Donald asks…
Does health care reform influence the insurance market?
And more specifically, how does it affect premiums and how health care is distributed, and the way people purchase it?
I’ve been reading into how the free rider aspect can negatively influence the cost of health insurance and what that cost means to taxpayers. But does the health reform bill change how people choose to purchase insurance, such as what type? Will people purchase more short-term insurance for instance, over long-term insurance simply to fulfill the mandates?
And how does this change competition between providers? Are providers harmed?
Websites with information would be helpful. Thank you.
Medicare Insurance AZ staff answers:
Absolutely it does. Just look at the current result of the health reform act – you can no longer buy a child only health insurance policy, and maternity benefit options are rapidly drying up for individual policies. They’ll be gone before 2014, due to the “preexisting condition” exclusion not being allowed.
Prices are skyrocketing. Already, the cap has been lifted on lifetime coverage limits for children, and preexisting conditions can no longer be excluded for them. Estimates for coverage price increases come January 1st, are 25% to 40% across the board. This is to cover the extra costs, associated with elimintating caps on very sick children, and mandating coverage for preexisting conditions for them.
The result will naturally be, fewer people will be able to afford to buy health insurance coverage. Yep, we’ll have FEWER insured people. Also, the people good at math, will realize it’s cheaper to pay $700 fine, once a year, and only buy coverage when they have to file a big claim, than it will be to pay $500 every month, and ALWAYS have insurance in place. That “adverse selection” issue will have to result in the insurance companies coming up with a method to incentivize healthy people to buy health insurance, to offset the unhealthy people.
I think people aren’t going to bother to comply wtih the mandates. It’s cheaper not to. Just like welfare payments pay more, to women with children who are not married, giving them incentives to have children outside of marriage – this system encourages people financially to NOT buy insurance.
Ruth asks…
Do we need a public option for catastrophic or for long-term high-cost treatment?
For costs that the normal working family cannot afford?
I’ll pay for the asprin out-of-pocket with no insurance middle-man.
Let govt health-care pay for the chemo or the transplant — the really big-ticket items.
Let govt health-care pay for expensive meds for long-term illnesses
That way the govt will not be nickel and dimed on small items
Medicare Insurance AZ staff answers:
That’s not a bad solution. We could actually just have a government subsidy on catastrophic care insurance. It wouldn’t cost that much to pay premiums an stuff you hardly ever use. If you check out H.R. 3400, the republican health care bill, that’s pretty much how it works. Each individual gets a $2000 tax credit to pay insurance premiums. You can spend more if you want, but that would be enough for catastrophic coverage. Then you pick your insurance company and the government forwards your payment to them. For all the day to day stuff, its cheaper to just pay for it yourself. The only thing to worry about is companies dropping your coverage, but consumer protection is included in the bill.
Jenny asks…
How many of those who are supporting Obama’s health care bill ?
How many of those who are supporting Obama’s health care bill requiring everyone to purchase health care insurance in order to cover their health care costs are willing to purchase or have purchased long term care insurance in order to cover their long term health care costs which are not paid for by any health insurance ?
How many of those supporting Obama’s health care bill requiring everyone to purchase health care insurance would also support a bill requiring everyone to purchase long term care insurance ?
Blue – You are completely wrong. Health Insurance does NOT pay for ANY long term care beyond 90 days.
Long term care costs are already dwarfing health care costs .
In NY people are in Nursing Homes where long term care costs over $ 12,000 per months every month 12 months a year.
Medicare Insurance AZ staff answers:
I don’t support any of it, although I am a HUGE advocate of LTC insurance.
Perhaps those who will benefit from the benefits that Medicaid provides for nursing homes who DO NOT own a home should have to pay more toward that end, but homeowners (who must sell out in order to receive Medicaid LTC benefits) shouldn’t have to pay extra. They have paid with their livelihood, in the form of a house.
Steven asks…
Why does Senator McCain “stand up for seniors” when there are Medicare cuts for private insurance companies?
which doesn’t add much but a gym benefit, but does not want seniors to be able to buy into long term care through the government? The fact that nursing homes and assisted living facilities cost from $2,000-$5,000 a month and up. Why is it that McCain sides with long term care insurance companies in this instance? If he so protective of seniors? This would be great and it would not take their whole life savings just to be put on welfare in the end. McCain is all for the insurance companies. Why are people so naive?
Medicare Insurance AZ staff answers:
If he were president, he would have cut about a trillion from medicare.
That’s what he said during the campaign.
Charles asks…
Having a problem finding the unique angle in this article. Plz Help!?
Newsweek Homepage
Newsweek’s Education SiteInside Legacy AdmissionsCute, Cuddly, and Contagious MSNBC Homepage
Newsweek Logo
Stories Topics Authors Search
Close Search Cost of Long-Term Care Rises
■6 Alternative Investments
■Your Credit Card is Making You Fat
■Do You Need This Insurance?
■15 Highest-Paid Charity CEOs
■8 Tales of Corporate Comebacks
The costs of nursing homes and other assisted-living facilities continue to rise significantly, according to the Market Survey of Long-Term Care Costs conducted by insurance provider MetLife.
Private-room nursing-home rates rose 4.6% in 2010, increasing to an average of $229 per day or $83,585 per year, while assisted living rose 5.2% on average to $3,293 per month, or $39,516 per year. These come on the back of a 3.3% increase in price for both nursing home and assisted-living facilities from 2008 to 2009.
“The cost of care in nursing homes and assisted living has been and continues to be high, and in the past year, the increases have even outpaced medical-care inflation of about 3 percent,” Sandra Timmermann, director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute, said in a press release. “As the population ages, there are more and more people among us who will need long-term care.”
One piece of good news is that costs for home health aides and adult day services were unchanged in the past year. Home health aide costs remain at an average price of $21 per hour, while adult day services costs are still $67 per day.
The need for a cost-effective alternative to full-time care has helped the adult day services industry grow during the past few years, too. According to the survey, there are more than 4,600 adult day service centers nationwide, a 35 percent increase since 2002. During that same period, those served by these centers have increased by more than 100,000.
By comparison, nearly 1 million people live in approximately 39,500 full-time assisted-living residences in the U.S., according to current estimates from the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging. The average age of an assisted- living resident is 86.9 years old, and the median length of stay in assisted living is 29.3 months.
“While families continue to provide the lion’s share of care, paid care is commonly part of the equation and the costs can derail even the best financial plan,” Timmermann said. “There is very good reason for individuals and families to look into savings plans, annuities, and long-term care insurance to hedge the possibilities.”
MetLife’s Mature Market Institute has conducted surveys since 2002 with annual updates. This year’s survey was conducted by telephone between May and August 2010, by LifePlans, Inc., for the MetLife Mature Market Institute. Costs were calculated for each service provider in an area and aggregated across all providers to compute statewide averages.
The survey found that Alaska was the state with the highest average daily rates for nursing homes, where prices per day were $687 for a private room and $610 for a semi-private room. Costs were lowest in Louisiana with an average of $138 per day for a private room.
The Washington, D.C., area had the highest average monthly base rate for assisted-living facilities with prices per month of $5,231. Arkansas had the lowest average monthly rate of $2,073. You can find a full breakdown of costs by state in the report.
Medicare Insurance AZ staff answers:
Not sure if there is really a unique angle… This has been done before.
One thing to note is that the survey is paid for by an insurance company, and right in the article the person from that company uses it to make a plug for the type of product they sell. So it’s not quite unbiased.
Powered by Yahoo! Answers