another view of health care reform

[luckyleftyme2]

I read this in a local paper and found it very informative:
‘Economically better than we would have hoped’

Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine has remained a steadfast supporter of the health care bill and argued that negative impacts for Maine companies are being overstated by reform opponents. Pingree and fellow Maine Democrat Michael Michaud voted in favor of health care reform in the House and were in attendance Thursday.

“The only businesses that will be required to carry health insurance under the ‘employer responsibility’ section of the health care reform are those with 50 or more employees,” said Pingree in a statement. “In Maine, 1,778 businesses have more than 50 employees. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 99.6 percent of those businesses currently offer health insurance. That means only a handful — maybe five or 10 — of the 46,000 businesses in Maine have more than 50 employees and do not currently offer health insurance.

“If a company is currently offering insurance to its employees, that coverage is grandfathered and will satisfy the requirements of the ‘employer responsibility’ section for companies with more than 50 employees — as long as (the coverage) doesn’t exclude pre-existing conditions and (have) annual lifetime limits,” she continued.

David Howes, a doctor, Brunswick resident and the chief executive officer of Martin’s Point Health Care, told The Times Record this week that he believes the health care bill is “economically going to be better than we would have hoped.”

Howes pointed out that “insurance can’t cost less than medical costs” and said the law “begins that work” toward reducing the underlying price of medical care nationwide.

“Nobody really knows how to deal with the issue of medical costs simply and directly, but I can tell you what we know is that in countries where we see strong primary care systems, the cost of care tends to be lower,” he said.

To that end, Howes applauded provisions in the bill that provide funding to build 133 community health centers in Maine alone and require insurance companies to cover preventative care. By making regular check-ups accessible and affordable, he said, fewer medical problems will escalate and there will be fewer high-cost trips to emergency rooms.

The Martin’s Point chief executive also lauded the portion of the bill that calls for $15 billion to be set aside as incentives for health care providers to find ways to become more efficient and patient-friendly.

“If you sit in a room with a group of doctors right now and you ask them, ‘Do you see ways we could reduce (hospital visits) and reduce the cost of care,’ they would look at each other and say, ‘Of course,’” Howes said. “We have a lot of ideas. But we don’t have the time or resources or support for them. Physicians are very smart and very close to the action. But there hasn’t been a mandate to this point, and this is not only a mandate to do that, but it also says they’ll be rewarded for that.”
THIS IS CERTAINLY A DIFFERENT VIEW THAN THE FEAR MONGERS ARE TELLING!
AND IT ADDRESSES MANY THAT ARE WORKING MORE THAN ONE PART TIME JOB! YOU KNOW THE CHEAP OUTFITS OFFERING 40 HRS WITH NO BENNIES(WHILE BECOMING SOME OF THE BIGGEST PROFIT ENITIES).
YOU KNOW THE BREAD BASKET OF THE REPUKES!

[Change Happens]

1. And this is the part of the bill the CBO CANNOT AND DID NOT SCORE!!!

Meaning: tons more savings to be realized later, lowering our overall costs!