Boston Globe: Insurers slice rates on health premiums: Patrick's deals called key to universal plan

[Glenda]

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2007/03/04/insurers_slice_rates_on_health_premiums/


Jon Kingsdale of the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority discussed the healthcare law yesterday at the State House with Governor Deval Patrick (left).


Governor Deval Patrick yesterday unveiled significantly lower prices for the health insurance plans that uninsured residents will be required to buy starting July 1.

Patrick said six weeks of intense negotiations, in which he personally called the chief executives of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, and Tufts Health Plan, resulted in lower prices that will make the plans more affordable for uninsured residents.

...
Last fall, the state began providing free health insurance for those earning less than the federal poverty level, about $9,800 a year for an individual. In January, a second phase of the plan was rolled out, offering subsidized insurance coverage for those earning between one and three times the poverty level.

The latest step provides healthcare options for Massachusetts residents who are not offered health coverage by their employers but who earn too much money to qualify for subsidized insurance. As many as 200,000 residents could fall into that category.
...

The governor's intervention played a role in getting the big health plans to lower their prices, according to two of the plans' chief executives.


...

Initially, the Massachusetts plan was not seen as a template for other states to extend coverage to the uninsured. Unlike most states, Massachusetts has a relatively low number of uninsured residents, and it had a large pool of money to pay for free care at hospitals that could be redirected to fund universal healthcare.

But since April 2006, other states have considered adopting facets of the Massachusetts law. Government officials and others who worked on the Massachusetts law have been invited to speak at events around the country.

[fwiff]

1. uh-huh. How is this supposed to help?

how are people supposed to afford mandatory premiums if they make next to nothing?


<snip> from your link
the lowest-priced ...basic plan for individuals between 35 and 39 years old ... will cost $175.15 a month. As with other plans, the premium increases with age; individuals older than 56 would pay $347 a month.

The annual deductible for the basic plan would be steep: $2,000 for an individual and $4,000 for a family. Similar plans from the three major health plans range from $241.68 a month for Tufts to $288.31 for Harvard Pilgrim, for residents between 35 and 39.





:eyes:

[Glenda]

4. The "next to nothing" people get subsidies or get it free

This current article is about people making more money.

I keep watching this plan, to see what it would do for the self-employed. When I was self-employed, I had Cobra from my previous job for > $600/month. That was painful, and not sustainable.

I keep watching to see how much these state plans will be for the person making some money, but not employed with a company.

HOpefully it frees up more people to be self-employed. I dont' like the idea of health insurance only for people working for corporations.

[Nite Owl]

2. Sounds like a mess

How are people going to be able to afford those deductibles?

[Glenda]

5. I'd like to see the breakout for all the plans

I'd like it to be like auto insurance, where you can pay more premium for a lower deductible. I can't tell from the article what some of the higher premium plans are - if they have lower deductibles.

I read every few months that they re-negotiate another area of the plan. So I think this is not in its final form. It seems like more iterations will happen over time.

Plus, this was enacted by Romney:
"When the law was taking shape 12 months ago, Governor Mitt Romney and legislative leaders predicted that affordable coverage would cost about $200 a month for those who do not receive healthcare benefits from their employers."

and now that he's out, others are having to fix it.

[Nite Owl]

6. Even with a higher premium

and lower deductible will it be affordable to those who need it? It would be good if they presented several plans, one of them being a single payor plan that would include the tax hike needed to fund it fully, then present it to the people, let them see how it fits in with their real life scenarios and put it up for a vote, a special ballot. Having a 'basic plan' that would cover the usual expenses seems enticing and cheaper but stuff happens and no one can predict if they will be unlucky and end up with huge bill for treatments that they never could have foreseen and basic just won't cover the care that is needed.

[Glenda]

7. I think it depends on the segments of people who need it

I read more here:

http://www.hcfama.org/_uploads/documents/live/HealthInsurancePressRelease.pdf

"Aimed at individuals and businesses with fewer than 50 employees,
Commonwealth Choice is also expected to attract many part-time workers and
contract employees who historically have not been offered employer-based
health insurance."

Small businesses are probably the least likely to offer health plans. But if this makes it affordable, maybe the various small businesses would foot some of the bill for employees, like large companies do. And elsewhere in that doc it mentioned pre-tax premiums could be set up.

A few weeks ago, I saw soemthing about Mass trying to migrate people with non-emergency yet urgent medical issues, to places like urgent care centers instead of ERs.

So maybe piecing together some of these things can reduce the cost. Then the single payor plan you mention could be doable. Maybe it takes *some* action to see what does and doesn't work, and who falls through the cracks.

I don't know a lot, so I'm just speculating on my own opinions. But I'm following this with great interest.

[Marrah_G]

3. They also raised the income limits for state health care

Mass has MassHealth, a program to get health care subsidized by the state and another program that subsidizes employer paid health care for low income employees. I think it's the first step towards true universal health care.

[brooklynite]

8. Imagine that...Government negotiating favorable rates with the private sector

Patrick said six weeks of intense negotiations, in which he personally called the chief executives of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, and Tufts Health Plan, resulted in lower prices that will make the plans more affordable for uninsured residents.