The latest on health reform for Humana brokers
Here is the latest Humana One Health Insurance Reform Newsletter that all Brokers Received. I post these for Florida Health Insurance clients to learn the inside information that the companies share with their agents.
July 8, 2009
No time to waste
It’s back to work for Congress. Senators and Representatives have returned to Washington after the week-long Fourth o f July recess, and health reform tops the agenda. But with just five weeks until Congress breaks again for most of August, many wonder whether lawmakers can meet their initial timetable.
That aggressive original schedule calls for the House and Senate to pass reform legislation before August 8, combine their measures in September, and deliver a health reform bill for the president’s signature by October 1. After that, many believe it will get increasingly difficult to pass health reform, as members of Congress start setting their sights on the 2010 mid-term elections.
All of which means the month of July will be critical. Three committees in the House and two in the Senate are working to advance reform as quickly as possible. Here’s what those committees have planned in the next two weeks:
- Three House committees with jurisdiction over health reform – Education and Labor, Energy and Commerce, and Ways and Means – are working together on a single bill. The so-called Tri Committee plans to debate and amend its legislation during markup hearings scheduled for the week of July 13.
- The Senate Finance Committee hopes to release its bill sometime in the next week or two. Finance is taking longer than the other Senate committee as Democrats and Republicans continue negotiations aimed at reaching a bipartisan compromise.
- The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) last week re vised its Affordable Health Choices Act – see below – and hopes to complete markup by the end of this week.
The HELP and Finance Committees will combine their bills before bringing them to the floor of the Senate.
Senate HELP revises reform bill
Last week, the Senate HELP Committee unveiled a revised health reform bill that committee Democrats say will cost less and cover more people. But others say those cost estimates don’t tell the whole story.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the revised bill will cost roughly $611 billion over 10 years – far less than the $1 trillion pricetag CBO put on the original bill several weeks ago. CBO also says the bill would cover 21 million of the nation’s 46 million uninsured, but the bill’s sponsors say it would eventually cover 97 percent of all Americans. Download the CBO score.
The difference in cost between the original and revised bills is largely due to so-called “pay or play” penalties that employers would face for not offering health insurance to their workers. The initial payment would be $750 per year for each employee left uncovered. Employers with 25 or fewer employees would be exempt.
But, the CBO’s estimate did not=2 0include the cost of administering a government health plan to compete with private insurers, or the cost of expanding Medicaid and increasing physician reimbursements under Medicare – all of which could increase costs considerably.
Wal-Mart backs employer mandate
Meantime, Wal-Mart – the corporation that employs more workers than any other private enterprise – says the government should require employers to provide health insurance.
The retail giant announced its support for a so-called employer mandate in a letter to President Obama. It was signed jointly by the heads of Wal-Mart, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the Center for American Progress.
“Not every business can make the same contribution, but everyone must make some contribution,” the letter reads. “We look forward to working with the Administration and Congress to develop a requirement that is both sensible and equitable.”
Wal-Mart has drawn fire in recent years for restricting the coverage it provides to employees – for example, imposing waiting periods of up to two years, according to the Associated Press. Much of that criticism has come from SEIU.
The move may be an attempt by Wal-Mart to polish its image and head-off more restrictive legislation. Other business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have adamantly opposed an employer mandate, arguing it would make it harder for American companies to compete globally.
Live from Minnesota – a new Senator
Nearly eight months after Election Day, the court battle for Minnesota’s open Senate seat has come to an end. Last week, Democrat and former Saturday Night Live comedian Al Franken declared victory following a state Supreme Court ruling in his favor.
“I am so excited to finally be able to get to work for the people of Minnesota,” Bloomberg News reported Franken as saying.
Franken’s opponent, incumbent Republican Norm Coleman, conceded the election after the Minnesota Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision. Franken won by just 312 votes.
The outcome gives Democrats an important 60-40 margin in the Senate, which could be critical as health care reform comes down to the wire. It means Democrats have the 60 votes they need to overcome a Republican filibuster – a legislative delay tactic – should bipartisan negotiations in the Senate break down.
In other words, Senate Democrats could proceed with little or no Republican support. Even if Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) or Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) can’t travel to Washington to cast votes (both are seriously ill), Democrats would only need one or two Republican votes to pass a health reform bill.
Franken told the Asso ciated Press that he expects to sit on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which would also give him a role in evaluating Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.
Obama goes online for town hall
Congress was on recess last week for the Fourth of July, but President Obama continued to press his case for health care reform. He held another town hall meeting last Wednesday, but with a twist: This time he appeared before a live audience in Annadale, Va., but also took questions from Twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites.
He encouraged people to send questions. “Ultimately,” he said via a White House blog, “your engagement on this issue is just as important as that of our lawmakers. I’ve always believed that real change doesn’t come from Washington; it comes from the American people – and we won’t be able to reform without you.”
