individual health insurance Health Insurance News

ABC News – Political strategists doubt whether there is enough support among Democrats to pass President Obama’s health care legislation, even though House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., expressed confidence Sunday she would eventually have enough House votes to do so.

Daily Kos – 3.27 pm: Republican House leader John Boehner speaks: “This bill is a dangerous experiment with the best healthcare system in the world.” What, this bill also affects Japan? White House healthcare summit liveblog, The Guardian UK
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Kaiser Health News – The Center for Public Integrity’s new “analysis of Senate lobbying disclosure forms shows that more than 1,750 companies and organizations hired about 4,525 lobbyists — eight for each member of Congress — to influence health reform bills in 2009.” The AARP, a retirees’ advocacy group which is among the most active organizations in Congress, mustered 58 lobbyists to health overhaul issues. The Chamber of Commerce used 47.

The Wall Street Journal – It’s impossible to say exactly what kind of health insurance to get. There are many variables that make a plan right for someone, so it’s a decision you have to reach on your own. But there are some basic guidelines and terms to know. This guide is to help you save money and spend wisely when you’re shopping for health insurance.

Public News Service – A determined group of people who left Pennsylvania on foot late last week is now in the middle of a march to Washington, demanding that Congress turn debate into action on health care reform. Marc Stier, Pennsylvania state director for the organization Health Care For America Now, says the ‘March to the Finish Line for Melanie,’ as it’s called, is a tribute to Melanie Shouse, an activist who died recently from breast cancer.

Huffington Post – President Obama’s proposal to regulate the premiums charged by health insurance companies is a game changer. And this week’s health care summit will almost certainly serve as a tipping point in the year-long health care debate. The President’s proposal to regulate health care premiums forcefully reframes the public dialogue in exactly the right terms – a battle between insurance industry profits and the welfare of average Americans.

The Washington Post – The recession has fueled the greatest influx of Americans onto Medicaid since the earliest days of the public insurance program for the poor, according to new findings that show caseloads have surged in every state.

Daily Finance – Profits for the 10 largest U.S. insurance companies jumped 250% between 2000 and 2009 while millions of Americans have lost coverage, according to a report released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The report found that the five biggest insurance companies – WellPoint (WLP), Cigna (CI), UnitedHealth Group (UNH), Aetna (AET) and Humana (HUM) – saw their profits increase 56% in 2009, a year in which 2.7 million people lost their private coverage.

Daily Kos – I put off writing this post until the very last minute. It isn’t the very last minute, but perhaps you get my meaning. Discussing health care and the idea of rationing and the explosive medical costs involved – how to make decisions and whether those decisions should be in the hands of individuals, doctors, insurance companies, or healthcare organizations, or (gasp) politicians through legislation – suffice it to say, this is no easy topic.

Slate – It’s difficult to appreciate the stakes in health care reform if you receive health insurance through your employer. About 59 percent of Americans do, and while they are paying more and more for fewer and fewer benefits, in the larger scheme of things they’re the lucky ones. Although they could certainly use some help from Washington, Obamacare won’t give them much.