Health Insurance 101

The health insurance industry through its leaders, have begun to do studies and formulate ways by which individuals can easily obtain health insurance. Everybody knows that the current financial crunch in the US has people scrambling for all they can with their meager incomes. The problem, even middle class citizens cannot afford health insurance which makes it more difficult for them due to excessively high health costs. Without health insurance, many people are helpless against the ravages of disease and illnesses. The industry itself has initiated a move to make it easier, cheaper and even give access for those who have pre-existing conditions that used to have been denied coverage altogether.

There is a common belief that couples who have one member staying at home contributes only to the working side of the family without any bearing on the financial status of the family as a whole, wrong. The rising costs of health care and other basic necessities is enough o warrant the acknowledgement of stay-at-home spouses for they do influence the standing of the family financially by having to forego with daycare. Daycare for kids is a very costly investment and staying at home does indeed save a lot in your family’s financial obligations. This gives credence that the home is still the best place to start saving money which many must see and accept.

The problem started when hospitals became big business, coupled with tie-up’s with more and more drug firms who give finances and equipment for research and development of new products, hospitals have become a very expensive business indeed. When the economy went on the rocks, these high-tech hospitals and all their expensive equipment had to do something or risk losing their edge over the next-door hospital so they raised prices. Prices that were so high, only a few could afford them. Even Medicaid was now being denied access to some of the most advanced and effective treatment centers in the whole US. They don’t support them due to the very expensive prices they charge so people seeking specialist care are left to pay out of their own pockets without insurance coverage.

There has been talk of an online program that would list the services and prices of the different hospitals nationwide for better competition in the area of pricing but many experts question the benefit if there will be any for such a move. The medical industry has indeed benefited a lot from the many technological that have revolutionized their ability to give and administer care, online consultations, diagnosis and even treatment have all been made possible by technology and the internet. To make pricing and services listings possible would only complicate matters worse and prevent the proper development of patient hospital/doctor relationships such as with local communities an their local hospitals and staff. This allows better care for people get to know better their doctors. Posting them online would not only get them hunting for the best bargains but have them go to cheaper places out of state which could severely affect local businesses with lower patient numbers forcing them out of business further creating a void in the health care system that is already in disarray.

There have been rising incidents of cases wherein people who seek medical treatment from hospitals end up with more than they bargained for in terms of aggravating the condition they had when they first entered. The culprit, humans for it seems that anything that has a human being making decisions there are prone to be mistakes and in an industry that is as critical as health that can mean the difference between life and death. Mistakes in these medical facilities do happen but are seldom publicized due to their detrimental effect on the trust of patrons. People getting the wrong medicine, being given wrong doses, misdiagnosis of illnesses and many more very alarming incidents are on the rise for as more people want to spend more time at work in a field that is competitive as the medical industry to earn more, the more sleep they lose and thus they become prone to making errors. Studies show that the more sleep deficit you build up, you become more temperamental and emotions get in the way of rational thinking.

President Barack Obama’s new heathcare plan, which aims to create a $634 billion reserve fund that will expand the State’s healthcare services to include those who have recently lost their jobs (and by association, their healthcare benefits) is projected to run into some troubles in it’s early stages, and only time will tell whether this humongous amount of money will do America good in the long run.

However, this is at least positive in the sense that the administration is indeed taking up concrete steps to address the growing number of Americans who do not have healthcare. And it is only expected that any plan, regardless of who it comes from, will have it’s share of birth pains and trials. But as long as the State is capable of making the necessary adjustments to its plans, then we may see more and more people getting access to healthcare benefits.

Many Americans are going to be getting help with respect to health insurance form the state and federal government in a move to lessen the gap of uncovered individuals. As per last estimates, millions of people (children and adults alike) are having to go day by day without health insurance which is complicated more by the influx of jobless people. Jobs are being shed like over-ripe apples from a tree during harvest that the government has its hands full just trying to cope. Many state sponsored drives have been almost unfelt due to lack of funds and the federal government has yet to react or release funds pending the taking oath of President Elect Obama.
Obama has made health care a primary battle cry during his campaign and with good reason, more and more people are losing jobs each day. Along with their job loss, goes their health care benefits and employer sponsored insurance contributions which they cannot pay for on their own. Many families are now opting to go to two-salary set-up with both parents working just to keep the family fed and housed. Many are pinning their hope on the incoming government for a lot of help in terms of their health care needs and that of their children.

The US health care system has fallen in disarray with many not having any at all as a result of the faltering economy. Criticized for years, the past administration even took out some of the funding from the system further cutting off the ability of more people from getting the care they so need. The newly elected president has made health care one of his priorities for as the economy goes down, many more are slated to lose their access to comparable health care.
Some 40 Million children both residents and non-residents have already benefited from new legislation that prioritizes the need of children to have access to better health care. Studies into further changes are underway as the new government takes the challenge of improving health care to that comparable with private care.

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There are three kinds of sickness fund in Germany’s health insurance system. The first is primary funds. Some workers are obliged to be members of the primary funds if they earn below the income ceiling which is EUR 3,937.50 per month or EUR 47,250 per year. Those earning above that range have the option to be voluntary members or they may have other alternatives.There are a number of them who automatically become members because of the nature of their work (company-based funds) or place of residence (local sickness funds). The second is special funds which is for farmers and sailors. The third is substitute funds which gives health insurance to both the blue and white collar workforce earning more than the income ceiling. Membership here is on a voluntary basis.Here, both employers and employees share half of a member’s premium. The amount of premiums are dictated by a member’s earnings rather then the percentage of risk and have no bearing on the member’s civil status, size of family or state of health. Amount of premiums are the same for members belonging to the same kind of fund and income bracket.

For those who are still confused about the different health insurance proposals put forth by the two presidential candidates, NEWSWEEK’s Mary Carmichael has written a comprehensive article, consulting with Katherine Swartz, a professor of health policy and economics at Harvard. Here are their summaries and conclusions:

McCain’s plan: to take away the tax break workers get on health insurance at their jobs, and give people who buy their own insurance $2,500 ($5,000 for families) in tax credits.
Their prediction: Low-income people would have a hard time getting affordable insurance on their own. In the long run, employers would probably stop offering health insurance, and more people would end up uninsured than there are now.

Obama’s plan: An insurance exchange that looks like the Health Connector used in Massachussets. Every plan would have a minimum set of benefits, and you would get a subsidy if your income is below the threshold.
Their prediction: The total cost will be more than the estimate. His requiring insurers to cover pre-existing conditions would probably raise premiums. Although children and more people would be covered than there is now, some adults will continue to be uninsured.