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Photo by borman818 on Flickr
The law has been described as “the most sweeping social legislation enacted in decades” by the NYT, “biggest expansion of federal health care guarantees in more than four decades” by CNN and the “culmination of a yearlong struggle with Congress to make good on the central issue of his administration’s domestic policy agenda” by NPR.
Whether you agree or disagree with Obama’s policies, it is important to know how this bill will affect you. Here are eight ways that the Health Care Reform could affect you as an independent artist:
1. Reform will expand young adults’ coverage through their parents’ plan until you are 26.
If you are an artist just starting out, you are probably broke (just a guess). This will give you a few more years to get your finances together before you have to worry about finding your own policy.
Picture from sallylondon on Flickr
2. Reform will eliminate discrimination based on pre-existing conditions or medical history.
If you haven’t been able to get coverage because of a pre-existing condition, a ban on discrimination for adults will take effect in 2014. Additionally, a pool will be set up for high risk adults to get coverage until 2014. For those of you that have a child with a pre-existing condition, a ban on discrimination for children will take effect immediately.
3. Small businesses (fewer than 50 employees) will receive tax credits to help pay for their employees premiums.
If you work a second (or third) job to help pay the bills, you will now have a higher probability of being able to receive coverage from your employer.
4. Reform will prevent insurance companies from placing annual or lifetime caps on the coverage you receive.
This is especially important for individuals, both children or adults, with chronic conditions that will require lifetime medical support. Lifetime caps will be banned immediately and annual caps will be reduced until 2014, when they will be banned as well.
5. All new insurance plans will include preventative care and doctor checkups without a co-pay.
Also, reform will require plans to cover basic pediatric services, as well as dental, vision, and hearing needs for children.
6. Reform will prohibit insurance companies from dropping individuals that become seriously ill.Picture by mtsofan on Flickr
7. If you are uninsured because you are unemployed or cannot afford health insurance, you’ll soon (by 2014) be able to find affordable coverage through federal subsidies or Medicaid.
Subsidies will be based on income. Individuals that choose to live without health insurance will face a fine of 2.5% of their income, up to $2085.
8. For artists or other individuals that are self-employed and buy their own individual or family plans, premiums could be up to 13% higher.
This is according to a Congressional Budget Office report. Keep in mind that predicting the cost of insurance policies in the future is difficult at best. With the 30 million people being added to insurance pools, the elimination of lifetime caps, and support for small businesses to cover their employees, it is hard to predict how the health reform bill will affect individual policies in the long-term.
Hopefully this gives you a little better understanding of how the health care reforms affect you personally. If there is something that I missed or a specific question that you have, please feel free to comment and I will do my best to respond with useful information.
March 24, 2010 | Filed Under Post, Uncategorized | 2 Comments