Health care reform is the hot topic right now as the Obama Administration has begun an aggressive push toward reform. In an effort to keep you informed on the simple, straightforward facts, this initial post on health care pulls key points from President Obama’s speech and condenses the information for a quick, unbiased overview of the intentions of Obama’s Health Care Plan.
This is intended to be a discussion, so please also leave your comments and any links to additional information that you feel will benefit all readers in the pursuit of fully understanding the issues at hand.
President Obama’s Speech on Health Care
During President Obama’s speech he outlined the specifics of the health care plan. He addressed some of the controversies surrounding the plan and below are the main points. Again, this is an unbiased post where we are simply bullet-pointing portions of the speech for quick reference for those that are interested.
Diversity in the Types of Health Care Options Available
President Obama’s health care plan does not automatically lump everyone into the same health care plan. Rather, there are allowances for those that already have insurance and those that do not.
For those that have insurance they will be allowed to keep the insurance that they are either paying for out-of-pocket, or their employer is providing for them. However, with the reform, they will have more stability and security as the plan will ensure that the insurance will work better for them. It will do this in the following ways:
- Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions.
- Insurance companies can no longer refuse or drop coverage when you need it.
- There will be a cap placed on out-of-pocket expenses.
- Insurance companies will be required to cover routine checkups and preventative care with no additional charge.
For those that do not have health insurance the second part of Obama’s health care plan will offer financially affordable options for health insurance coverage. It will do so in the following ways:
- Creation of a new insurance exchange. The exchange is “a marketplace where individuals and small businesses will be able to shop for health insurance at competitive prices.”
- Tax credits will be available to individuals and small businesses that are still not able to afford health insurance at the exchange.
Other Key Points of the Plan
- The plan won’t go into effect for 4 years.
- For those that can’t get insurance in the interim, due to pre-existing conditions, there will be an immediate solution for low-cost coverage for those people.
- Every individual will be required to carry basic health insurance and businesses will be required to offer health care or financial assistance toward health care for all their employees. This is to make sure that the plan will in fact pay for itself in the long-run. There will be a hardship waiver that will be offered when appropriate.
- Medicare and Medicaid benefits will not be taken away.
- There will be a significant increase in accountability for insurance companies.
Fiscal Deficit
Health care represents 1/6 of the economy and reforming health care will also aid in lowering the national deficit. The administration asserts that the savings that they’ll be able to find through the reforms of the plan will in fact pay for itself.
Closing Thoughts
This post is intended to simply summarize the main points of Obama’s health care plan and the President’s speech on health care reform with absolutely no bias attached. There are obviously controversial opinions on this topic, as there was even a member of the audience during the speech that yelled out “Liar!” Our intention with this post is to offer you a quick reference point to what the plan is so you have a foundation to build on as you are deciding your opinion on this issue.
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Source: Obama’s Health Care Plan
Photo Credit: ListOwn.com
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