10 THINGS EVERY AMERICAN SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HEALTH CARE REFORM

Pic from HERE
A jubilant President Obama signed the health care bill into law today, calling its historic expansion of insurance coverage "reforms that generations of Americans have fought for and marched for and hungered to see."

"Today, after almost a century of trying -- today, after over a year of debate -- today, after all the votes have been tallied, health insurance reform becomes law in the United States of America," Obama said at a White House ceremony packed with ecstatic supporters.  From HERE

WASHINGTON — Americans by 9 percentage points have a favorable view of the health care overhaul that President Obama signed into law Tuesday, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, a notable turnaround from surveys before the vote that showed a plurality against it. From Here

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Hi All;
People have a LOT of questions following the signed health care bill.
Please take a moment to read the following.
Sent to me by Move On Political Action

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Even with the bill's flaws, health care reform is the most important piece of progressive legislation in decades.

Below is a list of ten of the most important things health care reform will accomplish for everyday Americans—none of which would've been possible without the dogged efforts of grassroots progressives and the support of Representative Steve Kagen.1

Republicans are already unleashing their spin machine to target Democrats who voted for reform, so we've got to show that we've got their backs.
***Big Insurance and right-wing extremists are already ratcheting up their campaign to spread misinformation about the bill, so it's critical that we get the truth out as widely as possible.

Thanks for all you do.



10 THINGS EVERY AMERICAN SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HEALTH CARE REFORM


1.  Once reform is fully implemented, over 95% of Americans will have health insurance coverage, including 32 million who are currently uninsured. 2

2.  Health insurance companies will no longer be allowed to deny people coverage because of preexisting conditions—or to drop coverage when people become sick. 3

3.  Just like members of Congress, individuals and small businesses who can't afford to purchase insurance on their own will be able to pool together and choose from a variety of competing plans with lower premiums. 4

4.  Reform will cut the federal budget deficit by $138 billion over the next ten years, and a whopping $1.2 trillion in the following ten years.5

5.  Health care will be more affordable for families and small businesses thanks to new tax credits, subsidies, and other assistance—paid for largely by taxing insurance companies, drug companies, and the very wealthiest Americans.6

6.  Seniors on Medicare will pay less for their prescription drugs because the legislation closes the "donut hole" gap in existing coverage.7

7.  By reducing health care costs for employers, reform will create or save more than 2.5 million jobs over the next decade. 8

8.  Medicaid will be expanded to offer health insurance coverage to an additional 16 million low-income people. 9

9.  Instead of losing coverage after they leave home or graduate from college, young adults will be able to remain on their families' insurance plans until age 26. 10

10.  Community health centers would receive an additional $11 billion, doubling the number of patients who can be treated regardless of their insurance or ability to pay. 11


Sources:

1. Final vote results on motion to concur in Senate amendments to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, March 21, 2010
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll165.xml

2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11. "Affordable Health Care for America: Summary," House Energy and Commerce Committee, March 18, 2010
http://wwwd.house.gov/akamaidocs/energycommerce/SUMMARY.pdf

4. "Insurance Companies Prosper, Families Suffer: Our Broken Health Insurance System," U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Accessed March 22, 2010
http://healthreform.gov/reports/insuranceprospers/index.html

5. "Affordable Health Care for America: Health Insurance Reform at a Glance: Revenue Provisions," House Energy and Commerce Committee, March 18, 2010
http://wwwd.house.gov/akamaidocs/energycommerce/REVENUE.pdf

8. "New Jobs Through Better Health Care," Center for American Progress, January 8, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=87402&id=19504-17313833-JgVe1tx&t=2

9, 10. "Proposed Changes in the Final Health Care Bill," The New York Times, March 22, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=87403&id=19504-17313833-JgVe1tx&t=3

11. "Affordable Health Care for America: Health Insurance Reform at a Glance: Addressing Health and Health Care Disparities," House Energy and Commerce Committee, March 20, 2010
http://docs.house.gov/energycommerce/DISPARITIES.pdf

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This is also a moment of history, a culmination of the legacies of Truman and Franklin Roosevelt.

On Nov. 19, 1945, Truman stated facts that are true to this day. "People with low or moderate incomes do not get the same medical attention as those with high incomes," he said. "The poor have more sickness, but they get less medical care. People who live in rural areas do not get the same amount or quality of medical attention as those who live in our cities."

The nation, Truman added, needed to resolve "that financial barriers in the way of attaining health shall be removed" and "that the health of all its citizens deserves the help of all the Nation."
Nearly 65 years later, Truman's wish has come to pass.

It is also worth remembering that when Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935, he was properly modest. FDR insisted that "we can never insure one hundred percent of the population against one hundred percent of the hazards and vicissitudes of life."

He knew that his bill was more a beginning than an end. The Social Security Act, Roosevelt said, "represents a cornerstone in a structure which is being built but is by no means complete."

That's exactly true of the reform Congress enacted Sunday night. It does not quite cover everyone -- Social Security didn't, either -- and that must be taken care of.

There will be years of wrangling over the system's costs and how it works in practice. Every successful health system in the world confronts such arguments.

This new law will not end all our health-care problems (no law could), but it does a great deal for access, and it makes solving other problems a little easier. Above all, it puts us on a new path." end quote

It should almost go without saying, but I would be remiss not to express my gratitude.

THANK YOU PRESIDENT OBAMA! and the 219 others that cared enough to pass this bill.

XOXO
Me

Debunking Health Care Lies (by Reading the Bill)

August 13, 2009 - by Donny Shaw  (Do the CLICK).