Healthcare Unreformed
Washington,
Jul 19 -
A recent Rasmussen poll notes that 60 percent of Americans favor repeal of the new government takeover of healthcare. Perhaps the fact that the White House appointed a British health system cheerleader to run the agency tasked with oversight of the new law contributed to this doubt. It’s no wonder there is increased skepticism about how the law will change healthcare in our country.
Like many government programs before, the new healthcare law has been difficult to implement. One of the new programs created by the law is a high-risk pool, an insurance plan for those too sick to qualify for other insurance. At this time, 18 states have opted-out of the program because they feel that the law fails to sufficiently fund the program.
States are worried that when the federal funds run out, they will be saddled with tens of millions of dollars in costs. In states that have opted out, the federal government will operate the program, closing off coverage after the funds run dry. The deadline to have the pool up and running was June 21st and then July 1st and they finally just started.
A high-risk pool for people who are having difficulty getting insurance is a concept supported by both Democrats and Republicans. But many cash-strapped states that are already facing budget crises aren’t ready to take on new responsibilities that could drive them further into debt. As a result, this poorly constructed program does not meet the needs of the uninsured.
The high-risk pool isn’t the only part of the law running into implementation problems. Apparent confusion between the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) caused the deadlines to pass for the establishment of a breast cancer task force and an Alaskan health task force. These are just two of the more than 159 bureaucracies and programs created by the government takeover of healthcare
HHS has been missing deadlines for months now. Just 30 days after passage, the agency failed to develop a list of all the new authority given to the HHS Secretary by the new law. In plain English -- they couldn’t figure out all of their new responsibilities.
While there is uncertainty about the implementation of the new law, there is more certainty about the true costs of President Obama’s healthcare plan. In April, the government agency in charge of Medicare and Medicaid released a report clearly stating that new fees and taxes established by the law would, “Generally be passed through to health consumers in the form of higher drug and device prices and higher insurance premiums.”
At the same time that out-of-pocket costs will be driven up, overall costs for healthcare in the U.S. will also rise. According to the same April report, the law will increase health spending by $311 billion over the next ten years.
Much has been made of the new tax credits to help small businesses purchase coverage for their employees. The reality is that only 12 percent of small businesses actually qualify for the credit. Those that do qualify for the credit will be forced to stay within strict boundaries. If they hire too many employees, or increase wages too much, the credit will go away and they will either have to bear the full costs or pay a tax penalty for not providing insurance.
There are good things in the law, ideas that both parties agreed on. Starting this fall, young people under the age of 26 will be able to stay on their parents’ plan. In fact, many insurance companies are already extending coverage.
Much of the law won’t be implemented until 2014. There is time to do things better, to construct a bipartisan plan that all Americans can have support. I don’t expect the current Congressional leadership to consider changes to the law, but I’m still working with my colleagues. Hopefully, a change of leadership in Congress will move forward with a plan to repeal and replace the old law with one that expands choices, increases access and lowers costs without government micromanagement.
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Johnson sits on the Health Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee.
