Dear Supporter,
Now, we are mobilizing in our congress members' home districts and we need everyone reading this e-mail to help see this legislation through. Grassroots pressures will make or break this historic opportunity.
To help you take part, let us bring you up-to-the-minute…
In the Senate there are two committees that have jurisdiction over health care. The HELP Committee (Health, Education, Labor & Pensions) completed work on its bill in mid-July but is waiting for the Finance Committee to complete its bill before the final HELP bill, including all amendments, is made public. Despite weeks of near-daily bipartisan negotiations by six Senators on the Finance Committee, Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Finance Committee Chairman, announced Thursday that his committee would be unable to complete work on a bill before the August recess.
Click here to read a summary of the HELP bill (as of July 15th - NOT the final version but the latest publicly released version) http://npalliance.org/images/uploads/HELP_bill_press_release_and_summary.pdf
In the House there are three committees that have jurisdiction over health care. As of Friday evening, all three of the committees have voted some version of HR 3200 out of committee. Each committee has passed different amendments to the bill.
-Increased regulation of insurance companies to include: accepting all applicants, regardless of medical history; prohibit charging a higher premium because of medical history or current illness.
-Require nearly all Americans to have health insurance.
-Provide federal subsidies to make insurance affordable.
-Expand Medicaid eligibility to 133% of FPL.
-Require most employers to provide insurance to their employees or contribute to the cost of coverage. There is disagreement on the total payroll threshold at which this requirement would begin ranging from $250,000 to $500,000.
-Creation of health insurance exchanges where people can shop for insurance and compare policies.
-Reduce the rate of growth of payments to hospitals and many other health care providers.
-Eliminates the Sustainable Growth Rate (http://www.cms.hhs.gov/sustainablegratesconfact/downloads/sgr2008f.pdf) formula for determining physician Medicare reimbursement.
-Shift toward paying for value, rather than volume of services.
-Eliminate co-payments for many preventive services.
-Democrats agree that the federal government should create some plan that would compete with private health insurers but there is some disagreement as to the form that plan should take: a public health insurance plan or a nonprofit cooperative.
There is not widespread agreement on how to pay for the reform package. The HR 3200 would create a tax on higher income earners. Others have suggested a tax on fatty foods.
Some interesting amendments have been offered to the House Bill:
-Delink Medicare payment rates from rates offered in the new public plan. Require negotiation with providers.
-Require private health insurance companies to obtain government approval to increase premium rates at a rate greater than medical inflation.
-Authorize the HHS Secretary to negotiate prescription drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries.
-Savings from reform would stay in the system to help lower the costs of insurance for lower income individuals and families.
August is going to be a critical month to get involved and let your Members of Congress know how you feel about the urgent need for health care reform. When Congress returns after Labor Day, the House will have a floor vote on HR 3200. The Senate will have to combine into one bill the HELP Committee bill and whatever comes out of the Finance Committee, then vote on that bill. Finally, the House bill and Senate bill will be combined into one bill in a reconciliation conference and that bill will undergo a yes/no (no amendments) vote in both the Senate and House.
During August, we want to publicize stories about our patients who are seeing their care delayed or denied, or find care unaffordable in our current system. To submit a story click here.
Thanks for doing all you can to guarantee quality, affordable health care to all!
Valerie Arkoosh, MD, MPH
Chair, NPA Secure Health Care for All