Question: Last year, for the first time, I was able to afford health insurance. When I ended up in the hospital, I thought that my health plan would cover all of the care I needed. But, it turned out that I still had huge bills from my stay because my plan has an “annual limit.” [...]
Health Reform Question of the Week: I have heard that beginning in January 2011, I will have to pay taxes on my family’s health insurance, which I now obtain tax-free through my employer. My family and I are proud to pay our fair share of taxes, but our budget is already tight and we have [...]
Health Reform Question of the Week: How will the penalties for not having coverage be enforced? I already can’t pay for coverage now—will I be fined or sent to jail if I don’t have health insurance? ANSWER: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (or “Affordable Care Act”) is designed to make sure that people [...]
Question of the Week: I have a “pre-existing condition” because I had a joint in my leg fixed from a sports injury. Since the repair has been made and no additional work is required, I think it is unfair that this is considered a pre-existing condition that makes me ineligible for insurance that I can [...]
Question: Will there eventually be a public option? Answer: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, signed by President Obama on March 23, 2010, is a huge step forward for health care consumers. It will bring quality, affordable coverage to all Americans through the creation of health insurance exchanges (marketplaces where people can shop for [...]
I have a 22-year-old daughter without health insurance. She is a part-time college student and works for an employer who does not offer health insurance. I work full time at a hospital and have coverage through my employer, and my employer also offers dependent coverage. I’ve heard that with the new health care law, my [...]
QUESTION: I am an active person. I exercise and eat right, maintaining a healthy life style. I have been doing so for more the 3 years now. Will my premiums be lower because I am staying healthy? There are two main insurance company practices to discuss when it comes to this question: health status rating [...]
Q: I work in a small business. We just learned that our premium is going up 33% so we will need to go with a different, less expensive plan with less generous benefits. Will the Department of Health and Human Services ever be looking to scrutinize these types of rate hikes to see if these [...]
I have been unemployed since December 2008, and my husband works for a very small company with 5-6 employees that does not offer healthcare. Will health reform mandate all employers, regardless of size, to provide healthcare? Health reform does not mandate that small employers offer coverage to their workers. However, it does make it easier [...]
Will health reform require new health care plans to cover pregnancy care and delivery by midwives? Will lactation consultants’ services be covered? Under health reform, health plans will cover standardized, comprehensive benefit packages. The law sets out general categories of benefits that must be covered, and these categories include maternity and newborn care. The details [...]
MomsRising.org strongly encourages our visitors to post comments in response to blog postings. We value a diverse range of opinions and perspectives. Our goal is for this space to be educational, thought provoking and respectful. To this end, we reserve the right to edit or remove comments that include personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity or profanity.
