NPN benefitsBlog

Health Insurance Costs Rise Higher Than Minmium Wage Earnings

Amid the turmoil of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last month, it was easy to miss the annual Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research Educational Trust survey on the cost of health care coverage for workers.

Although the cost of health care was only 9% and was less than last year’s 11% to $10,880 for the average annual premiums for family coverage, the increase was a watershed. The costs now exceed the total income of a full time minimum wage worker of $10,712 before taxes. All workers now pay on average $1,094 more in premiums for coverage than in 2002.

© Daniel Scarborough, 2005

Walmart Outsources HealthCare to Taxpayers Around Country

Heres the myth : Walmart creates more jobs. You know “ good jobs for good people “ as the commercial goes . This is not really true. Studies report one job in commubities is destroyed by Wal-Mart for each job it "creates." To call the company a "job creator" requires counting only one side of the ledger.

In Florida reports show that Walmart has gotten $50M in subsidies and has Florida's highest number of Medicaid-eligible workers.

Wal-Mart doesn't want you to know how many of its workers are forced to rely on public assistance for health care. The mega-storeis fighting a new bill in Minnesota which would create "a public list of companies whose workers are enrolled in MinnesotaCare and other government-funded health care programs."

Last year, Minnesota , for example, spent $270.2 million on MinnesotaCare, the state program for people without access to affordable health care. This led lawmakers to wonder which corporations have the most workers enrolled in the state-funded program: "If it's true what people say, that big multinational companies are outsourcing health care to taxpayers, then it would be good to have a handle on which ones," said state Rep. Sheldon Johnson.

Other states recently have exposed the Wal-Mart drain: Wisconsin last week reported WalMart employees "topped the list of BadgerCare recipients", a state health care program for low-income residents.

Whats the big deal. Dumping health care costs on communities leaves less in limited Medicaid resources for those in real need.

Is Private Long-Term Care Insurance the Answer?

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College has released another Just the Facts: Is Private Long-Term Care Insurance the Answer? by Richard W. Johnson and Cori E. Uccello.

As the US population ages, more Americans than ever before will need long-term care. The cost of providing services is already straining government and family budgets, and costs are expected to soar in a few decades when the Baby Boomers begin to reach their 80s. One option often touted as a possible solution to the looming crisis is to promote private insurance coverage of long-term care needs. This brief describes private long-term care insurance and some of the advantages and limitations of coverage. Despite ongoing efforts to promote private long-term care insurance, widespread coverage faces a number of important hurdles, including affordability, uncertainty about future premium increases, and the disincentives created by the Medicaid safety net.

The researchers examine the issues and conclude that although they have not received as much attention as the financial problems facing Social Security and Medicare, future long-term care costs are likely to place enormous pressures on government and family budgets. The current system of financing care, with its reliance on Medicaid, is neither efficient nor is it fair. The way the system works now It forces older adults into poverty before paying for any of their care, and thus penalizes savings. A system based on private longterm care insurance, which protects private assets and provides a mechanism for saving for old age, would in many ways be preferable, but the presence of the Medicaid safety net may frustrate efforts to expand private coverage rates argue the authors.

Get Sick, Go Bankrupt Study Says

Ever notice how many of America's domestic policies revolve around our failing health care system? With dumbing down and limiting of access to health care, some real systemic problems are starting to show up. A Harvard study release today has come up with findings that we all know: get sick in the US today and you may wind up bankrupt. Dr. David Himmelstein, who led the project says "we are all one serious illness away from bankruptcy". All includes you and me.

The study followed up with 1771 bankruptcy filers in 5 states. Himmelstein says, "illness and medical bills were cited as the cause, at least in part, for 46.2 percent of the personal bankruptcies in the study. The study also found that about 75 percent of filers bankrupted by medical expenses were actually covered by health insurance and had average earnings of $25,000. The American Bankruptcy Institute did a study in 1996 and found that 57 percent of bankruptcy filers cited medical problems as a primary bankruptcy cause. "There's a race to the bottom in terms of what health insurance means today," Ron Pollack, the executive director of Families USA, says in today's NY Times.

Researchers said the findings underscore the inadequacy of many private insurance plans that offer worst-case catastrophic coverage, but little financial security for less severe illnesses. As DisabilityBenefits Blog digs deeper we find that the largest population going bankrupt are Americas Seniors who are filing for bankruptcy in record numbers to pay for medical bills, out of control prescription drugs and housing costs.

USAA Survey: Americans Underestimate Costs, Long-Term Care Need

A recent survey by USAA gives some interesting and frightening numbers for policy planners on long-term care for aging and disabled individuals.

The new survey finds that only 25% of U.S. adults believe they are likely to need long-term care, despite predictions from independent organizations that 50% of the population are likely to need some form of this specialized and potentially costly health care service. USAA also found only about 35 % adults have purchased, or considered purchasing, long-term care insurance to help cover these costs

• 48 percent believe assisted living or nursing home care costs less than $30,000 a year.
• Reality: Annual nursing home expenses cost an average of $55,000 in 2000 and are projected to be $241,000 per year in 2030.

• 23 percent think all of their long-term care needs will be met through federal programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid.
• Reality: MedicareMedicare, Medigap, and regular health insurance do not cover long-term care. Medicaid coverage is limited and the services it covers vary by state.

The USAA Educational Foundation has some good info on long-term care supports and check lists that are helpful references on its website.

Overhaul of Public Healthcare Programs

Check out this excellent report on National Public Radio by Julie Rovner this morning.

Preparations are underway for Medicare, the program for people who are elderly or are disabled, to launch a new prescription drug benefit in 2006. Meanwhile, Medicaid -- the federal and state program for the poor -- takes center stage in what's expected to be a major budget fight. Hear NPR's Julie Rovner health policy journalist and expert on health policy issues.

Download the story to listen at NPR's website.

Morning Edition, January 4, 2005 audio

Health Care-The Great Racial Divide

MSNBC reports that the gap in the quality of health care blacks and whites receive is deadly. In fact, according to an analysis in this month's American Journal of Public Health, "more than 886,000 deaths could have been prevented from 1991 to 2000 if African Americans had received the same care as whites." During that same time period, technological advancements in medicine – better drugs, devices and procedures – "averted only 176,633 deaths." The bottom line: "five times as many lives can be saved by correcting the disparities [in care between whites and blacks] than in developing new treatments." Former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher says, "Access to care is a big factor. African Americans and Hispanics are much more likely to be uninsured and underinsured and underserved."