Support Up, Opposition Down
Half of the public now supports the new health reform law, while 35% of U.S. residents view the legislation unfavorably, a six percentage-point decline from June, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation monthly tracking poll released today. The rate of U.S. residents in July who held a favorable view of the law is up slightly from 48% in June and marks the highest level of approval that Kaiser's poll has found for the law since its March passage. Sixty-nine percent of self-identified Republicans said they opposed the law -- roughly the same response as previous surveys -- but 53% of Republicans said they had a "very unfavorable" view of the legislation, up from 50% last month. Meanwhile, 48% of independents said they favored the law -- down slightly from 49% in June -- while 37% viewed it unfavorably, down from 41% the month prior. The poll also found that U.S. residents ages 65 and older -- a key voting bloc in November's midterm elections -- tended to view the law more negatively than adults overall, and were more likely to believe misconceptions about the overhaul, including that the law would create so-called "death panels."
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Cooperation and Coordination
A growing number of U.S. physicians and independent hospital systems are seeking to form alliances that provide a coordinated system of care in order to reap benefits under the new health reform law. Such alliances, known as accountable care organizations, usually are led by large hospital systems and require local physicians to give up their private practices for a paid position on the hospitals' teams. The overhaul stipulates that Medicare reward ACOs that improve the quality of care for patients while reducing costs. Health policy experts during the reform debate argued that this unified approach to medical care offered the best hope of raising the standard of care, ensuring better outcomes for patients and reducing costs. However, some observers have raised concerns that ACOs could lead to the consolidation of the health care industry, which could drive up costs.
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Bewildered by Reform
A survey released on Monday by the National Council on Aging found that a majority of elderly U.S. residents are ill-informed regarding the new health reform law. For example, the survey found that just 17% of respondents ages 65 and older answered half of the 12 random questions about the new reform law and its key provisions. In fact, none of the respondents correctly answered all 12 questions and nearly half of the respondents incorrectly said the federal health reform law will increase the national deficit over the next 10 years, among other misconceptions. NCOA officials said the survey illustrates the broad misinformation about the health reform law among elderly U.S. residents and concluded that lawmakers from both parties were to blame for the misinformation. The survey coincided with a new NCOA national education campaign to help elderly U.S. residents better understand the mechanics and benefits of the overhaul.
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The Kids Aren't Alright
Major health insurance companies that serve Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma and other states no longer are offering plans specifically for children in response a requirement under the new health reform law that insurers cover children regardless of pre-existing conditions, according to National Association of Insurance Commissioners officials. At least three NAIC members have said insurers in their states already have dropped child-only plans or have discussed the idea. Under the overhaul, insurers are required to honor all applications for child-only coverage, and parents can sign up for the plans at any time, particularly when their children get sick. Parents then can halt payments when they no longer need coverage, which insurance industry officials say drives up medical costs and makes insurers' financial risk unmanageable. Some insurers and state insurance commissioners have suggested implementing an open enrollment period for guaranteed children's coverage.
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Waiting Is the Hardest Part
Officials with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners said yesterday that they are "hopeful" that they will complete guidelines to define administrative and medical spending under medical-loss ratio rules that are part of the new health reform law by mid-August. Under the overhaul, large health plans beginning on Jan. 1, 2011, will be required to spend at least 85% of premiums on medical services and quality improvement, rather than administrative costs or profits. MLR for individual and small-group health plans must be at least 80%. A committee of NAIC members tasked with developing the spending guidelines is meeting this week to determine which services qualify as medical care. Although the new reform law requires the recommendations to be made by year's end, federal health officials had urged the group to submit the draft guidelines by the end of May to give insurance companies ample time to adjust to the new regulations.
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