Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘obamacare’

Wednesday Topic Reminder July 11, 2012

Posted in Healthcare, Wednesday Night HIV+ Support Group, tagged , , on July 11, 2012| Leave a Comment »

The topic this Wednesday July 11, 2012 is the Affordable Care Act (i.e. Obamacare).  We are specifically going to talk about how this affects you and HIV positive People .

The United States Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s health care law that provides health coverage for millions of Americans who are uninsured. This historic act has paved the way for so many Americans to get coverage that was previously denied to them just a few years ago.

For people living with HIV/AIDS this decision is without question a victory. Here are three ways that the Affordable Care Act helps.

  1. No more denial of health insurance due to “pre-existing conditions.” People who are HIV positive or have full blown AIDS have been discriminated against for years through the term “pre-existing condition.” They were either denied coverage or given a really high premium to pay. This act now eliminates that by making it illegal for insurance companies to deny a person for having HIV. There are probably other legal ways that insurance companies can deny a person, so it’s wise to stay as healthy as possible.
  2. “Donut hole” closure. Some patients who are HIV positive depend on Medicare Part D for assistance to pay for medications. Before this law, there was a gap between where the coverage ended and where the patient had to pay out-of-pocket called the “donut hole.” The closure of this hole doesn’t necessarily make medications free for everyone but it will help reduce the cost for the patients. Hopefully this will keep patients compliant with their medication routine.
  3. Healthcare access will be expanded. Insurance exchanges (where you can sorta shop for insurance) and expanding the Medicaid program will help people with HIV/AIDS get coverage. They will have access to medications and treatment which can also help with other co-morbidities that they such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

Read the full article in THE BODY

Advertisement

Read Full Post »

Wednesday Topic July 11, 2012

Posted in Healthcare, tagged , , on July 9, 2012| Leave a Comment »

The topic this Wednesday July 11, 2012 is the Affordable Care Act (i.e. Obamacare).  We are specifically going to talk about how this affects you and HIV positive People .

The United States Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s health care law that provides health coverage for millions of Americans who are uninsured. This historic act has paved the way for so many Americans to get coverage that was previously denied to them just a few years ago.

For people living with HIV/AIDS this decision is without question a victory. Here are three ways that the Affordable Care Act helps.

  1. No more denial of health insurance due to “pre-existing conditions.” People who are HIV positive or have full blown AIDS have been discriminated against for years through the term “pre-existing condition.” They were either denied coverage or given a really high premium to pay. This act now eliminates that by making it illegal for insurance companies to deny a person for having HIV. There are probably other legal ways that insurance companies can deny a person, so it’s wise to stay as healthy as possible.
  2. “Donut hole” closure. Some patients who are HIV positive depend on Medicare Part D for assistance to pay for medications. Before this law, there was a gap between where the coverage ended and where the patient had to pay out-of-pocket called the “donut hole.” The closure of this hole doesn’t necessarily make medications free for everyone but it will help reduce the cost for the patients. Hopefully this will keep patients compliant with their medication routine.
  3. Healthcare access will be expanded. Insurance exchanges (where you can sorta shop for insurance) and expanding the Medicaid program will help people with HIV/AIDS get coverage. They will have access to medications and treatment which can also help with other co-morbidities that they such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

Read the full article in THE BODY

Read Full Post »

ObamaCare Lives

Posted in Healthcare, tagged , on June 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »

In a surprise move, and defying expectations, Chief Justice John Roberts joined the court’s liberal wing in saving the ObamaCare (i.e. Affordable Care Act).

 

Chief Justice John Roberts was the surprising swing vote in today’s Obamacare decision. Although he agreed with the four conservative justices, including Kennedy, that the individual mandate was not a regulation of interstate commerce, he voted with the Court’s moderates to hold that it was justified as a tax.

Because people who don’t obtain insurance pay a tax to the IRS, the mandate was within Congress’s power to raise taxes for the general welfare. As a result, the Affordable Care Act was upheld.

The court essentially said that Congress could not require people to buy something in the private economy, but they could fine them if they didn’t.

With this ruling, Roberts avoided what was certain to be a cascade of criticism of the high court. No Supreme Court has struck down a president’s signature piece of legislation in over 75 years.

Had Obamacare been voided, it would have inevitably led to charges of aggressive judicial activism.

Roberts peered over the abyss and decided he didn’t want to go there.

 

Now what???

So ObamaCare lives.   What does this mean to you and People with HIV/AIDS?

What this means to you:  Click Here

To read more of how this may affect People with HIV/AIDS: Click Here

Read Full Post »

Healthcare Unconstitutional?

Posted in Government, Health, tagged , , on December 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »

A federal judge has ruled that a key provision of the Obama administration’s health care law is unconstitutional.

The 42-page opinion by U.S. District Court Judge Henry Hudson shores up the argument by conservatives. The judge, a 2002 appointee of George W. Bush, ruled that the law’s “individual mandate” requiring everyone to have health insurance goes beyond the powers of Congress to regulate interstate commerce.

Two Democratic judges have dismissed cases against the New health care plan, but there are at least a dozen suits headed to federal courts. Let’s keep an eye on this.

Read Full Post »