Issue Position: Health Care

Issue Position

Across our country, 14,000 Americans lose their health care coverage every day, joining the 46 million who aren't covered by health insurance. As a country, we spend twice as much per capita on health care than almost any other nation, and our outcomes are worse. Spending on doctors, hospitals, drugs, and other health care costs now consumes more than one of every six dollars we earn- that's approaching 20 percent of our country's GDP. The growing costs to employers, estimated at 5 percent in 2008, have forced many businesses to cut back on benefits. It is even worse now during tough economic times. Before the economic downturn, 62 percent of all personal bankruptcies in 2007 were the result of unaffordable medical bills. What's astounding is that three-fourths of those debtors had health insurance, including many of the 800 bankruptcies that occurred in my district in 2008.

This year Congress passed a historic health care reform to address these issues. It was a long and complicated process, but Americans are finally going to see improved quality and affordability of health care for those who have it and coverage available to the millions who are without. It's an historic, important step forward for our country that will have an immediate impact for all Americans.

In California's First District alone, the new law will improve coverage for 395,000 citizens who already have health insurance, cover the 63,000 uninsured, and allow 69,000 young adults to stay on their parent's plans while 17,000 small businesses will be able to purchase insurance through the exchange, saving money. It will also save us $67 million in uncompensated care costs.

The law expands the current private health insurance system by increasing choice and spurring competition, in an effort to bring down costs and improve care. In 2014, it will provide new state-based Insurance Exchanges where the uninsured, small business employees and the self-employed will be able to choose among a variety of private insurance plans, something they currently have a very hard time doing. This law also expands Medicaid for low-income Americans and provides credits to middle-income families so private coverage is more affordable.

Coverage will come from plans offered by private companies -- so if you like your current plan, you can keep it. The law is designed to preserve employer-based health benefits and the private insurance industry.

There are some benefits that people will see right away, including:

* Prohibiting insurance companies from dropping your coverage when you get sick,

* Prohibiting insurers companies from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions,

* Allowing adults who are unable to purchase insurance because of pre-existing conditions to buy affordable coverage in state run high risk insurance pools,

* Allowing young adults to stay on their parents' insurance until their 26th birthday,

* Requiring new insurance plans to cover preventive services and immunizations with no co-payments, and

* Giving small businesses that provide coverage to their employees a tax credit of up to 35% of premiums in the first two years and 50% of premiums in later years.

Seniors will also see immediate benefits from this bill. Medicare beneficiaries who fall into the Medicare Part D "donut hole" will get a $250 rebate in 2010. The legislation also requires coverage of prevention and wellness benefits, an annual wellness visit and immunizations under Medicare. There will be no co-payments or deductibles for these services. Better preventive care saves both money and lives.

Health care reform also addresses our nation's shortage of health care professionals, especially in rural areas like Northern California. It makes it easier to attract providers in these areas, in particular much-needed primary care doctors, and nurses. In rural areas, the new law also increases funding for community health centers -- almost doubling the amount of patients they treat over the next five years, increasing overall access to health care.

Other parts of the law will go into affect in 2014, and will make even more improvements to our health care system. The law will:

* Give more than 32 million people who are currently uninsured access to affordable coverage -- 95% of American citizens will be covered,

* End the hidden taxes all insured individuals currently pay towards the cost of emergency room visits by people without insurance,

* Prohibit insurers from denying coverage or setting rates based on preexisting conditions, medical conditions, genetic information or domestic violence,

* Require all plans to provide a benefits package that meets a minimum standard, with limits on how much you will have to pay for co-pays and deductibles, and

* Help people afford care by providing tax credits for low- and middle-income families.

To reduce the cost of health care, the law will set up tested programs to make sure health care dollars are being spent wisely and to make sure people are getting the best care possible. The programs that work will be expanded quickly on a broad scale.

The bill is paid for and will reduce our budget deficit over the first 10 years by $143 billion and by $1.2 trillion in the next decade. These aren't my numbers, but the savings calculated by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

The new health care law is not perfect. Reforming health care has and always will be an ongoing process and won't be completed with the passage of any one bill. But, by passing this bill into law, millions of Americans will now be able to afford to go to the doctor. And that's what matters.

If you would like to know more about how the new law impacts you, please visit healthcare.gov.

I have worked on and continue to work on legislation that moves toward correcting low Medicare reimbursement rates for physicians in Sonoma County. I have also worked to eliminate the scheduled cuts in Medicare's physician reimbursement rates, and replace them with a rate increase.

These cuts impact doctors across the nation and preserve access to care in many communities, including throughout California's 1st Congressional District.

In previous Congresses, Congressman Thompson has secured funding to support the implementation of a comprehensive telemedicine initiative, the North Coast Telemedicine Network. Telemedicine enhances medical care services to rural regions of the District by enabling a consulting physician at one location to observe a patient or interpret data at another location via two-way audio or video telecommunications links.

As the husband of a nurse, I am well aware of the problems faced by the nursing community. Additionally, as a member of the Congressional Nursing Caucus and chair of the Blue Dog Coalition's health care task force, I work with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to address the issues of workforce shortage and workplace conditions.

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