Service Areas

Healthcare Reform: Backgorund & Perspective

By: Robert E. Roland

The New Health Care Law is Made up of Two Bills, Which Must be Read Together:

1. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Signed by President Obama on March 23, 2010.

2. Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.
Passed by both chambers on March 25, 2010 and signed by the President on March 30, 2010.

Numbers of Significance

79 Hearings held by the House over 2 years

100 Hearings in the Senate

239 Amendments considered by the House

435 Amendments considered by the Senate

2,000 pages of new legislation

2014 - the date on which most laws will become fully affective, after a phase in period

3,000,000 pages of new Regulations expected

What the New Law Is.... and What it is Not

1. The law IS a system that aims to expand available coverage through a complicated interaction of incentives, mandates, penalties, credits, and exceptions through grandfathered employers.

2. The law DOES purport to find a way to pay for the expanded coverage. This is the subject of great ongoing debate.

3. The law is NOT a Single Payer System, such as was the lifelong dream of Ted Kennedy (synonym for Socialized Medicine-British and Canadian style).

4. The law does NOT include a robust public option.

5. The law is NOT a complete overhaul of our medical provider and payment systems.

Additional Americans Who Will be Covered

Congressional Budget Office has estimated that changes in Medicaid eligibility alone will result in coverage for an additional 16 million Americans - more recent estimates take this number to 20 million. The Federal Government will cover the increased cost until 2020, at which time 10% will be passed on to the States.

Incentives

The new law also attempts to incentivize the quality and efficiency of medical care through Government oversight.

Effect on Existing Laws

The new laws make significant changes to three existing bodies of law:

1. Public Health Service Act (Public Employees).

2. Employee Retirement Income Security Act (Private Employees).

3. Internal Revenue Code.

Which Employers are Affected?

1. Private sector Employers.

2. Public sector Employers.

3. For-profit Employers.

4. Not-for-profit Employers.

Impact on Employers - Three Ways.

1. Changes the manner in which health insurance coverage is provided by employers to their employees.

2. Imposes new reporting requirements.

3. Imposes monetary penalties.

For more information on how healthcare reform will impact your business please contact Robert E. Roland.