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Newsroom -
Healthcare Reform
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 The newest wrinkle in healthcare reform comes from the Senate. There has been much speculation on the possibility of an employer mandate, which would require that businesses of a certain size offer a health insurance plan to their employees--considered by some as a surefire way to get more Americans insured. However, anonymous Senate officials have told the Associated Press that such a mandate won't be included in the final Senate bill. Health insurers were counting on such a requirement, in addition to a similar one for individuals, to gain more business. Still, this doesn't mean that private companies can can feel free to avoid offering more affordable group health insurance to their employees.
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Newsroom -
Healthcare Reform
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The healthcare reform bills passed by committees in the House of Representatives and the Senate have significant differences. These variations will have to be hammered out before a final bill is presented to both chambers in Congress. In general, the House's bill is more comprehensive and allows for greater public involvement in providing Americans with health insurance. Interest groups are vying for benefits in the bill, which will no doubt see budget cuts before it comes up for a general vote. Unfortunately, older Americans appear to suffer in both bills, due to proposed insurance regulations that will allow insurance companies to charge higher rates based on age. Many baby boomers are in this precarious age group: too young for Medicare, disproportionately suffering from layoffs in this terrible economy (therefore losing their employer's insurance), and often having pre-existing conditions that may prevent them from buying individual health insurance at all. Still, which version of healthcare reform passes will be of great consequence to older individuals.
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Newsroom -
Healthcare Reform
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The possibility of a government-supported public option for health insurance is closer than ever, though not without controversy. President Obama has endorsed it, but the majority of Democratic politicians have shied away from supporting it. Republicans have expressed their opposition, warning that a system similar to that of Canada and Western Europe would lead to rationed and lower-quality health care. These worries have received lots of attention in the press; however, it appears that a majority of Americans in a CBS News poll (62%) favor a government health insurance plan akin to Medicare, which often cooperates with private insurance companies. Healthcare reform opponents have seen some success in convincing others of their view; there was 10% higher support for such a plan in June, before the famously town hall meetings which presented congresspersons on recess with passionate opponents of the public option. Those on Medicare have generally positive views of the program, though there are complaints of governmental bureaucracy and inefficiency, as well as insufficient payments to doctors. When the reference to Medicare is removed, a lower but still surprisingly high percentage of people, 53 percent, expressed support for the government offering a health insurance plan.
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Newsroom -
Healthcare Reform
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Most people have a suspicion that a significant portion of healthcare costs in America are wasted. Now, a new report from Thomson Reuters has proven them right. Almost one-third of medical expenditures each year, up to $850 million, is wasted on things such as unnecessary care, disorganized paperwork, and fraud. Reducing these costs would have a significant impact on the cost of health insurance. There are fewer primary care physicians who must fill out more paperwork and hire more clerical help; this is in contrast to most other industrialized nations. The report found several ways to reduce wasteful spending on healthcare:
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