By Zane Backhouse on 22-01-2011
Health care reform is causing many changes to the health care system, but many do not realize it’s also having an impact on student loans. Student health care reform is affecting the way government is handling student loans and ultimately saving them money which is good for the country overall. According to the article “Health-care Reform and Your Student Loans” by AnnaMaria Andriotis on SmartMoney.com, there are 3 major changes the health-care bill is causing to student loans.
The most crucial part is that the federal student loan funding is switching to 100% funding from the government and eliminating private lenders. The Co
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By Brayden Daley on 19-01-2011
Kathleen Sebelius announced three million Medicare beneficiaries have received prescription drug cost relief to date as the result of the Affordable Health Care Act.
Health care reform has resulted in a reimbursed of $250 to Medicare recipients falling into the stage 2 Medicare coverage gap, or donut hole. In a press release, Secretary Sebelius says, “The Affordable Care Act offers long overdue relief by lowering prescription drug costs each year until the donut hole is closed.”
Though the rebates will help, for many Medicare beneficiaries, it’s a drop in the bucket, for those hemmed in by brand name medications for which there are no generic substitutes.
However, Secretary Sebelius says the rebate for falling into the donut hole is just the first step. T
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By Lilly Syme on 19-01-2011
House Republicans on Thursday will introduce a bill (HR 3) that they claim would “permanently end taxpayer funding of abortion and codify the Hyde Amendment” — which is added into appropriations legislation annually to prohibit federal funding for abortion care, except in cases of rape, incest or danger to a woman’s life, CQ Today reports (Ota, CQ Today, 1/19). House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Congressional Pro-Life Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) will hold a press conference to introduce the bill today (Ryan, “Floor Action,” The Hill, 1/19).
The bill has support from Rep.
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By Zane Backhouse on 18-01-2011
A potential decline in physician office visits, record spending on health information technology, a total redesign of insurance markets, and the creation of accountable care organizations are among the health industry trends in store for 2011, according to a PriceWaterhouseCoopers report.
The report authors used an online survey of 1,000 U.S. adults to assess consumer perspectives on health reform, healthcare usage, and payment for healthcare. Those surveyed represented a cross-section of the population in terms of insurance status, age, gender, income, and geography. Read more…
By Zane Backhouse on 15-01-2011
The new healthcare reform law passed in 2010 has many individuals and employers scratching their head. Not only is it in depth, and not always straightforward, but there are different aspects to the law that make it even more complicated. With this being the case, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) developed a useful tool called AskBlue Healthcare Reform which is an interactive tool developed to help consumers better understand the new law and learn how it will impact their individual heath insurance policies.
AskBlue Healthcare Reform is accessed through the same name website and offers a simple explanation of healthcare reform and the different aspects throughout the law.
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