| Senators Do Not Face High Health Care Costs, Concerns Of Uninsured
The New York Times on Sunday examined how, when senators discuss health care reform, they "usually speak in abstract terms about soaring health costs and the plight of the uninsured," problems from which "members of Congress are usually insulated." According to the Times, senators have access to a number of health insurance options through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, and they "are not normally exposed to the fears that strike many workers as employers reduce health benefits and insurers increase premiums year after year."
In response, some major Democratic presidential candidates have said that all U.S. residents "should have coverage as good as what Congress has," the Times reports. Presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) has said that she would "give all Americans the same set of insurance options that their members of Congress have," and presidential candidate Sen.
Clinics far more than last resort
Griselda Ruiz is like thousands of seasonal cannery workers in Stanislaus County. She has employer-provided health insurance when she is sorting vegetables from late August to October, then hopes she doesn't get sick the rest of the year. The Modesto woman was stricken with diabetes when pregnant with one of her two children, and as often happens with gestational diabetes, the disease came back. As her diabetes escalated this past year, Ruiz bought medicine during two trips to Mexico. She sought help at the Golden Valley Health Center on Sixth Street in Modesto last summer after the pills ran out. At the clinic, a test showed her blood sugar was five times above normal and put her at risk of a stroke or going into a diabetic coma. Ruiz, 52, told Marlene Perez, the clinic's health educator, that she hadn't come in sooner because she was unaware of the nonprofit clinic's sliding fee scale.
American Community Introduces APEP Choices(TM), an Affordable Plan For Small Groups
American Community Mutual Insurance Company, a leading provider of Individual and Group health insurance, announced today of the introduction of APEP Choices(TM), an affordable plan for small groups in Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska and Ohio. .
Businesses work to curb costs of health insurance
Businesses are looking for ways to reduce health care costs as they strive to continue coverage for workers. Open enrollment periods have begun for several health insurance providers, and some companies and individuals have already negotiated deals, while others are still working. For the past few years, insurance premiums have continuously fattened, squeezing the pockets of employers and employees. The good news: Rates, though they still are going up, aren't increasing by as much as they were two years ago. With premiums still relatively high, businesses and employees are looking to find remedies to this nationwide health care headache. "Each individual company has its own needs, so companies here are making decisions to walk a fine line to fulfill budgets," said Wanda Soto, broker and owner of Client First Inc.
Now, the Stick
Employers frustrated with mounting health-care costs for their workers have tried dangling a carrot to discourage bad habits such as smoking as well as behaviors that can lead to obesity, uncontrolled diabetes or high blood pressure. Now some employers are beginning to brandish a stick, docking pay, hiking insurance premiums or even banning employees from the workplace if they don't comply with off-site smoking bans. So far Midwestern companies have taken the lead; only a few Washington area employers have followed. Starting in January, Tribune Co. will require its employees, including 1,200 at the Baltimore Sun, to pay $100 a month more in insurance premiums if they or any of their covered family members smoke. .
Nick Robinson: Culture of education
Poverty of aspiration. That, Gordon Brown will argue today, lies at the heart of the failure of the British education system to be world beating. The prime minister has, once again, put on his thinking hat for what promises to be another densely argued speech. He believes that the educational debate in this country since the war has been damaged by an obsession either with state-only solutions or market-only solutions. In fact, he will argue neither can provide the complete answer when the real problem lies with the culture of education in this country. Poverty of aspiration has been driven, he argues, by an elitist equation that more education must equal less quality and that there is limited room at the top. This pessimistic view is, in any event, outdated, he will argue, by globalisation.
Wellness saves
Business is all about the bottom line: Reduce costs. Maximize profits. And in today's marketplace, few corporate costs attract as much attention as health care. The easy thing to do would be for businesses to cut contributions toward employee medical premiums. Easy, maybe, but probably not smart. And certainly not right, said Annerose Zorn, president and owner of JuzoUSA, a compression garment manufacturer in Cuyahoga Falls. In fact, Zorn has decided to spend more on employee health initiatives — buying fitness center memberships for any employee who wants one, providing nutrition lessons at lunch time, offering free health screenings in the office and, in general, fostering a healthier work environment. ''Our philosophy is, I'd really like to have happy people around me,'' Zorn said.
Now, the Stick
Employers frustrated with mounting health-care costs for their workers have tried dangling a carrot to discourage bad habits such as smoking as well as behaviors that can lead to obesity, uncontrolled diabetes or high blood pressure. Now some employers are beginning to brandish a stick, docking pay, hiking insurance premiums or even banning employees from the workplace if they don't comply with off-site smoking bans. So far Midwestern companies have taken the lead; only a few Washington area employers have followed. Starting in January, Tribune Co. will require its employees, including 1,200 at the Baltimore Sun, to pay $100 a month more in insurance premiums if they or any of their covered family members smoke. .
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