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This article brings some clarity to the financial reform
bill that was just passed.
The title of the article is:
Quotas Hidden in Bank Reform Bill Will Cost Taxpayers Millions
Please read at this link:
http://www.newsmax.com/Headline/financial-reform-quotas-millions-business-taxes-banks-reid-biden-obama/2010/07/15/id/364795?s=al&promo_code=A4AE-1
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the New Health Care Law
By Angie Chesnut
After talking to several people and hearing concerns and praises for the new Health Care Reform, I concluded that there are points of the law that are helpful, there are harmful points, and there are some that are disastrous. Discussing just the negative parts of the bill as opponents often do is no more enlightening than ignoring the parts that are of great concern as supporters often do. Neither is it fair to tell people that they will not be affected by this bill, they can keep their doctors, they can continue their health care uninterrupted, life moving along as usual. No, this law will affect all of us. We must admit that the changes created by this law are drastic, even though they take place over a long period of time. This law changes our way of life.
My chief concern is that most people
will not take the time to learn what is good and what is not.
Understanding this law is not a small task. Many organizations have
attempted to break it down for us, but it is still confusing. Most
attempts to calm the chaos using a chronological approach. The bill
begins to change our lives slowly and, as time passes, it becomes
more aggressive spanning from 2010 to 2020 and beyond. As I read it,
I was struck by the proliferation of terms most of us would not
understand. So, I am beginning to break it down myself and hope that
my efforts will help others to know what is in our future with this
Health Care Reform Act that is now the law.
I make no claim to a comprehensive review of the new law. The chart below is an effort to paint a clearer picture of how your life and the lives of our seniors, our children and grandchildren will change. This picture does not take into consideration the cost of these changes, and make no mistake; the cost will affect each of us in more ways than one (taxes and higher cost and more time consumed seeking medical support).
The Good
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The Bad
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The Ugly
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2 year
tax credit for new chronic disease therapy investment
(started 2009)
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Medicare
cuts to hospitals and inpatient and rehabilitation
facilities (2009-2010)
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Premium
increases (2010)
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Increase
brand name pharmaceutical Medicaid rebate from 15.1% to
23.1% (2010)
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Medicare Advantage cuts begin (2011)
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Medicare cuts to inpatient psych hospitals (7/1/10)
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Medicare
payments increase
to physicians in
rural areas
(2010)
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Impose new annual tax on brand name pharmaceutical companies
(2011)
This will be passed to the consumer.
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Medicare cuts to home health begin
(2011)
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Tax credits provided to certain small employers for health
care-related expenses
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Brand name drug companies begin providing 50% discount in
the Part D “donut hole” – This may look good, but who will
pay? (2011)
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Medicare reimbursement cuts when seniors use diagnostic
imaging like MRIs, CT scans, etc.
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The Good
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The Bad
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The Ugly
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Prohibits lifetime and annual benefit spending limits (plan
years beginning 9/23/10)
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Increase Medicare wage tax by 0.9% and impose a new 3.8% tax
on unearned , non-active business income for those earning
over $200k/$250k (not indexed to inflation) (2013)
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Medicare cuts begin to ambulance services, ASCs, diagnostic
labs, and durable medical equipment
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Prohibits non-group plans from canceling coverage
(rescissions) (plan years beginning 9/23/10)
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Medicare to reduce spending by using an HMO-like coordinated
care model (Accountable Care Organizations) (2012)
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Americans begin paying premiums for federal long-term care
insurance (CLASS Act) (2011)
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Requires plans to cover, at no charge, most preventive care
(plan years beginning 9/23/10)
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New tax on all private health insurance policies to pay for
comp. eff. research (plan years beginning FY12)
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Seniors prohibited from purchasing power wheelchairs unless
they first rent for 13 months
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Allows dependents to stay on parents policies through age 26
(plan years beginning 9/23/10)
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Generally increases (7.5% to 10%) threshold at which medical
expenses, as a % of income, can be deductible (2013)
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Employers required to report value of health benefits on W-2
(Precursor to taxing this program) (2011)
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Provides limited
protections to children with pre-existing conditions
(plan years beginning 9/23/10)
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New Medicare cuts to long-term care hospitals begin (7/1/11)
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Steps towards health insurance administrative simplification
(reduced paperwork, etc) begins (5-year process) (2011)
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Additional Medicare cuts to hospitals and cuts to nursing
homes and inpatient rehab facilities begin (FY12)
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Additional funding for community health centers (5 years)
(2011)
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New tax on all private health insurance policies to pay for
comp. eff. research (plan years beginning FY12)
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Seniors who hit Part D “donut hole "in 2010 receive $250
check (3/15/11) – This is more than they get now, but their
out of pocket expense in the donut hole is approximately
$4,700.
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Additional Medicare cuts to hospitals and cuts to nursing
homes and inpatient rehab facilities begin (FY12)
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Part D “donut hole” reduction begins, reaching a 25%
reduction by 2020
- (2013)
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Medicare cuts to dialysis treatment begins –
This constitutes
cuts to life-sustaining treatment. (2012)
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Insurers cannot impose any coverage restrictions on
pre-existing conditions
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New Medicare cuts to inpatient psych hospitals (7/1/12)
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Medicare cuts to hospice begin (2013)
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Impose 2.3% excise tax on medical devices (2013)
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Medicare cuts to hospitals who treat low-income seniors
begin (2013)
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Part D “donut hole” reduction begins, reaching a
25% reduction by
2020
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More Medicare cuts to home health care (2014)
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Medicare payment cuts for hospital-acquired infections
(2014)
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Tax imposed on nearly all private health insurance plans
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Reference:
Timeline of Major Provisions of the Health Care Package –Compiled by
Theresa Komoski. (A compilation from
reports on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – HR 3590
Reconciliation Bill – 2010)
"For more information click the Healthcare link on this page."