An independent and aggresive approach to group benefits.
Older American Citizens will be in for a big surprise assuming President Obama's stimulus bill passes. If it does, rationing of healthcare for U.S. citizens seems eminent.
In a recent Bloomberg article, Betsy McCaughey, former lieutenant governor of New York and an adjunct senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, questions why no one (Republicans or Democrats) has challenged the health provisions contained in the Obama stimulus package. She feels that Senators should read and vote against the provisions because "they are dangerous to your health."
The stimulus bill is modeled after Tom Daschle's recommendations outlined in his 2008 book, "Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis". According to Daschle, "doctors must give up autonomy and learn to operate less like solo practitioners." A new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will be established to monitor treatments and ensure that your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective.
Betsy McCaughey warns of a system that penalizes hospitals and doctors that are not "meaningful users," although the bill is unclear as to what constitutes a "meaningful user." This raises the question of just who will be determining the protocol of treatment for any of us faced with a serious medical condition. In keeping with Daschle's recommendations, the stimulus bill provides for the appointment of a Federal Council to oversee this new system and determine what is effective and economically practical.
In his book, Daschle states that health-care reform "will not be pain free." More pointedly, he asserts that seniors should be more accepting of medical conditions that come with age instead of treating them. It is fairly clear that seniors will bear the brunt of this new proposed healthcare program. The Council is modeled after a UK Board that approves and rejects treatments based on a formula that divides the cost of treatment by the number of years the patient is likely to benefit.
Ref: McCaughey, Betsy. Bloomberg, February 9, 2009.
Important parts of this article were taken from pages 445, 454 and 479 of the stimulus package.
In an article on the HRMorning website, there are ugly changes ahead for COBRA under the Obama administration. Eligible employers will be required to pay 65% of the terminated worker's premium. These regs will apply to all employers subject to COBRA.
Information taken from http://www.hrmorning.com/paying-for-cobra-what-are-obamas-09-plans/