Please take a moment fully read the article, and don't miss these key points beyond the considered slashing of the public option (which is horrible in itself):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/27/senate-group-dropping-dem_n_245839.htmlBut congressional aides in both parties as well as lobbyists said a proposal limiting Flexible Savings Accounts to $2,000 annually is also a strong possibility. FSAs permit the use of pretax income to pay for items such as health care and child care.
Negotiators also are considering fees on the manufacturers of medical devices and on the makers of both brand name and generic drugs coming onto the market.
Individuals would have a mandate to buy affordable insurance.
The three Democrats and three Republicans from the Senate Finance Committee were considering a tax of as much as 35 percent on very high-cost insurance policies, part of an attempt to rein in rapid escalation of costs.
I cannot stress how potentially damaging this will be to parents of special needs children, or those with a loved one at home requiring extensive medical assistance. Employer plans do not always cover things such as medical equipment and devices, regardless of how expensive the policy is. This joke about Cadillac plans being the ones that cost $XX/year. I'll tell you - our health plan premiums alone are $12K/year, and we still have high out of pockets, deductibles and copays on top of that, plus numerous exclusions. My two boys have 5 therapy appointments/week alone - at $20 copay (plus the deductible) for each... That's $100/wk+ just for feeding clinic, physical and occupational therapy + deductibles until we hit the Out of Pocket Max. Who here has an extra $500/mo laying around? Then there are the excluded items and the out of pocket max, and the numerous doctors appointments every month(with copays) that are necessary when you have a SN child. Can't forget the many extended hospital stays, impromptu surgeries and testing. And god help you if you have to find a new doctor, and get stuck on a wait list when your child desperately needs attention.
Going back to imposed fees on medical equipment, everyone here knows that will just be passed on to the consumer... In my mother's case - they have a $5K annual cap on medical equipment. That was wiped out in one month, and my dad pays out of pocket for everything. She's 100% bed bound, and requires lift transport to dialysis 3x/week - transport, medical equipment and any supplies in the home are not covered. Her physical therapy is also capped at 12 visits/yr - so she doesn't get the attention she needs to try and walk again. Going back to my own son - my 5yr old with CP uses medical equipment and supplies to eat, as well as for medicinal purposes - now what more will we be paying for? Will they stop covering his feeding supplies (bags, syringes, tubes, etc) that run around $2500/mo+? I know my parents plan wouldn't cover it, so I wouldn't put it past our employer to shop a plan that is even worse than what we have now. The FSA that we cap out at $4K, is gone in less than 2 months. Like my dad and mom, we're bound by our employers health insurance plan, and considered uninsurable beyond that package. We almost hit our lifetime max 18mo ago (think about that - LIFETIME Max on insurance), but my husband's company changed policies (costs more, covers less, but at least we have coverage).
How many families are feeling the squeeze, and depend on things like FSA because their insurance is so horrible? Families that exceed income limits for state assistance or special needs programs, but still need to ensure that their child is under the constant care and watch of a set of specialists that any one rejected bill can break the bank? How many families like ours, live in constant fear that one more diagnosis or extended hospital stay will be the end of it financially? Only now to find out it might be the government who is going to do that for us.Please, please take a moment to write your Senators, no CALL your Senators and send a note as a follow-up. Tell them to stop playing with our lives. It's not the wealthy policy holders they're hurting - it's people like us and people far worse off than us. I wouldn't wish our situation on anyone, but if the Senators could spend a day in our shoes, maybe they would understand.
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