The Truth of Obama Care

Obama care 1 The Truth of â€Å"Obama Care† American National Government/ POL201 Nicole Emery Instructor: David Williams Obama Care 2The Truth of â€Å"Obama care† Obama Care is the unofficial name for The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which was signed into law on March 23, 2010. In a more general sense Obama Care and the Health Care for America Plan or any such name is a reference to the ongoing health care reform under President Obama. (http://obamacarefacts. com/whatis-obamacare. php) The ACA is landmark legislation designed to increase access to health care coverage for millions of Americans. Wizemann,2011) This legislation represents one of the largest and most comprehensive reforms to the American health care system since the enactment of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. The ACA seeks to extend coverage to roughly 50 million uninsured Americans, slowing down the growth in the cost of health care, and improving the quality of care health care by chan ging the delivery system. ( Some people who oppose the Act are concerned that it gives the Federal government too much control over personal health care decisions and benefits, forcing a complex one-size-fits-all health system onto the states.Some people who are in favor of the Act want lower health care costs overall by making it affordable for more people. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 significantly changed health care in the U. S. , making insurance available to 32 million more Americans — a total of 95% of the legal population. The Act, is being phased in over four years. By 2014, every citizen will be required to have health insurance, or face a penalty. However, they can choose how to get coverage.If they already have a plan, either through their employers, Medicaid, Medicare, or privately, they can keep it. Those who can't currently get health insurance will have additional options. They can purchase it from a state-based health insurance excha nge (and possibly get subsidy) or they may be eligible under expanded Medicare guidelines. Obama Care 3 The program is originally designed to add to the federal budget $930 billion dollars.The act was designed to offset the budget by lowering payments to hospitals, Increasing Medicare taxes on higher income households, assessing penalties on employers who don't offer, and individuals who don't take, health care insurance, assessing taxes on various health related activities, and reducing overhead by consolidating the higher education loan program with the Pell Grant program. Although there has been tremendous opposition before; during and after its becoming law, the Supreme Court ruled it was constitutional that all U.S. citizens must purchase health care insurance from a private carrier, or pay a penalty, is for the right for congress to impose a tax. Even with our house of representatives trying numerous times to repeal the law and still keeps getting over ruled. The opposition h as been so great that many Americans think the law has already been repealed. I am sure you are asking yourself what does this mean, when does this come to affect and how does this affect you? Here are the changes that happened in 2010.Medicare beneficiaries who fell into the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug â€Å"donut hole† received a $250 rebate. They received a 50% discount on brand name drugs in 2011 and the doughnut hole are eliminated in 2020. Children were allowed to stay on their parents' health insurance until they turn 26. New private plans were required to cover preventive services with no co-payments, and they are exempt from deductibles. Consumers who applied to new plans have access to an external appeals process if coverage is denied. Insurance ompanies were prohibited from dropping coverage if someone got really sick. They couldn't create lifetime coverage limits. They could no longer deny coverage to children with pre-existing conditions. The same will appl y to adults in 2014. Until then, adults with pre-existing conditions who have been denied coverage will get access to temporary health insurance coverage until the exchanges is set up. These are the changes that happened in 2011Medicare-covered preventative services were Obama Care 4 xempted from deductibles and the co-pay was eliminated. Insurance companies must prove they spent at least 80% of the premium payments on medical services, rather than on things like advertising and executive salaries. Those that didn't were required to provide rebates to policyholders. States were funded to require health insurance companies to submit justification for all rate hikes. Funds were expanded to increase the number of doctors and nurses, and more community health centers — enough to double the number of patients they can treat in the next five years.These are future changes to look forward to. Medical expenses must be at least 10% of income before they are deductible for those under 65. Manufacturers and importers of medical devices will pay a 2. 3% excise tax. Federal funds will increase to allow Medicaid to offer free preventive services, and to extend CHIP for an additional two years. The Federal government will fund states to pay primary care physicians 100% of the Medicare fee. Medicare will start a pilot program to encourage hospitals to bundle services before submitting for payment.Additional taxes will be paid by the 1 million people who make more than $200,000 and the 4 million couples filing jointly who make more than $250,000. Specifically, they would pay 3. 8% Medicare taxes on dividends, capital gains, rent and royalties and 2. 35% (up from 1. 45%) Medicare taxes on income. In 2014, the state-run health exchanges will be set up. Medicaid eligibility will be expanded to include those with incomes up to 133% of the Federal poverty line ($29,000 for a family of four). New subsidies will become available for with incomes up to 400% of the poverty leve l ($88,000 for a family of four).Those who don't purchase insurance will be assessed penalties: 2014 – The greater of $95 or 1% of income. 2015 – $325 or 2% of income. 2016 – $695 or 2. 5% of income. Businesses with 50+ workers must pay $2,000 per worker (except for the first 20) if they don’t offer health insurance. Those that do receive a tax credit of 50% of the premium cost. (Donmoyer, 2012 ) Obama Care 5 References: Wizemann, Theresa.Health Literacy Implications for Health Care Reform: Workshop Summary. Washington, DC, USA: National Academies Press, 2011. p 5. http://site. ebrary. com/lib/ashford/Doc? id=10488622;ppg=19 Copyright  © 2011. National Academies Press. All rights reserved. http://obamacarefacts. com/whatis-obamacare. php The Affordable Care Act Turns Two,Lee Goldberg, Sabiha Zainulbhai, http://www. nasi. org/discuss/2012/03/affordable-care-act-turns-two? gclid=CLOuyv-9vrICFURxQgod3TwALA March 2012 HealthReform. gov, Ryan Donmoyer, â₠¬Å"New Health Care Taxes,† Bloomberg, March 22, 2010) Article