Health Care Reform

Introduction

The health care system in the U.S. has been greatly shaped and affected by Medicaid and Medicare reforms of 1965. Since then, health care expenditures have risen dramatically and have grown faster than the economy. There are federal regulations that pose minimum requirements for healthcare insurance in each state and they are required to abide by it while these standards may be improved based on the requirements of the residents.

The recent reform of health systems in the United States approved in March 2010 marks a watershed in the area of health care services to a segment of the population without health insurance, estimated at 32 million people by 2019 and regulating the health insurance industry to prevent restrictive practices in the provision of insurance policies (Woolhandler, 769). In 2014 companies with more than 50 workers will be required to provide health insurance to their employees or pay a penalty. In 2010, small businesses will receive tax credits on the purchase of health insurance for their employees.

Discussion and Analysis

In 2010, insurance companies are prohibited establish maximum economic coverage policies; deny insurance to children with pre-existing conditions or cancel the insurance when a person gets sick. From 2011 insurance companies must spend at least 80% of their income on health care plans offered to individuals and small groups, and 85% for large group plans. Moreover, the reform established in 2014 bans insurance companies from denying insurance to people with pre-existing medical problems or charging for that reason, or because they are women (Hogg, 20).

Right now, it's projected that premiums for families with health insurance -- not people without health insurance, but with health insurance -- will almost certainly double over the next decade, just as they doubled over the past decade.” — President Obama

In order to cover high-risk individuals who are not insured, have created special group insurance to cover them until 2014, when it will take effect the bulk of the reforms. Some reform provisions provide that the cost of insurance premiums cheaper should not exceed 8% of the individual or family income limit and regulate pocket expenses that the insured must pay. This reform also benefit from the 32 million uninsured, at 16 million low-income Americans who will be covered by the public program Medicaid. Among uninsured individuals include about 18 million young people -30% of the total, which will be covered by their parents' policies.

According to a study from Cambridge Hospital, Harvard Law Schooland Ohio University, 62% of all 2007 personal bankruptcies in the United States "were driven by medical incidents, with [75% having had] health insurance."

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this will reduce the federal deficit by 138 billion dollars in the period, and $ 1.3 trillion over the next decade. From 2014-2019 the new legislation will devote 350 billion dollars to pay subsidies to 24 million people, or reduced income buy their insurance independently. Moreover, this legislation will extend the Medicare trust funds for eldercare, for another 9 years, since it was ...