from the Chicago Tribune By Judith Graham A groundbreaking bill extending hospital discounts to people without health insurance has become law after the legislature overturned Gov. Rod Blagojevich's amendatory veto.The Illinois House voted 97-0 Tuesday to endorse the original measure, which was passed unanimously in June. The Senate's vote Monday was 55-0. The legislation requires hospitals to offer significant discounts to uninsured Illinoisans. Instead of paying the full sticker price—typically two to three times the actual cost of care—consumers will pay charges based on the actual cost plus a 35 percent markup.To qualify for discounts, consumers have to meet financial criteria. In urban areas, families who earn up to six times the federal poverty level—$127,200 for a family of...
from the Tennessean By RICHARD COWARTA lot has been written about the nation's 47 million uninsured, but now a June report from the Commonwealth Fund has added insurance erosion — or "the underinsured" — to the mix of populations at health financial risk. In an exclusive online article for the journal Health Affairs, a survey reported that the number of U.S. adults who are underinsured increased 60 percent from 2003 to 2007, and now totals over 25 million.AdvertisementThe jump was noted as "startling" by leading health and public policy figures, and suggests that more than 40 percent of the nation's adult citizens are uninsured or underinsured.The study defines the underinsured as those who have health insurance for the entire year and high out-of-pocket costs, relative to their...
from Familes USAProposal includes balanced approach to expand health care coverage, starting with children. Diverse organizations that have often opposed each other on federal health policies forge consensus, vow to work together for immediate congressional action. Washington, D.C. – Most of the nation’s largest health care organizations today announced that they have agreed on a proposal that would significantly expand health coverage for America’s almost 47 million uninsured, starting immediately with expanded coverage for children in 2007. Calling itself the Health Coverage Coalition for the Uninsured (HCCU), the group is made up of 16 influential, national organizations that have played leading roles in every federal health policy debate of the last 30 years, often on opposing...