10. March 2008 by Jon Moss.

The State of Georgia has passed a bill to encourage insurance companies to offer cheap, affordable, and limited health insurance plans. The bill passed by Georgia’s Senate will give insurance companies an opportunity offer health insurance to Georgians who are unable to afford a comprehensive plan. The republican proposal passed 42-12 in the House. Now, individuals searching for affordable Georgia health insurance can pick a plan based on what they can afford. Although the coverage will be limited, the limited coverage is still better than no coverage at all. 

Democrats who apposed the plan are worried that individuals who obtain the limited plans will not truly understand the coverage of the plan and will only make their decision to purchase based solely on price. Democrats predict that the future of this plan is flawed because its popularity may grow tremendously in the future but coverage will not be sufficient for most.

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22. February 2008 by Jon Moss.

At the University of Arkansas, student health insurance has been taken into the University’s hands. Every student is automatically enrolled into the school’s minimal health insurance plan. With a charge of $6.77 per credit hour, students receive care by physicians, registered nurses, and other healthcare professionals at the University’s health center. The fundamental health insurance plan covers basic things like office visits but other services require an out of pocket expense. Some vaccines and immunizations can be a substantial cost from a student’s perspective. Since prescriptions are not covered under the student health insurance plan, some students seek assistance from a parent’s employer plan or their own student Arkansas Health Insurance plan from an outside provider.            Students will receive coverage for most services performed at the Student Health Center but in the case that a student needs an MRI; the maximum coverage of $2,000 can be met quickly. About 70% to 80% of students at the University of Arkansas receive additional assistance from another health insurance provider. At other universities, about 1/3 of the students in Arkansas have no form of health insurance. This is becoming a growing trend among young adults. The high costs of health insurance has drove many students to opt out of a health insurance plan as the cost has become unattainable at this time in their young lives.

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7. February 2008 by Jon Moss.

 Humana is phasing maternity coverage out of their individual plans.  Those currently enrolled in the HumanaOne Plan with the maternity options will have the ability to keep the benefit as long as they remain enrolled in their current plan.  All future plans will be sold without the maternity option.  Humana will remove maternity coverage in three phases.

Phase one will remove the option in February 2008 from the following states:  Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and South Carolina.

 Phase two will elinate maternity coverage from all plans sold as of March 2008  from Utah.

The final phase will eliminate the maternity option as of mid April from the following states:  Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Lousiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

Current policy holders with maternity coverage will not be affected by the changes.  Individuals applying for coverage prior to the dates listed above still have ability to elect maternity coverage.  HumanaOne allows individuals to look at plan options, get quotes and apply online for coverage.

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1. February 2008 by Jon Moss.

 Stephen Moses is coming to Chattanooga, TN on February 11 and 12 – and he’s bringing a silver bullet with him. It has nothing to do with guns or vampires, and everything to do with smart planning. Moses’ Silver Bullet is an Air Stream trailer purchased specifically for its attention-getting value in the 2008 National Long-Term Care Consciousness Tour he started last month. He’s living in the Silver Bullet while visiting all fifty states, hoping to raise awareness of a looming problem for the public, policy makers and legislators: how America will pay for the inevitable care needed by the baby boom generation as its members advance into old age. 

Moses is President of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform in Seattle, an advocacy group that promotes universal long-term care planning with privately-funded coverage as an alternative to depending on Medicaid or other “at-risk” federal programs. A former senior analyst for the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and a former Medicaid state representative for the Health Care Financing Administration, Mr. Moses is recognized widely as one of the nation’s most articulate voices in the field of long-term care planning. While in Chattanooga, Moses will speak at a breakfast for state legislators on Monday, February 11, and at a free event that same day at 7 PM at Brainerd Baptist Church’s Brainerd Crossroads (BX) at 300 Brookfield Avenue. Consumers, senior service agencies, attorneys, CPAs and financial planners are invited to hear him at the BX. He is also scheduling newspaper, radio and television interviews. 

“The tour is an extension of what the Center for Long-Term Care Reform does every day, “says Moses. “It’s an on-site attempt to influence local media, politicians and policymakers to join forces and work more directly with and for the public. How can Medicaid be a safety net for the poor and the main LTC payor for nearly everyone else? Where will the money come from as boomers retire and draw down Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid?” He said the Center also helps states curtail so-called “Medicaid estate planning” that artificially impoverishes middle class and affluent individuals in order to qualify them for benefits. His group encourages private insurance and home equity conversion (reverse mortgages) as alternatives to public welfare financing of long-term care. 

Moses has directed numerous studies for the federal government, state governments, and private think tanks on nursing home eligibility, asset transfer, estate recoveries and long-term care financing. He influenced the content and passage of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, which discouraged Medicaid abuses and launched new tax benefits for individual LTC planning. He has published widely, testified before Congress and two-thirds of U.S. state legislatures, and is a frequent TV and radio talk show guest.

The Long-Term Care Consciousness Tour is sponsored locally by Lindsey & Associates, Inc., Long Term Care Insurance Specialists. For more information on Stephen Moses and his availability in Chattanooga, contact Gail Lindsey, MA, CLTC at 423-698-1113 or gail@lindseyassoicatesletc.com.

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4. January 2008 by Jon Moss.

The battle to extend the “State Children’s Health Insurance Program” has finally come to an end, for now. The SCHIP has been extended until March 31, 2009. The program’s extension came when the U.S. House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to temporarily extend the program and offer health insurance to about 6.6 million poor children. The House of Representatives approved the bill by a vote of 411-3. The effort to extend the bill was completed by both democrats and republicans and it was achieved without raising taxes. The extension will cost the government about $6 billion with financial support coming from savings in other health programs. 
 
        Controversy arose from the democratic and republican party on the expiration of the program. The democrats aimed at a short term extension which would allow the battle to begin as the presidential elections heat up in November of 2008. The Republican Party forced the extension into March of 2009 so it will not become a major topic of debate for a Democratic Party already focused on socializing healthcare.
 
        The two previous attempts to provide medical insurance to children were vetoed by President Bush. Both proposals were over ambitious and aimed to provide health insurance for about 10 million children but sought funding from additional tobacco taxes. Bush stated that many children would receive their healthcare from the government run program versus private insurance.

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