."

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/10/y...s-that-widen-mental-health-coverage.html?_r=0