healthinsurance.org news digest » employer-sponsored health plans

Cancer survivors among those not interesting in killing health reform law

admin — Sun, 01 May 2011 04:59:29 +0000

Contributor Arlene Karidis, a breast cancer survivor, introduces readers to a group of cancer survivors who are in no hurry to kill the recently passed health reform law.

Professor gets crash course in the frustration of finding affordable health insurance

admin — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 13:52:36 +0000

Kaiser Health News – When Lisa Drew lost her position as a college professor, her unemployment marked the beginning of a frustrating and ultimately unsatisfying search for individual health insurance.

LGBT community making gradual gains in access to health coverage

Editor — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 19:30:32 +0000

healthinsurance.org – Advocates who have long sought to remove barriers to health insurance coverage for LGBT populations say the community is making slow, but steady progress.

Small businesses say health reform will encourage them to provide health benefits

Editor — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:12:55 +0000

Small Business Majority – A November survey by Small Business Majority shows that a third of small businesses say that health reform’s tax credits and insurance exchanges will make them more likely to offer health benefits to their employees.

Tax breaks for employer-sponsored health care could end up on chopping block

admin — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 18:16:04 +0000

Associated Press – Tax breaks for employer-sponsored health plans could end up on the chopping block if Congress and the White House get serious about cutting the national deficit.

People covered by employer-sponsored health insurance see 6 percent hike in health care costs

admin — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 16:11:37 +0000

Reuters – New data from Thomson Reuters indicates that health care costs – including hospital care, physician services and prescription drug costs – rose 6.3 percent for the year ended June 30.

16.6 million small business employees could benefit from health reform provisions this year

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:57:16 +0000

The Commonwealth Fund – 16.6 million small business employees could receive relief from health insurance premiums this year through small-business tax credits established by the recently passed health reform legislation.

Employers shifting health coverage costs to worker, survey shows

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:59:00 +0000

Associated Press – As they try to ride out the ongoing economic downturn, employers are shifting some of the burden of their employee-sponsored health costs to their employees, according to a new report by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust.

Point-counterpoint on health reform’s effect on U.S. workforce

admin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 01:40:15 +0000

Atlanta Journal Constitution – U.S. Rep Jim McDermott (Washington State) and the Galen Institute’s Grace-Marie Turner duke it out over health reform’s prospects for the American workforce.

Will small businesses hit tax credits? or run?

admin — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 15:57:26 +0000

The Sacramento Bee – Tax credits for small businesses that provide health coverage for their employees will take effect this year. But will small businesses take the credits? And more importantly, do they even know about the credits?

Massachusetts companies drop health coverage as insurance costs swell

admin — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 20:38:09 +0000

The Boston Globe – As the costs of health insurance rise, some small businesses in Massachusetts have begun terminating health coverage for their employees and encouraging those employees to enroll in state-subsidized coverage. State offices aren’t convinced yet that there’s a trend.

Employer-provided health insurance is NOT taxable under new health reform law

Editor — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 22:40:29 +0000

Huffington Post – An e-mail making the rounds charges that the recently passed federal health reform legislation requires that you pay taxes on your employer-sponsored health insurance. This article explains why the e-mail’s claim is FALSE.

Why employers should not pay for health care

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 08:00:09 +0000

The Denver Post – Fewer Colorado employers are providing health insurance to employees. While many are lamenting this fact, it is actually a step in the right direction.

Cheers, Jeers For New Federal Rules On Changes In Health Benefits

admin — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:09:29 +0000

Kaiser Health News – Business groups gave mixed reviews Monday to new Obama administration rules limiting how much employers and insurers can change their health insurance plans – while remaining exempt from potentially costly new consumer protections.

Health overhaul to force changes in employer plans

admin — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 16:21:18 +0000

Associated Press – Over and over in the health care debate, President Barack Obama said people who like their current coverage would be able to keep it.

Federal health care reform aims to increase preventive care, but it will come with a cost Read more: Federal health care reform aims to increase preventive care, but it will come with a cost – Wichita Business Journal

admin — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:16:04 +0000

Wichita Business Journal – Insurance changes under the federal health care reform law, taking effect later this year, are designed to help prevent diseases and chronic health conditions.

Why Small Businesses Aren’t Embracing Reform

admin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 16:29:30 +0000

California Healthline – As the health reform debate grew increasingly rancorous last year, both political parties sought support from the nation’s millions of small businesses, an influential sector that represents 99.7% of U.S. employers and, in California, provides more than half of the state’s jobs.

Businesses question insurance tax credits

admin — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 07:30:34 +0000

Ventura County Star – California small-business owners expected to be early beneficiaries of health reform, with billions of dollars in federal tax relief flowing this month to help them purchase medical coverage for their employees.

Cobra payment aid appears likely to end

admin — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 05:01:41 +0000

MartketWatch – Just a few months after passing comprehensive health reform, U.S. lawmakers appear willing to risk a short-term backslide in the push to reduce the number of uninsured Americans until the overhaul’s major provisions take effect in 2014.

HEALTH REFORM: The One Month Retrospective

admin — Tue, 04 May 2010 21:33:19 +0000

The New Health Dialogue – Nancy-Ann DeParle, Director of the White House Office of Health Reform, recently offered us a look at what health reform has accomplished in a few short weeks. And HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Tuesday announced how it’s going to help early retirees stay covered before reaching Medicare age. The pace is pretty impressive.

Health insurance reform profiles

admin — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 07:02:52 +0000

Chicago Tribune – Though debate raged for a year over the potential benefits and the estimated costs of the nation’s health care overhaul, there is wide agreement that the new law will affect many if not most Americans — some more directly than others.

The difference between being pro-business and pro-market

admin — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 14:10:31 +0000

Ezra Klein – Not only did companies get a subsidy, but they could also deduct that subsidy from their taxes. Sweet deal. This looked a bit nuts in retrospect, so Democrats ended the subsidy’s deductibility. Again, let’s be clear: They didn’t end the subsidy. And they didn’t make it taxable. They just said that it couldn’t be used as a tax deduction.

COBRA health insurance subsidies start expiring

admin — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:55:52 +0000

Los Angeles Times – Millions of unemployed Americans face the prospect of a huge increase in health insurance costs, thanks to the looming expiration of a government subsidy, Kathy M. Kristof reports.

Will lower health-care costs mean higher wages?

admin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:00:43 +0000

Ezra Klein (Washington Post) – As we went over yesterday, the theory of the excise tax is that employers will buy less costly health-care plans and put the money they save into wages. Most of you had one question in response to that, which was well expressed in the first comment to the post: “I’m confused,” wrote Reader44. “Instead of increasing wages, why won’t employers just take that dollar not spent on health care and increase dividends?”

The Top Ten Things Worth Fighting For

admin — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:24:14 +0000

Jonathan Cohn (The New Republic) – It’s been almost a hundred years since progressives began the campaign to make health care a right. And never before has the campaign come this far. Five congressional committees have now had their say about health care reform. And, as of Tuesday afternoon, all five have said “aye.”

UPDATED: The Final Five

admin — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:58:41 +0000

The Treatment blog (The New Republic) – Sometime soon, maybe this week,* the Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote on the health care reform bill it spent the last two weeks debating. Inside and outside the committee, people following this process more closely than I am say the bill is likely to pass. But it’s not yet a sure thing.

Out of Options: Why So Many Workers in Small Businesses Lack Affordable Health Insurance, and How Health Care Reform Can Help

admin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:14:10 +0000

Commonwealth Fund – Although employer-sponsored health insurance forms the backbone of the health insurance system in the United States, small businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to provide their workers with comprehensive coverage. In 2007, only 25 percent of employees in small businesses had coverage through their own employers, compared with 74 percent of workers in large firms. Because there are few sources of affordable coverage outside the employer-based system, millions of employees in small businesses are uninsured or have inadequate health insurance. In 2007, 52 percent of workers in small businesses were uninsured or underinsured during the year, compared to half as many employees in large businesses. Congressional health reform bills to reform the health system include provisions specifically aimed at helping small businesses and their employees gain access to affordable, comprehensive coverage.

Employer-Sponsored Insurance Premiums Rose 119% Over Past Decade

admin — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 14:55:43 +0000

BusinessWeek – Family premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance in the U.S. increased 119% between 1999 and 2008, far, far higher than any increase in wages, according to a new survey. If current trends continue, premiums are on course to increase another 94% by 2020, to an average of $23,842 per family. Employees pay on average about 30% of this amount.

Family health premiums jump 30% over five years

admin — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 14:41:17 +0000

Chicago Sun-Times – The average cost of family premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance in Illinois jumped 30 percent from 2003 to 2008, according to a Commonwealth Fund report.

Senate Finance Committee Dropping Dem Health Goals: AP

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 23:31:25 +0000

Huffington Post – After weeks of secretive talks, a bipartisan group in the Senate edged closer Monday to a health care compromise that omits a requirement for businesses to offer coverage to their workers and lacks a government insurance option that President Barack Obama favors, according to numerous officials.