When I began writing this blog I knew exactly how I felt about health care reform; simply nothing should have been done and the issue should have been left alone. i was a firm believer in the fact that the American health insurance field was perfectly fine, adequate resources were available to all and there should be no money spent on reforming health care. What I began to find however was the complete opposite of my own theory. America was the number one spender in the world on health care, boasting the most expensive system in the world per capita. What I did not realize is that nearly 47 million Americans, 8 million which are children, do not have health insurance. I figured that most Americans had health insurance. I also started to find that the polarized sides on the issue were mainly divided along the lines of the monetary value of the bill. What many uneducated Americans did not realize about the bill was that both sides, republican and democrat, wanted the age under which children can stay with their parents insurance was the age of 26. The amount of time I spent writing this blog allowed me to realize that there are usually always going to be two sides to every issue, sometimes with overlap. I also learned that my opinions about a subject can change with added research. I started to accept both sides of the issue and blog with less republican bias; I felt health insurance was more of a humane issue than any political issue. Socialist or Dictator, whatever you choose to call president Obama, he has a good point when it comes to health care reform. Through these common stigmas on Obama, I found very interesting websites that allowed me to develop counterarguments to further develop my opinion on health care reform. When I started this blog, I really only understood a very uneducated version of a “republican” side about health insurance reform. Simply stated, I did not believe health care reform should have been implemented. Through writing this blog I have realized that I must always take into account both sides of an issue and always educate me about the issue. This blog project has expanded my knowledge about a very controversial issue. Health Care Reform is essential (didn’t think I would say that a month ago?!).
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Implications Post
As of right now the American health insurance field has issues that many patients and Americans can attest to. Recent statistics have shown that nearly 47 million Americans are living without health insurance, 8.7 million are children. Working families are currently experiencing double-digit increases in the cost of their individual health insurance and are paying more for out-of-pocket costs due to doctor’s visits. These scary numbers are evidence that health care insurance reform is essential for all Americans.
The bill provides health insurance for all legal Americans while also providing adequate coverage under your parent’s insurance plan until the age of 26, an appeal to many college aged Americans. Though the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the health care reform bill will cost over $940 billion, it will cut the current economic deficit by $130 billion over the next ten years. Many Americans however have found that universal health insurance in France and Great Britain show economic difficulties as well as detriments on the coverage of certain prescription drugs. Great Britain has shown a mass increase in their own economic deficit and many citizens have reported dissatisfaction with their healthcare because of the period of time it takes to have an appointment with a doctor. However, Obama and his administration have made sure that time is of importance, making sure that Americans who need appointments receive them as soon as they can.
I understand that many Americans do not agree with universal health care, but if health insurance stays in its current state the patients of America will be harmed. Too many people do not receive health insurance and though some make the choice not to receive health insurance, their children cannot make that decision. The economic deficit will continue to grow, causing more Americans to lose jobs and thus lose their health insurance.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
My Classmates Blogs...
I found this blog interesting because of the amount of similarities that it held with my issue. Obama’s economic plan and health care plan directly affect one another. Think about it; if Obama decides to spend more money on the economy, there will hopefully be more people at work and possibly less uninsured people in America. The more the economy changes the more or less universal health care is needed. Through research on this blog and for health care I have come to the realization that health care today definitely needs changes. Through the implementation of the health care reform bill, more jobs will be created in the medical field and hopefully more Americans will be put to work. This revitalization of the economy has not come cheap, displayed throughout this blog. I enjoyed the comparisons made throughout the blog with president’s economic plans throughout history, especially Obamanamics Vs. Reaganomics.
Though this blog has nothing to do with my topic I found it interesting because I have always had an opinion about illegal immigration but never fully understood why. This blog made it clear that immigration in America is a growing issue that nearly every politician tries to deal with in some way. Illegal immigrants will affect the way that health care reform will be implemented. Health care will be implemented through increases on taxes on a large portion of legal Americans. Because illegal immigrants do not actually pay taxes, they will receive benefits that are not right fully theirs. This blog just helped me develop my opinion further on illegal immigration and how Americans should be involved, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
This blog was just interesting to read. The recent events that presented the idea that a mosque might actually be built along the site of ground zero was shocking to me at first. But as I read this blog I began to realize the true facts about the mosque. It’s not actually just a mosque and it was actually not being built on the site of ground zero, but a few blocks away. This just goes back to prove that before anyone judges anything they need to actually learn about the subject they are arguing and have a full understanding of what is going on. This blog made that statement very clear to me. I found the articles interesting and the pertinence to current events was great.
Do you remember....that one lawsuit?
If you have been reading my blog on the “reg” then you should remember a lawsuit that I wrote about a few weeks ago between 20 states that claimed that the recent health care reform bill was unconstitutional. Well, the federal judge who ruled over the case gave the states an early victory last Thursday in rejecting Obama’s administration from throwing out the lawsuit. The US District Judge Roger Vinson, who ironically was appointed by Ronald Reagan, did not outright claim whether the bill was unconstitutional or not. The judge concluded that the issues were unclear and that further review of the bill would be required before he made an official decision on the lawsuit. The twenty states, which claim that the health-care legislation expands federal power beyond what it would be, have a case hearing set for December 16, 2010. Many followers of this case believe that the lawsuit is controversial enough that the US Supreme Court will pick the case up.
This lawsuit essentially brings up the idea that many Americans and even states still do not support the health care reform act. Should the bill still be put into place and implemented into society if so many Americans do not agree with what the bill is doing? I still believe that the question truly lies as to whether Americans are educated enough about the bill to make decisions as to whether it is constitutional or not. Sure the bill can be seen as an overextension of the national governments power which in a federalist society is unconstitutional. But I think Americans need to weigh the pros and cons of the bill, become more educated about the bill, and then argue the bill.
Monday, October 25, 2010
These Links are HELPFUL
This government sponsored website provides video references and “real-life” stories based on how health care reform affects the patients of America. The website also proved helpful because it provides a tool on “The Affordable Care Act: How it helps you”, which shows how the health care reform act increases health security and provides information on how it affects various ethnic, sexual, and age groups across the health care spectrum.
Though this website is a White House sponsored website and therefore shows a great deal of bias, it helped in writing my analysis post. Comparing the opinion of politicians such as President Obama who support the healthcare reform with politicians who did not was essential in the post. This site provided the opinion of the Democratic Party.
The Republican Party opinion was found in this website. As stated earlier, comparing the opinion of politicians who support health care reform with those who do not was essential for the analysis post in developing why health care reform provided polarized sides. This site displays the Republican Party opinion through factual evidence about what Republicans feel is morally justified for health care reform.
This website is essentially a blog that post links and articles that are based on health care reform. This website proved helpful not only because it was un-biased, but also because of the amount of background information through articles that the website provided.
Though this link was one of the shorter links used as evidence, it was a legitimate site that deals with health care across the state of North Carolina. The website gave situations as to how “buying health insurance” and “using health insurance” will change with the new health care reform bill. This site was helpful because of how involved Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) is at the current time.
Because I only used this website one time, it was essential in developing a theory about how unemployment rates and number of uninsured US residents may be directly related. The website was a factually driven analysis showing that as the percent of unemployed Americans increased, the number of uninsured Americans also increased.
This is the literal text of “America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009”. Having the actual text of the bill which I am blogging about proved to be helpful because I could reference back to this website when I had questions about other websites opinions or the bias that I tended to find.
This website showed how the costs of health care in America compared with other countries including Europe and Canada. Though this did help with the analysis post, it also proved helpful with other posts when trying to decipher why people thought health care reform was extremely expensive.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Think for YOURSELF
You may be surprised to hear that West Virginia is a contested state this upcoming mid-semester election season. Whether you believe it or not, Republican John Raese leads Democrat Joe Manchin in West Virginia’s rough Senate race. The race is being contested by the overall approval ratings of President Obama. Obama’s job approval in the state dropped two points, putting his job approval right at 27 percent. Many citizens, totaling nearly 65 percent, said that Obama’s policies had hurt the state’s economy. The most extreme policy that they felt affected this rate the most was the health care reform bill. However arguments were thrown around that the health care reform bill would not allow people to keep their current health insurance as well as providing inadequate care. This may be what the voters of West Virginia believe will happen but so far the bill proves both to be wrong. What annoys me is that American voters are casting their votes based on what other people are telling them. To become more informed on an issue and form your own beliefs about the issue, LOOK IT UP. Don’t let other people change the way you think about a certain topic. From my own experiences in talking to people and “educated” voters, no one really knows what this health care reform bill will actually do to their insurance in the future. Americans need to become more educated about an issue before they argue for or against it. Read this blog to learn more about health care in America and develop YOUR own opinion rather than letting other people mess with you.
Monday, October 18, 2010
My Theory on Health Care Reform
After drafting my analysis post I began to theorize about how the recent health care reform bill can be revised to include provisions for both sides of this recent issue; the republicans and democrats. The polarization has arisen because of the opposition republicans present in stating that they reject any notion of government-run universal health care because of the evidence seen around the world that government-run health care causes debt and inefficiencies. In order to diminish the polarization of these varying opinions, the two parties need to come together on provisions. Both agree that every citizen should be able to stay under their parent’s health care insurance until the age of 26. Also, both call for Americans to be able to stay under their current health insurance. Where they differ is in cleaning the health care market of some available health care plans. Americans should be allowed to keep their current health care insurance if they enjoy the benefits, however Americans who cannot afford current health care should be offered health care insurance from the government. In my opinion, republicans and democrats need to educate the American public about the bill and its provisions because many are uneducated; often arguing about a bill they know nothing about. Instead of arguing about what they disagree upon, the bill needs to be put into the perspective that the current health care system in America does not work; these reforms will improve the system.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Analyze this! A more in-depth analysis of Universal Health Care Reform
Recent debate in America over health care reform has sparked a curiosity in many Americans as to how and why so many people are concerned with the current health care system and what there is to improve upon. Recently, democrats have been dropping their support for the bill because many Americans remain uneducated about what the health care reform bill actually contains and often throw their opinions out against the bill. Because their un-inform opinions, polls have shown that Republicans will win a large amount of seats in the upcoming elections; resting fear in the Democratic party. Recent opinion polls have shown that only 41.3% of Americans favor the health care plan while 49.4% of Americans oppose the bill.
Currently medical recipients are concerned with the innumerable number of health insurers, the lack for quality of care when in hospitals or doctors’ offices, the amount of time patients wait for treatments, and the overall lack for patient safety. The American government and President Barack Obama in particular have taken charge in reforming the current flawed health care system of America. It is because of the citizens concern that the government has become involved. Recently the government passed HR 3200 or “America’s Affordable Health Choices Act” which has sparked debate among various political, ethnic, and economic groups.
The overall concept of government sponsored public welfare was synonymous with the increase of power given to states when they were regulated for unfair business practices. When the nationalist Theodore Roosevelt took power in the early twentieth century, he was quick to clinch to the ideal that the Federal Government should be a tool for progressive reform. During Roosevelt’s 1912 Presidential Campaign he joined with the Progressive party of America and formulated a political platform that included a provision that the American government would provide universal health insurance to all Americans. When in office however, Roosevelt abandoned all efforts for health care reform and it was not until the Social Security Act of 1935 was signed by Franklin Roosevelt that placed the Federal Government as a leader of public welfare that any ideas of health reform were mentioned. After World War II, President Harry S. Truman launched an effort that advocated combining social and political welfare in a plan he called the “Fair Deal”. He made universal health care coverage a part of his Democratic Party Platform which was kept quiet until President Lyndon B. Johnson adopted, with much opposition, Medicare and Medicaid. These insurance groups offered health coverage for both the poor and elderly. Though both President’s efforts were noteworthy, they both fell short of Roosevelt’s original goal for universal health coverage for every American. President Richard Nixon followed Johnson’s efforts by expanding the availability of the existing medical programs. The Nixon-Kennedy Healthcare plan of 1974 was on its way through Congress when the Watergate Scandal derailed all efforts to once again pass health care reform. No president since Nixon has tried to pass health care reform, though Clinton did propose a detailed plan to provide care for all Americans but was never fully developed. With the passage of this recent legislation, Obama has achieved a main domestic goal of his presidency. He has passed the most influential piece of social legislation since the passage of Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s with the Great Society initiatives.
Current proposals for reform have been outlined by President Obama and his supporters. However what the Obama administration seeks to improve upon is the delivery and implementation of the health reform. Over the past century Presidents were not successful in implementing health care reform efforts. The issue at hand is that over 32 million Americans and their children are uninsured. This rather large number includes unemployed Americans who cannot afford their own insurance, Americans who simply do not want insurance, or Americans who are employed that cannot afford their companies insurance. Health insurance agencies that do provide healthcare for Americans have issues as well. What Obama and his administration have sought out in doing is to create a new form of health care that will provide equal benefits for all Americans. The new health care reform bill, which included benefits that went into effect on September 23, 2010, comprises details that will allow young adults to stay on their parents insurance coverage until the age of 26, not deny patients due to pre-existing conditions, and will close the growing debt that Medicare has accumulated over the past century. The Affordable Health care for America act includes a public health insurance option that would be required to negotiate with providers. The bill also provides that every American citizen is required to have health insurance. The government legislation has offered different levels of coverage that health insurance companies are allowed to offer; a bronze plan which will cover 60 percent of full benefits, a silver plan which covers 70 percent of benefits, a gold plan which covers 80 percent of benefits, and a platinum plan which would cover 90 percent of health benefits at clinics, hospitals, and emergency situations. These different levels of coverage are where American citizens would be able to make decisions about how much they would like to pay for insurance. There would be a wide variety of income levels that could buy the government provided health insurance, but every level of insurance is affordable for everyone. Through the new bill, insurance cannot drop you no matter the previous medical conditions therefore no one can be denied insurance because of a pre-existing condition. Waiting time for procedures was also a large concern for the Obama administration. They found that many patients who needed urgent surgeries were put in the back of the line in order to allow for “fairness”. Because of this some patients became more ill and therefore the new bill calls for less waiting time not based on pre-existing medical conditions. The $940 billion bill which will be paid in over 10 years will also close the “donut hole” for Medicare receivers that will occur in 2020. The “donut hole” is a term to describe Medicare patients that have run out of benefits before they have died. If a patient under Medicare were to hit the “donut hole” before 2020, the government has promised to provide a $250 rebate to these citiznens. The Medicaid program also expands under the Health Care Reform bill to include 133% of the federal poverty level which was raised to $29,327. Abortion will not be covered by the health care bill due to the controversy from both political sides. Individuals will be required to pay out-of-pocket for abortion procedures if they do decide to go through the process of abortion. Obama’s bill will greatly affect various ethnic, social, and age groups across the nation; all beneficially. Before these groups were neglected because they were in the minority, a topic that Obama has focused on changing throughout his presidency .
As of right now, many Americans cannot afford health care insurance because it is either too expensive or is not provided by their employer. Based on research by the FDA, an estimated 18,000 American citizens died in 2002 because they were uninsured and could not receive medical treatment. The FDA and doctors across the nation agree that something needs to be done, but why would they even question this universal health care program? MONEY AND EFFICIENCY. Doctors are against universal health coverage because they see the financial burden that is put on other governments in Europe that do provide health insurance to every citizen. Many European nations have found themselves in incredible amounts of debt because they have spent a large sum of money to provide healthcare to every able-bodied citizen. However, a recent study has provided facts for how the health care bill would affect every district across the nation. In my own district, governed by Sue Myrick, 171,000 families and 17,700 small businesses will receive tax credits from the bill and 589,000 residents will receive improved health care coverage. The data also shows that nearly 800 families in this one district of America will be protected from bankruptcy from the new provisions that the health care bill provides.
This brings me to the point of asking why there is so much controversy over this bill? Why would people not want to provide health care for everyone and potentially save their lives? Once again the issue is MONEY. With the government having just passed the largest economic stimulus bill that the country will most likely ever see, people in America are concerned with how this new medical reform bill will be paid for. The $938 billion health care bill will be paid through a combination of tax hikes on the wealth and cuts on Medicare for the old. In order to pay for the overhaul of the current health care system, a 5.4% tax hike will be placed on those Americans that are earning over $1 million annually.
Though the bill will expand coverage to nearly 32 million Americans, the Republican Party has found that the results are not supposed to come into play until 2014. Through research, the Republican Party has also provided details that 60% of Americans already receive health insurance from their employers. The other 40% have a chance to either opt out of insurance, are too lazy to look for insurance because their employer does not provide coverage, or they cannot afford the insurance. Because of these statistics and the fear for an even larger economic debt, the Republican Party has presented their own counterpart to the bill. With upcoming midterm elections, republicans have aimed to reach Americans with a less forward and extreme health care bill. It would allow families and businesses to buy health insurance across state lines and allow individuals, small businesses, and trade associations to pool together and acquire health insurance at lower prices. The lower prices for health insurance would make it easier for companies to provide health insurance to all of their employees, thus increasing the percent of Americans with health insurance coverage. The counterpart also gives states the tools to create their own innovative reforms that allow the states to lower health care costs, provides in-home care, mobile health care, and allows for the expansion of community health centers for citizens who are either far from medical areas of do not have the benefits of traveling to the health areas.
A few weeks ago 21 states across the nation came together to challenge the constitutionality of the health care bill based on the provisions that states must provide a large sum of money to pay for procedures that the national government would not cover. The states find it unconstitutional that they will have to pay for a large portion of health care procedures in hospitals as well as pay for new health field employees to receive training for their new positions. Voters in at least three other states will be weighing ballot initiatives opposing the health care reform bill during midterm elections. Republicans leadership’s new agenda is “A Pledge to America” that calls for the health care law to be repealed and replaced with the scaled-down list of provisions that were previously stated. Websites and republican support groups have popped up on the internet ever since the bill was passed. One especially which has a large amount of endorsement from the republicans party including John McCain provides that the constitution gives congress the power of the purse and the ability to apporporiate or not appropriate money for authorized government activities. The website believes that “defunding” Obama would “defund” the health care reform bill.
What Americans need to focus on right now is their own opinion about healthcare. Should everyone receive healthcare or should it just be for those citizens that have worked hard enough to receive the coverage? What do we make of the poor who cannot afford healthcare? What I have found through my research in writing this post is that many Americans are uneducated about healthcare. They don’t understand why they are on a specific side of the issue and why. EDUCATION IS THE KEY. If more Americans were educated about what this bill entails then I feel like there could be more logical arguments and less refutation about Obama’s efforts to reform our decrepit health care system in America.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
7 most IMPORTANT points to take from the bill
Through research in attempting to create my analysis post, I have found what I believe to be the 7 most important or influential changes that the health care reform bill have placed on American citizens. These changes include:
1. More Health Care Jobs- the new bill will add an additional 33 million jobs for unemployed Americans. However these jobs will require a large medical demand. The research I have also found show that getting a degree in the medical field can take as few as a couple of months.
2. Insurance cannot drop you- the new bill does not allow health insurance companies to cancel your policy if you become sick or ill.
3. No maximum limit on coverage- health insurance companies will not be allowed to place caps on coverage when the cost of your treatment increases.
4. Everyone must have medical insurance- the new law requires every American citizen to purchase health insurance or face the risk of being fined. If your employer or you cannot afford to purchase your own health insurance, the government will be able to provide assistance.
5. Kids can stay on your health insurance policy until they are 26-no more leaving the nest too soon. Right now many insurance companies require children to get their own insurance at the age of 19, which will no longer be allowed when the new bill is passed.
6. Insurance cannot deny you- no children will be denied coverage because they have a pre-existing condition that companies do not want to cover.
7. No more waiting time- your pre-existing conditions will not prevent you from getting coverage with a waiting period of 6 months.
I hope these points made the changes that the health care reform bill will bring more clear and understandable.
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