What Are Regional Governments Doing about Health Insurance Costs?
Hello, and welcome to this installment of the Weekly Health Insurance News Roundup. In many of the articles I've looked at recently, it seems as if many local and state governments are trying to do what they can to make affordable health insurance more of a reality to their citizens. In a sluggish and tough economy such as ours, it makes a lot of sense for politicians to do what they can to help their customers save some money somewhere in their budget. Let's take a look now and see what some specific state governments are doing to help.
In Georgia, governor Sonny Perdue signed two bills both aimed at making health insurance more affordable and more accessible according to an article in Forbes. One bill eliminates the state and local premium taxes for health insurance companies and high-deductible insurance plans, and it's hoped that the savings will be passed on to customers. The other bill allows for customers to create health savings accounts, allowing employers to give this option for pretax funds to enter their health savings accounts to help cover future medical costs. The more I read these articles, the more I think that health savings accounts are a good idea, but the other bill is called by some just a tax break for insurers. Only time will tell if these are successful.
In Tennessee, the state's House passed a bill that would make it easier for companies to negotiate health insurance rates with insurers, according to the Nashville Business Journal. The bill will allow business owners to join together when shopping for health insurance quotes for their employees. According to the article, this will give small businesses another useful option when looking for lower rates, as well as stable and predictable prices.
In somewhat related news, a study from Miller-McCune states that, due to the lack of insurance from Medicaid in certain regions of the country, lifespans are decreasing as a result. According to the study, sections in the Deep South -- such as sections of Appalachia, along the Mississippi River and portions of the Midwest and Texas -- are being hardest hit, with increased cases of diabetes, cancer and other chronic health issues. Texas is one of the hardest hit states in the study, losing nearly fifty people a week due to inadequate Medicaid coverage.
This week's article has plusses and minuses. In the plus column, it is good that local governments are passing laws and bills to allow their residents easier access to affordable health care. In the minus column, it seems that more needs to be done in certain regions, both by governments as well as health insurance companies, to make sure people are granted access to the health insurance they need to survive.
This concludes another edition of the Health Insurance News Roundup. As always, I hope you have found this article informative and useful, and wish you a happy and healthy day.