Heath Care Reform

Young adults in Kansas can now stay under their parent’s policy. The new health law mandates Kansas health insurance companies to allow parents to keep their children in their policy until age 26. 21,679 young adults in Kansas have benefited from this  plan (as of June 2011).

Because of the new law, Medicare members no longer need to worry about their extra prescription cost. Once they reach the donut hole in 2010, they are sent a check for a $250 rebate. 41,292 seniors in Kansas have received the rebate to offset the cost of their prescription drugs. A 50 percent discount was also given for brand name drugs once they’ve hit the donut hole. This resulted to an average savings of $23,437,243 for Kansas Medicare members. The Affordable Care Act aims to close the donut hole by 2020.

One of the provisions of the health care reform is to provide preventive care services free of charge for Medicare members and those enrolled under private plans. 2011, 313,085 Medicare members and 529,000 private plan members in Kansas have received free preventive care services like colonoscopy and mammograms.

When looking at Kansas health insurance quotes, applicants are assured that at least 80 percent of the price will go directly to health care services and other related improvements. 743,000 Kansas residents are now able to maximize their premium.

Insurers are no longer allowed to impose a lifetime limit on their members’ benefits. 1,021,000 Kansas residents are now free from having lifetime limits on their coverage. Patients with chronic diseases don’t have to worry about maximizing their limit because of their accumulating medical costs.

Through the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, Kansas residents who have pre-existing condition can now have affordable coverage. As of 2011, 301 residents now have a Kansas health insurance. Without this provision, they would still remain uninsured.

Kansas has received a $6 million grant to develop more health programs and policies. They have also received $8.6 million to create more health centers and to improve existing centers and the quality of health care delivered.

Closing the Medicare Part D donut hole. Last year, roughly 35,500 Medicare beneficiaries in Kansas hit the donut hole, or gap in Medicare Part D drug coverage, and received no extra help to defray the cost of their prescription drugs.2 Medicare beneficiaries in Kansas who hit the gap this year will automatically be mailed a one-time $250 rebate check. These checks will begin to be mailed to beneficiaries in mid-June and will be mailed monthly throughout the year as new beneficiaries hit the donut hole. The new law continues to provide additional discounts for seniors on Medicare in the years ahead and completely closes the donut hole by 2020. 

Support for health coverage for early retirees. An estimated 30,300 people from Kansas retired before they were eligible for Medicare and have health coverage through their former employers. Unfortunately, the number of firms that provide health coverage to their retirees has decreased over time.3  Beginning June 1, 2010, a $5 billion temporary early retiree reinsurance program will help stabilize early retiree coverage and help ensure that firms continue to provide health coverage to their early retirees. Companies, unions, and state and local governments are eligible for these benefits.

New consumer protections in the insurance market beginning on or after September 23, 2010.

Insurance companies will no longer be able to place lifetime limits on the coverage they provide, ensuring that the 1.7 million Kansas residents with private insurance coverage never have to worry about their coverage running out and facing catastrophic out-of-pocket costs.

Insurance companies will be banned from dropping people from coverage when they get sick, protecting the 183,000 individuals who purchase insurance in the individual market from dishonest insurance practices.

Insurance companies will not be able to exclude children from coverage because of a pre-existing condition, giving parents across Kansas peace of mind.

Insurance plans’ use of annual limits will be tightly regulated to ensure access to needed care.  This will protect the 1.5 million residents of Kansas with health insurance from their employer, along with anyone who signs up with a new insurance plan in Kansas.

Health insurers offering new plans will have to develop an appeals process to make it easy for enrollees to dispute the denial of a medical claim.

Patients’ choice of doctors will be protected by allowing plan members in new plans to pick any participating primary care provider, prohibiting insurers from requiring prior authorization before a woman sees an ob-gyn, and ensuring access to emergency care.

Extending coverage to young adults. Beginning on or after September 23, 2010, plans and issuers that offer coverage to children on their parents’ policy must allow children to remain on their parents’ policy until they turn 26, unless the adult child has another offer of job-based coverage in some cases. This provision will bring relief to roughly 16,800 individuals in Kansas who could now have quality affordable coverage through their parents.4  Some employers and the vast majority of insurers have agreed to cover adult children immediately.

Affordable insurance for uninsured with pre-existing conditions. $36.5 million federal dollars are available to Kansas starting July 1 to provide coverage for uninsured residents with pre-existing medical conditions through a new transitional high-risk pool program, funded entirely by the Federal government. The program is a bridge to 2014 when Americans will have access to affordable coverage options in the new health insurance exchanges and insurance companies will be prohibited from denying coverage to Americans with pre-existing conditions. If states choose not to run the program, the Federal government will administer the program for those residents.

Strengthening community health centers. Beginning October 1, 2010, increased funding for Community Health Centers will help nearly double the number of patients seen by the centers over the next five years. The funding could not only help the 36 Community Health Centers in Kansas but also support the construction of new centers.

More doctors where people need them. Beginning October 1, 2010, the Act will provide funding for the National Health Service Corps ($1.5 billion over five years) for scholarships and loan repayments for doctors, nurses and other health care providers who work in areas with a shortage of health professionals. This will help the 12% of Kansas’s population who live in an underserved area.

New Medicaid options for states. For the first time, Kansas has the option of Federal Medicaid funding for coverage for all low-income populations, irrespective of age, disability, or family status.