President Obama promised this would be the year of health care reform, but many are bracing for what this “reform” could really mean. After much anticipation, Democrats have started to unveil their healthcare reform plans, revealing new policy proposals that would, among other things, expand Medicaid, impose individual and employer mandates, enlarge the almost bankrupt Medicare program, create a new government-run healthcare plan, and cost at least $1 trillion over 10 years. The overall result will inevitably be higher taxes, less patient choice, and ultimately, rationing of care.
Medicare/Social Security Insolvency
While the Obama Administration ratchets up support for government-run healthcare, which would be a new entitlement program, the government trustees who monitor the nation’s two largest entitlement programs, Medicare and Social Security, have reported that they are both less than a decade away from insolvency.
Massive Expansion of SCHIP
Congress is poised to pass a massive expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Originally, SCHIP was designed to help low-income families who earn too much to qualify for Medicaid gain access to health insurance for their children. However, under the bill currently being considered (H.R. 2), SCHIP’s income eligibility level would rise from the current 200 percent to at least 300 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL), or about $63,000 for a family of four. In addition, some states don’t count certain types of income or have an approved waiver in order to boost eligibility for the program.
RAC-king Up Medicare Savings
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its most recent analysis of improper payments in the Medicare program on November 17, 2008. The good news is that vigorous cost recovery programs have helped whittle the percentage of improper payments in the Medicare fee-for-service program from 3.9 percent in FY 2007 to 3.6 percent this year.
Sen. Stevens Indicted
On July 29, 2008, it was announced that Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) had been indicted by the Justice Department on seven counts of making false statements for failing to disclose $250,000 worth of gifts from a contractor.
Staying Healthy by Eliminating Waste
When President Bush announced the beginning of the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) during his 2003 State of the Union speech, the five-year, $15 billion measure was announced as “the largest commitment ever by any nation for an international health initiative dedicated to a single disease.” Targeting 15 “focus countries,” most of which are in sub-Saharan Africa, the plan embraced a three-pronged strategy based around prevention, treatment and care.