Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Ten Things to Consider Before Buying an Expatriate Health Insurance

Ten Things to Consider Before Buying an Expatriate Health Insurance
Ten Things to Consider Before Buying an Expatriate Health Insurance

This article is springing up with an focus to educate and get smartly an expat or a personal that planning to calm down in a foreign kingdom with the will of policy. When you intend to maneuver overseas on your own or with nuclear personal family participants, I am certain you would possibly have a catalogue of products to full ahead of than you board.  The listing would possibly smartly perchance visible charm long and intensely enormous ones like accommodation, childrens college, financial concerns is likewise the first internal the listing. But along facet those optimistic aspects, it's perpetually enormous to be conscious the will of an policy additionally interested by of 1 and all new domain is full of surprises which you and your nuclear personal family cannot ever be expecting.

Nowadays getting a world medical policy is so fundamental as like that, you go online you get the gold overall in construction that satisfies your needs. You would possibly smartly perchance also find a right global wellbeing policy for a competent charge with a view to never assume about. A preferrred medical policy complements your life-fashion in whichever domain you desire to to retailer for a shorter or a longer measurement. To recognize expanded, the wellbeing undertaking had changed vastly for the time of remainder few decades, it's now no longer simplest a charge readily achievable wellbeing plan to avoid losing precious really worth quantity alone.  Before you get a tradition designed or a right in construction plan for your needs, you desire to to comprehend the hidden or a minimum of considered terms in touch in an policy payment.

You can find the cut down than-listed propose that would possibly lead you to head for a sensible preference for medical policy.

Never take propose from a personal this is now no longer certified sufficient internal the container of medical policy.
Never analyze yourself with numerous interested by of 1 and all grownup is exclusively dissimilar and so their needs are. You would possibly smartly perchance conclusion up healthful now on the other hand the instances and the weather would possibly smartly perchance make you sick one and all time of your retailer.
Determine yours and your households precise want. You can get an trust by studying and interested by of earlier defect and defect background of your nuclear personal family participants and even yours.
Always go for an policy  accommodate the current day defect and ailments.
More enormous, be knowledgeable to comprehend the coverages.
Present policy plan now no longer simplest promises you the assist to pay medical charges, hospital charges and the prescribed drug charge. It additionally covers the Medicare, Medicaid for explicit ladies folk and men, senior residents and ladies folk and men with disabilities.
Resist your urge to over insure. Always comprehend your want and be knowledgeable to prevent the unnecessary coverages, which is now no longer going to be smartly suitable to you at any aspect of time.
You can find an limitless listing of expatriate wellbeing publications online, on the other hand ahead of than you conclude one it's a should to analyze the obtainable preference internal the particulars.
Make a financial plan which in flip will enable you go for the plan that matches your nuclear personal family needs.
Most enormous thing is that to comprehend the employer's terms and stipulations and their applicability over the countries. So be explicit the sole that you only going to opt has the possibilities that you only wanting out for to seek out. If you would possibly be anyone who is one typical move across the barriers, then go for a plan wisely.

Health policy plan for expatriates are unquestionably high normal and also you would possibly smartly perchance also find the service suppliers all simply by the realm. The government of 1 and all kingdom has their personal wellbeing plan to house their ladies folk and men and the expats. It is very enormous to comprehend the domain and their laws ahead of than you pick with no delay to buy a medical policy. Sometimes the policy that you only buy cannot be authentic in government personal hospitals or clinics. So asking inquiries to yourself ahead of than obtaining an expat medical policy will make your retailer greater fruitful and fulfilling.

Saturday, July 28, 2018

Supplementary Health and Dental Insurance 101 - Young Guys Finance

Supplementary Health and
Isn't there a way I can get this cheaper? November is Financial Literacy month in Canada. So today were really excited to be partnering with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario, also known as FSCO to talk about
supplementary health or dental insurance. Specifically, what it is, how it works, and
why its important for you. We also did a video on how life insurance
works, and you can find the link in the description below.

So, supplementary health or dental insurance. You might think that you already have coverage through your provincial plan. In Ontario, this is known as the Ontario Health Insurance Plan or OHIP. But OHIP and other provincial health insurance plans only cover some medical expenses.

This includes basic costs like seeing a doctor at a public clinic. There are options available to Canadians that cover expenses above and beyond those covered by your provincial health insurance plan. These are separate plans known as supplementary, extended, or private health insurance and dental insurance. Our thoughts about health insurance are that as we get older, were no longer invincible.

Growing up, I had really good eyesight. Although in the last couple of years, as I
started working full time and staring at the computer screen, my eyesight got worse. Im not blind, but I recently bought prescription sunglasses for when I drive. And the cost shocked me.

So how does supplementary health or dental insurance work? When you sign up for these plans, you agree to make payments once a month or once a year. These payments are called premiums. Your plan will outline the eligible expenses that the provider will pay for. Some will cover all of the expense while
some might only cover a percentage of it.

So for example, OHIP doesnt cover the costs of getting glasses, but some supplementary health insurance plans do. Lets say Ive been paying into an supplementary health insurance plan and now I need to buy glasses. If my plan says that 90% of fees are covered,
then I only have to pay the remaining 10% out of pocket. So now that my glasses cost less, I don't
have to sell any of my precious collectibles to afford them Of course this is all dependent on the plan
that you've purchased, but some common examples of expenses covered include vision, physiotherapy, massage therapy, and more.

For dental coverage you probably have to buy a separate plan Now that you have an understanding about how
supplementary health insurance or dental insurance works, you might be wondering how to get coverage. If youre currently employed, be sure to
ask your HR department about employee health benefits and take some time to understand if youre covered and what youre covered for This is important because youre already
paying for these benefits, so you should use them when you need to. If you arent covered but are considering
supplementary health insurance or dental insurance, you can always talk to an insurance agent. FSCO has provided some great resources on it's brand new website Which you can find the link in the description below.

Again, thank you to FSCO for working with
us to spread the word about supplementary health and dental insurance to Canadians. Thanks for watching, be sure to like, comment,
and subscribe below!.

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

See If You Are Covered By Health Insurance

See If You Are Covered By Health Insurance
See If You Are Covered By Health Insurance

With the ever-increasing significance of fitness care, processes and remedy, it really is not really always any surprise that the importance of medical insurance coverage has also dramatically risen over the obsolete few years. But as which is came about, insurance coverage services and the administrative have spotted the reap volatile have an quit result on of families and the ones with out insurance coverage. There are a type of concerns that you just could do in case you may smartly smartly also not have medical insurance coverage.

A federal mandate requires that every one 50 states have a medical insurance coverage program for small children. Each nation changed into allowed to create a plan adapted to the calls for of small children in that nation, on the other hand there are a variety of concerns which are a similar from one nation to the subsequent. The first is eligibility.

Government funded fitness guides maximum in some cases have very stringent gains figuring out. These medical insurance coverage guides have gains needs, on the other hand the pointers permit better gains than maximum guides.

Another pointers for participation is that the infant is in basic terms not coated as a result of each and every other medical insurance coverage. That differs from maximum guides in a entirely primary manner. Most guides say that if the circle of family has get accurate to apply to insurance coverage, they don't seem to be eligible. That functionality that those that have employer-dependent most many times insurance coverage do not qualify. But so much of the employer-dependent most many times plans are too pricey, and workforce each and every so progressively with out problems can't have adequate cash the premiums. This program is designed to lend a hand fill that hole.

These guides do not cowl families - simplest small children. But there are a variety of tremendous benefits for the ones who qualify. Some states be supplying highbrow fitness benefits, transportation to and from appointments and dental/imaginative and prescient benefits.

If your small children do not qualify for this program, or in case you're obtainable at hand in the market for confidential medical insurance coverage for an adult or deepest insurance coverage for a circle of family, you've got a type of commerce chances. Even although insurance coverage is maximum in some cases very pricey, that you just could take a type of steps to glance after bills.

You can eliminate extras such as imaginative and prescient and dental insurance coverage coverage, and pattern deductibles to scale down the importance of your insurance coverage premiums. Look for rules that do not contain maternity benefits and cancer plans as extra economical usual medical insurance coverage plans. Basic insurance coverage coverage is generally low significance than an all-inclusive medical insurance coverage program.

Finally, save in the earlier you make a title. Even in case you're  employer-dependent most many times insurance coverage, you may smartly smartly also uncover the subsequent deal in other puts (reckoning on the quantity of employer participation). Look to trained teams for coupon codes and rules.

Friday, July 20, 2018

Stop-Loss or reinsurance and Self-funded health insurance

Stop-Loss or reinsurance and Self-funded health insurance
All right! Well this is Mark Sequeira at Good Neighbor Insurance, and today we are going to be talking to one of our specialists in self-funding, and partial self-insuring,
partial self-funding. Dale Bear, so welcome Dale. Thank you for joining us today. Hello Mark.

Good to be here. It's a great day. Yeah! Always technical difficulties with Google Hangout, but that's all right. It's wonderful to see you and I know we've been keeping you busy, and you've been busy, so thanks for taking your time.

Today specifically, I know that we wanted to speak a little bit to our clients and potential clients about reinsurance, and stop-loss insurance. So, maybe you can start if somebody is frankly pretty new to this whole concept, just tell us a little about what that is, and why somebody might use it. Well, you mentioned at the front that we're dealing with partial self-insured, and I call it that whether you're at, your deductible's $150,000 or your deductible's $2,000, so today, we're mainly going to talk about
the higher end of that, what most people would consider self-funding their group, but just so they understand, that would involve where they're paying the main claim up to a spec level, it's what we call a
spec, or a reinsurance level, where you're actually then buying insurance to cover the rest of that. There's three main pieces, I guess I would say, to self-funding.

You have your part of whatever you're gonna pick, that you're going to actually pay for
yourself. You have a TPA that handles that for you:
third party administrator. They're the ones that will actually do your claims, as far as your employees are concerned. They'll be considered the insurance company, so when it says, when you say something like under a fully insured plan, well Blue Cross paid, Well in this case whoever your TPA is will become that name, so as far as your folks are concerned, that will be your insurance company.

As part of that, they may use a PPO, a preferred provider organization, or someone that gets discounts. So you might also refer to your plan under that, and then finally we would have a reinsurance company, that we would buy for high risk, for catastrophic loss, and those would be seamless, behind the scenes, as far as reinsurance carriers. The only ones that would know about that would be yourselves within your contracts. So, on self-insured, you basically handle all your claims for anybody up to whatever deductible you choose that makes sense for you.

It's done by a third-party administrator if those claims go over a certain amount, over a certain deductible, then that reinsurance company kicks in and pays the remainder. And that's a very simplified picture of self-insured. So, let's talk about risk a little bit. So, when we're talking self-funded, obviously since these people are basically insuring themselves.

The stop-loss if somebody has a claim, they find out they have stage two cancer or something. It's going to be very expensive. At that point, this re-insurance is gonna kick in at $50,000, $100,000,  whatever for that person, to take anything after that and pay it? Yeah, depends on the contract and how you do it. You can, you know there's even aggregating specs, or aggregating specifics.

But, that's getting a little complicated so let's just talk about, let's just take for example a large claim like you just mentioned, let's say it is someone that's gonna run a $400,000 bill. Let's just put it that way. And you're self insuring, as a company, you know, what's that gonna look like? And let's just use for an example, let's say you set it up and you have a third-party administrator. And you have a PPO network, let's just name one of them out there, let's say you use First Health.

Unless you use one of the major companies out there that's doing yourself funding, you have to use a rentable PPO, someone that will allow you to rent their network without them doing your claims also. So you're going to do something like a First Health, or like a PHCS, or a multi-plan, Med Cost, there are several units out there that are PPO networks. So you've selected that. What happens on it, and you've also selected your reinsurance, so let's say in this case your reinsurance is going to kick in at a $100,000 if you have a claim.

So this large claim comes through, the claim goes to your TPA, well it usally goes first to the PPO, to get repriced, to the network, they'll usually reprice the claim, then it goes to the TPA, the TPA will pay it. What they will do, the TPA does the technical work for you, so they send you the bill for the first $100,000. You're expected to pay that. That's one of the things with self-insuring, you have to make sure you have plenty of reserves and cash flow because like this, a big claim that gets in one month, you've gotta pay that $100,00 in one month, let alone the other claims that are coming in that month.

So
sometimes cash flow can be a problem. So you'll pay the $100,00. The TPA will actually verify that in fact this is a claim that hits the $100,00 spec. They send that to your reinsurance carrier, whoever that might be, say HTC or might be, Employers Reinsurance Corporation, etc.

There's a lot of, White Mountain Reinsurance, there's several, Lloyd's of London. They're all reinsurance companies. And they will look at it, they will verify that in fact it hits your spec, and then they will basically take over the claim at that point for the period of your contract. So once you hit the $100,000 spec with that employee, now they will pay 100% of the rest the claim for whatever the contract is and let's say it is an ACA compliant plan that you set up, which you have to because you're in a  plan with a self-insured plan.

So it's unlimited, but the only limitation you'll have on it is the annual contract period. So let's say, let's keep it simple, let's say you have a January-December contract period. And this happens in July. So in July you have, the claim comes in several pieces, so let's say it comes in,
the first few hundred thousand.

So you paid 100, reinsurance carriers now
paid 100. They will continue paying any claim on that employee until December 31st when you renew. That brings up some other interesting things with self-insured that you have to make sure that you have done right in the area of contracts. You want to get in the contracts now? Of how reinsurance contracts, etc? Is that something you'd be interested in? That we might have to hold for another
day.

And/or have people call you obviously, because I know this is a vastly complicated field, and I'm sure you would tell people that they shouldn't be trying to necessarily do this on their own. I think that... Well some people fear large claims like we just talked about. But, in reality, one large claim isn't too much of a problem.

If it's an ongoing claim, it can be a problem on renewing your reinsurance In some cases the reinsurance may laser out a particular employee of yours. For instance, let's take the same example
we had. Let's say this is an ongoing cancer case and it's not going to end on January 1st. If you haven't been careful with the reinsurance company that you've shopped for, they may come back to you and say, okay, next year we will renew for January through December, at this rate.

They give you a rate that's close maybe to where you had before, maybe a little up, depends on the rest of your claims. But then they say on this specific employee, we're going to laser him out. And that may mean that they say you have to stay in the first 300,000 on him. Then we will kick in after that.

That's called lasering and they can do that, and they do do that. But part of the thing
when you set it up, you want to be careful that you get a company that either guarantees you that they won't laser, and sometimes that has to do with the size of your group.. Frankly, you may not be able to do that, so you may just have to be aware of that. The problem with laser renew is you're stuck, because at that point when the claim is happening, you can't go anywhere else.

You can't go to a fully insured carrier at that point. You can't go to another reinsurance company. So if you do get lasered with a claim, in that example then you're going to have to pay the bill, and if they say we'll laser to 400, You just hope that the person is not going to have that much treatment the next year. Because what can happen is, you'll pay
the first $400,00 of claims.

Let's say he has half a million in claims the
next year. You will pay 400, then the reinsurance carrier will kick in and pay an additional 100. And that will make your self-insured health plan look pretty bad. It can be very high.

That's why we also get in the area of talking about reserves and having your eyes open before you go into a self-insured plan. Now, I'm bringing up some real problems there Mark, because as a whole, you don't have that happen. I would say probably you know, maybe 1 out of 20 have ever even know what a laser is, that are doing self-insured. But you just got to make sure that guys who set it up for you are professional and know what's going on with it.

So, that's why you wanna ask the questions, and know what's going on before you jump into something that later on you don't want to have a "gotcha." Yeah, and this I really appreciate that. That's one reason why we love working with you, and we recommend you to our clients. And one of the things practically that partial self-insuring or partial self-funding as we call it. It's really going to protect against some of that if they're concerned about those kinds of issues.

That way they're not gonna, that's not going to happen to them. Explain a little bit more, and we're a going to talk about reserves as well, in another hangout here. But explain to me, my be define for myself, our listeners, aggregate stop loss versus specific stop loss. Ok.

There's different terms floating around. Yeah, it's a, you know those are technical terms. But let's go back to our example. We were buying $100,000 of reinsurance.

So the reinsurance kicked in at $100,000. Let's say, and you remember I just talked about, if you have one large claim it's not too bad.
It's not going to hurt you. But what happens if you have ten. Let's say your group is 200 in size: 200 units.

And let's say you have 10 claims that come in that are over $500,000. Now, that'd be very unusual, but it could happen. And if it did, the way you're setup on self-insured, you'd have to pay the bill. So, you could have ten $100,00 payments you had to make, in addition to the premium you're paying
for the reinsurance, and the rest the of claims you're paying for the rest of the group.

So, you can run some very large numbers there. So the reinsurance company's to help you with that, knowing that if that happened it would be a very unusual thing. They will sell what's called aggregate. A lot of times in large groups, it's referred to as sleep insurance.

Just so that you're sure that you've locked in the most something could cost you. And so, aggregate insurance usally is done by your reinsurance carrier. It'll be under the same contract. They'll simply figure what you're expected claims are going to be.

They wanted 25 percent do that can come up with the spec or a number that your entire group as in aggregate as a total together did reach if the reach that number then they would go ahead and pay a 100
percent any bill from anybody from that point forward so let's
take our same example here two hundred thousand dollars back let's say we have
two hundred employees are units and in it it was a year expected claims are going
to be this billion dollars misuse use that as
a with 200 units that might be a little
bit low but no depends on where they rapin in the US
that our rates right now yeah we had that so
say here two million dollars is you're expecting claims they will set this back raid the that
aggregate raid at a hundred in are in it 1,000,000 and 250,000 so if you reach 1,250,000 in overall claims they will now go in P all clients even if you have someone that's never
met any of their deductible even the first five dollar they meet the
reinsurance cure basically will kick in and pay the additional on all a bit it using the that spec is
usually reached at a hundred and are 125 percent 25 percent more than
expected claims now they charge for that and that'll be
part of the quote that they would give you the %ah
give you a quote for the 100000 spec and then they'll give you a
quote for aggregate you can buy it with or without aggregate in like I said we call it
sleep insurance because most the time it does not use that you're ever in a case where you
have a lot of clinton's a large number of claims the end you'll
be really glad you bot aggregate because it limits your losses in so you can actually go into your
books in is the only only way you can figure on the
self-insured ok what your total budget could be is if
you have an aggregate on you grew gives them $1 million to $50 you know that's the most you're gonna
pay in addition to your third party administrator new PB
you know we should just pay in on a on a monthly
basis but you take that speck number one
million to $50 you add it to your TBA. Cost unit to your PB 0 that's the most it can cost you for the
year under self-insured if you have angered who it can be a very
good idea the smaller the group the more I
recommend going to an aggregate in it's simply
because usually smaller groups don't have the research to put in place to are set something that's Dennis
traffic k so a smaller group let's say YUM would
say we have bomb a lot of our overseas clients I
mean what you say we have you covered he units that are going to cover at
least some circles your allow what kinda but random amount dollar amount would
you I mean Justin general I mean ballpark mean obviously
we don't know the ages those people we don't know the club's history but adjusted just in general ballpark um what specific a what specific number are
we looking at generally what aggregate number looking
at generally is deductible let senator star Spencer
50000 100000 per individual per specific im when I do when you do a lot of a lot
brokers don't do this in I think they should andrew is coming into with the
pre-determined number so if they have a hundred or more than
90 say okay a hundred thousand is fine if they have two hundred or more than
they'll say in 150 to 200 is fine they may have a pre disposed number in mind on there's some brokers I would
tell you if you have 50 units you shouldn't be self-insured I is simply say you checked the market in you see once they hear so to tell you
what spec is right for you want that amount is I have to get the
numbers have to see what they are because your
group maybe younger in baby I'll very healthy et cetera there's a lot of
things that go into what the reinsurer what makes up the reinsurance quote then we basically put that into a
spreadsheet once we get those reinsurance numbers in we see what would happen for instance
I have several people that will tell me on a group of the you should go over sixty thousand
dollars in spec I would disagree and had a group B room just use me you little bit of allergies home trying
to know that I'm sorry but I have a group with eighty it for
several years have been on a spectrum a hundred and fifty thousand dollars but it's worked for that group in every
time the quote has come for the reinsurance
company we put it into a spreadsheet to look and how many claims they would have to
have how many those actually they have to meet igor
the premium paid was too much compared to a sixty thousand understand
a sixty thousand dollars but it's gonna cost you a lot more then a hundred and fifty thousand
dollars back just as a one thousand dollar deductible
plan cost you more than a five thousand dollar not play it's the same scenario you're just in larger numbers so I always look at what the quotas I'm I can see a case where 50 units could have a hundred thousand dollars
back it depends on the quote he and in that
case I would make sure they might aggregate in shirts with it when I would have that
in front of me so I be able to inform the client in an intelligent way so that they know
what it is so they know what their risk is and you know what's gonna happen in so I'm I am NOT one of those term I across the board there's just a
lot of folks out there that you're under 100 and size are gonna say
fifty to sixty thousand in Richards most the time I just tell you a little
secret there most the time brokers do look at commissions paid I know that's a
surprise for were some love you but they do in if they buy a lower spec 50,000 spec it's gonna cost you a lot more in you
see there's Commission bilby into that use each home when it's in the herd in
so if they're getting five percent let's
say I love that in Nome you know your premium is on 200,000 as opposed to a hundred
thousand they're gonna make twice as much as they
do on on that piece so that's why I put the numbers in from
the client in I do things that make it makes sense and you know I will put them at risk I
won't say where your group of 30 so must write two hundred thousand spec
who knows maybe it'll work this year maybe we'll
have a client no you don't do that in you should know in
self-insured there will be what they call the years 7 in after seven years you will have a bad
year it will happen in sometimes bad years
even come back to back because a lot and if you have someone
that has a large claim it may be ongoing in so sometimes those
aren't catch back to back the end so I don't 90 lay a certain
number and let the numbers tell me where to go
for that for that Klein wearing it yeah appreciate that that's really
the or the reasons why you know work with
you and have you up clients is so nice because I mean that
really is a sweet science industry background experience on the deck is it doing this for large
group for medium-sized its really is you know it's it's it's
refreshing and yeah I know it I notice I it's a
minute scene i've seen some other summer the ways you show that to clients
and and other breakdowns that not only in it
fully not going to self-insure does it was a little in cell culture but in up her please I'll find it but up partially self-insured that same thing
to help them really binder the sweet spot for them and there is the
slightest you have to be for the client mark I
mean that's it always takes care of itself but we really have a different gonna look at
it I mean I don't know what my company's new one
per se I don't look at it that way I don't go
you know if we would write this client then we would do XYZ. Idoney I look at the client's a you know
how can I help the client where that goes nope I may come to me and say hey let's
be self-insured I'm I'm looking at that lets go that route
in we may find out that the really can be partial self-insured but the really need to have what would
be normally known as fully insured product
in only have a two thousand dollar deductible in dude offer then it might make more
sense for them in by Silvestre someone that's very
young that has a lot of them you know very well people and they've
not had any claims and they feel like they're just foreign you know money into this big
insurance company and not realize anything it may make sense for
them no matter their size to go into a
self-insured product so again this be for the client units you know it's it's fine some christiana so we mentioned something
about these back to back claims her some no one in seven new starters on tape can
you top this little bit about I i know im stop-loss insurance
reinsurance there's you might hear these terms at 12
1215 12 $12.50 Nom just briefly he made the define the weather 15 well over 1250
would be in yeya somebody why that would be
important for somebody arm work itself insurance or so funding
most look a star let's start with the standard the
standard would be once referred to as a 12-12 contract means if
a claim was incurred in a 12-month period January through
December lets users an example they and the claim has to be incurred
from January 1 to December 31st and it also has to be paid from January 1 to December 31st that's a standard contract that will be
your lowest quoted contract in a lot of people will
say well that's not a problem I'll just do that well
here's the downsides a bit the a and number on the front we will only talk about
like the 15 12 yr 1515 understand and I well as go back to the
number how'd we get work well it just refers to the number of months
that is covered for the twelve on the front is for incurred
the twelve on the back is for paid oh now if I say 1512 that means we're going to cover 15 min
to be incurred whatever the dates are in that contract
in twelve months I love any so here's what happens so your brand new you're just going into
it your you're going to be 12 on the first
one is this going to be incurred in January to December you don't have to
worry about any time in the prior to January 1 because it's being handled by your
current company are whatever you're doing right now so we need run out claims and stuff that
may come from that are going to be taking care plan that
company so you're gonna have a 12 contract in your first contract if you
go who a self-insured typeof country then at the end up and that December 12 your cheapest reinsurance remember is
1212 so you're going to be tempted to in that at December 31st hoping because thats all you're doing hoping
that you will have a claim that incurs on let's say December 25th or 26th that's a catastrophically let's say a
heart attack as someone goes in form is in intensive
care and you have a period in there that you know you know it's not going to get
paid by time December 31st comes you know incurred there will be paid um now what's the chances of that
happening and that being very large it's pretty
small but I've seen it happen arm so what
happened with a group who had a 12-12 contract in a guy with Ian in December the 23rd any had the malfunctioning arm heart probably no. No heart monitor type: he and it got
infected they replaced it who they didn't get the infection
continued anyway without going into nuts-and-bolts they ended up with a two hundred thousand dollar claim in the
last part of that year their reinsurance was a hundred thousand
dollars though and they had two hundred thousand
it didn't kick in because the claim couldn't get paid by
December 31st remember the provider has to bill it has
to go through appo network up some Diet to get your
discounts the also verified that in fact it happen
me you know then to go through several things bien there's no way that is going to get
paid by December 31st so what happens is it doesn't meet the qualification at the
plan so it didn't pay ything in the school
had to pay that two hundred thousand dollars out-of-pocket because they were
self-insured um that can happen so how you how you
guardians that you may buy a 12 15 your first year in that's usually the one that i'm gonna
recommended that point this simply means it can be incurred in
the first 12 months but it can be paid over 15 minutes from
January 1 through March 31st so it should any claim even if stinker
December 31st should be able to be paid by December
31st expressions large plain gonna be aware then be there met I know
a lot of people that take the risk there you say when I am gonna pay that lower
now let me tell you sometimes you can find
the reinsurance company that will help you because what your intent with mine at
12:12 it's saving money right we all want to save money though
sometimes you can buy what's called an aggregating spec rape don't confuse that with everything else
ok talked about at this point B.

But it's where they may take those they
may take it and they'll say you pay three fourths over the premium for a hundred thousand dollars back he and if nothing happens then fine thats all UK. Then if you have a client then you will oh the premium with the rest of that 25
percent immediately in then we'll kick in at the
hundred thousand dollars so they give their premium if a claim
occurs after claim doesn't incur you get to keep it it's kind of a way
for them to share now that's not as you'll see it is often
today is she did at 1. Now once probably in 2002-2003 I was
very common you can find a lot of that I'm there are
companies still today that would do that you have to look for it but that could be mmm a way to offset mom that problem on the contracts now let's go the next step you bring new December 31st your your next january 1
so now this is your sexyy Ruiz now you want to make sure that there's
not a claim out there that has it been reported yet or you
don't know about so if you buy on your second year
08/12/12 that means if it's incurred January 1 going forward then it's covered well what if a claim incurred on
december twenty-fifth now your first contract you body 1250 well that's fine it went ahead and paid
for it if it went over the spec but if your renewal if you buy a 12
contract on the front Ian well if team let's say he just repeat
new by 12:15 again well any large claim that occur December
24th December 50 whatever that didn't have time to get
through the system is not covered so if those claims hit
you in January is not going to work any spec unless you
buy 15 50 now you're going to cover 15 months so
you can actually go back and you're going to cover anything from October November December that's
incurred and then for the entire year so January to December so that your fifty
Ian paid is 15 so it's going to be January 1
through March 31st to you so you may you should
buy your sexyy year probably at least if 1550 again I know folks that take the risk they
truly are self-insured when you take the rest there because there are suing and nothing's gonna
happen to them timing wise that would create a real problem iniki
so I'm always if you can do self-insured dude in such a manner that you can lock
in your risk I'm otherwise you're gambling you really
are gambling with dollars that in if you
don't have a very large reserve even if you do why do you want to risk
money when you can lock Indian know what your
risk years in be sure that it's there so those contracts to 1212 just make
sure you cover when is incurred in which made yeah and and Eli know specifically
there's this issue where special your national clients the OS. You get so many people coming home in so
many people's traveling for the holidays from from Thanksgiving onto the end of
the year and actually traveling back home were country they're leaving a recording
only expel home obviously right %uh but you know of their relief
worker there a you know their missionary you're there
I'm somebody teaching you know some school in Africa
someplace um lot at times get people traveling
over the holidays and so imagine you're saying is is very
relevant especially agencies that may not yet have really
train their people and a plan designed as a bit we've talked about before something you specialize in especially
if there are people who are coming home for treatment for things yeah and I they have a train them very
well so they're saving up all their medical issues till they come home for
the holidays and they want to know this treatment before they go back or is it and as really be a problem for a to z:
in just be aware we don't know how the rules are going to
come down but it is interesting if if the CIA makes it so that a returning missionary has 35 days in the
US and then they have to be on it 88 I play under whatever if if the or must back up Lesedi they come through as a rule that
says six months overseas is considered an expat in your exam from acha right without what you may see is a lot of folks that come home in
August were September in go back he and June or maybe because it carries over two years and
yet they can come close to the year be in there but they can still be six
months overseas so they're exempt in in that case if you have a lot of people coming home
toward the end of the year yeah you better make sure that you have
your coverage ride that them in in with missions guys also I just wanna not times a claim may be incurred wherever there
at in nobody knows about it for a while in it may take awhile for that claim to
come true it's not unusual for missionaries to turn inclined months
after the fact now you see those are smaller we're not talking major snow use if
there's a major dollar overseas I mean it's gonna be be even happier evacuation within its
era so hopefully you'll know your large
claims they're meant yeah you bring up some really good
points there just make sure that nom 3 if they see a forces everybody to you know can't come
home nom and certain period time in the house
be the into the year you you better make sure the year
contract ends in 15 at least on you may want to even up then
a little bit more I'm just two coverage but again premium pre-moderate we can put that all
together and we check it out in we see what makes sense in then you at least New Year s cool
into it so so I I liked it we do we touched a
little bit on laser an inherently sorry um agree that though any other things
you specifically can think up in terms of we've been talking now about
reassurances stop-loss but does specifically in terms of
international clients only one thing which was obviously I just brought up the fact international buyers
coming home lifetimes the holidays are traveling over how is that we talk about the fact that there that a lot of times
claims not to know about claims to later any other specific things about the
evacuation there were issues that you're national clients especially need to look at or smaller groups are
doing international were well as with money yes laser or read a statement well as self-insured plans and they say
well we're leaving our own plane so we really don't have to worry about where the claims are incurred in plan design
there's is huge in who if your self insured with
a hundred fifty thousand dollars back plan is just plain design is just as
important for you there as if your mind the five hundred dollar
deductible from you know I MGR at nursing it doesn't really matter you need to look at the
International has a large ppl so that it normally have claims are
incurred overseas they're cheaper than they were in the US.

The USO them Burgess highest place to get medical care people from all over
the world come here for care they do bennett not paying for in the same thing
with your plea in so really if your gonna send up
self-insured make sure you talk to someone in we
specialize in an I'm just making sure your plan design is
such that you're going to get the lowest cost for your claim Dollar that speed we have
group in art fifty to sixty percent other claims
are overseas in its amazing when they are there are a
lot of times their way below what their premium use their p in so if that's true with fully insured you can see what he would do all sorts
of insurance a plan design huge deal most people don't talk about okay so once again just summing up that
the international firm my they might be able to go with different amounts specific up area where simply because they're
dealing with overseas and or in their plan designed again set up in such a way where com maybe there's people treated differently if their
overseas as far as let's pay purses but stated that they come back to
you estimate that rumor if a if an international sending you would do the right plan design then I'd
be very comfortable with raising the specter great um because a lot of times those two
corley because if you get more claims over sees
you're gonna pay less warm and then if you have a larger energy you your claims just aren't very much um
with the rest of the group so you really wanna handle higher spec
on this in in Payless premium for the reinsurance
so now they are they they go together it's the know some
people do one will do the other meant it it well just not no is not one or the other so
yeah if you do self-insure them machine international city no
relation probably has a leg up on a normal company in the US. As the key and yet a beeper Diskin my
hand the claims overseas yeah at the same time though they may be
taking 10 bias and doing what study on the internet that's talking about so
funding it's a time it's basically the same so
coming from the basis other US company with claims in the US not
necessarily people overseas resources site as we talked about what
their party administration how important it is to get international no expert international dv8 aim same
quarter are trying to reach is or is a Showtime
are that that will have a GPA in the US. That they don't even know how to convert
many his between companies because what mister T
PA. Know it's a just a TV in their private
very good de Baux wet because there may be friends with
the organization or whatever their use in somebody to do their GPA
work that basically encourages everybody come home because that's where they're PBR network
is and that's where their claims are they understand in it becomes a hassle do international
claims coming from overseas so it's almost discouraged within the group well now you're almost assure yourself
that you're never 100 percent your claims in the US.

You know the nationalization I'll on the
money the years ago socialite more to say yeah those that that's a huge and
hopefully we'll address that on the website as well and talk about that
that's that's critical they don't this all that we talked a bit
about Lisa M and how when so many years later for a particular member of their group
or maybe your family in the area but
there's a at issue is running their family how they get laser diode or they're
being held hostage basically at that point if I could use this terminology by
the reinsurer because they kept their
insurance that point and now it's three times the amount that %uh percent
I'm be armed talking to yourselves any
recommendations on her insurer that it doesn't have a
history going out or made clear to him that well give us a couple ideas how can companies
or delays or as a template design is it in artists out all in the secrets of the
working with you are there some things you can say that we just hope our people under yeah I it's a secret sauce I'm its barbecue Redskins the city you
know I'm not really while the ladies ring really doesn't have
anything to do with plain design per se arm in really the only way to avoid it is out front planning is the plane ride in have the right company um some international companies will
guarantee renewal okay in they'll say we don't laser so that's a good way to go however now when they say that they will rescue so if you if you had a lot of large
claims they may not laser you no but your reinsurance me double from one year to the next you know it's it's better to find a reinsurance
company few key in that simply says we won't laser your
group in they'll put that in writing in his
party the plan document that that your best way there is really everything else is gonna I'm secondary
to it or like most people do is they just take
the risk and I'm I'm amazed how many people don't
even know till Asian can occur with them until it happens and yet let me just
give you example how that works with you we had a group ET units that we
were talking to you I mention lasering justina you know in
the visit well it is up at the end he told me
about a laser that he had to deal with you know the lady in
the office who was covered underneath their international plan I was pregnant he and just to the
renewal time near the renewal month: over their plan she had a preemie well that was a bad time because the reinsurance company came back input
on laser on the baby 972 thousand dollars because they knew it was a 28-month baby
or whatever they knew is going to be in their long-time in you don't intend seek ear neo-natal
unit in the US I mean your fifteen to twenty-five thousand per
day the you can run in those periods now you
may get some discounts from that meant is still gonna add up very rapidly in
that particular case what happened was the husband didn't
work for the unit in so they changed the baby in the
first 30 days over to his insurance so that employer got hit with it instead
the sending organization mine isnt organization what will you
done if you got the 972 what we've done they did not know they didn't have the
money they didn't have the reserves no one has those kinda reserves
necessarily to get hit by that so I just backed up
to at the beginning you have to send an
upper right in the only way to really really clarify on on Lee's remains just doe I'm my reinsurance from a company whose
going to laser you are who has it in a plan that the Kia in most of them do so may limit your companies you you kept from miss bill it's definitely worth it if it
happens no well worth is in the city it happens to you can't go anywhere you
can't do anything I can said previously i mean what are you gonna do with a 972
thousand-dollar laser you can't go to another reinsurance
company in and going to take you you can't go fully insured because
they're not gonna pick up that preemie so they're going to refuse you so your
stomach in so if they had my head the husband
working somewhere else they went ahead a penny 972 thousand
dollars plus all their normal operating costs
and all the other expenses on you most that could break a company ok spongier eighty so kinda brings me
back to that conversation we talk about on size you have to be aware that the smaller
the group the more you must make sure you don't
get lazy you know and I'll learn what's up that's daunting hearing that story
knowing this the care that we have here that you all have two words you know these groups especially you
know they're working or see is what I. Was doing great basin things on shoestring budgets
and am it almost makes me diste just want to tell everybody is the
partially so concerned about his book interests but Chris Carey but to is just lastly is have you noticed there's
any more common or less common not least ring in relation to
international them US. Laser in yeah no ranchers I'll majoring in mainly because most reinsurance carriers are
international carriers a 12 lund I mean that speaks for itself no White Mountains reinsurance is owned
by a serious international I'm Sweden um a lot every insurance companies are
very large there obviously their billion-dollar companies
I'm you know that cover risk and across the
board and Amy cover a lot more things in health risk
okay I'm using do there will be no backup P&C
carriers proper in Calgary carriers go back lots of things like that so I'm no I don't see really much difference it's just if your group is in the US. Nom in in most year people are getting
claims in the US.

Your ability to get to the high numbers is greater then if most your group is
overseas so that that's the only thing I would
say the air on on that laser impeachment know their
laser just based on you know we just based on their contract if they can
get you to agree to it you taking the risk they're not so it
did keeps their dude sorry he keeps their I'm renewal times happy
for them they are not cute costly as I said last
year but here's the here's a largely and I then all will do another 10 is on
now reserves and I think I'll important for
people to catch as well but I'm kinda like got credit now when you have a when you when you're
borrowing money and get bad credit very good thing requires
something how long will usually something take up say he's somebody had an issue cancer but its its over they've got a
clean bill of health they had free me um hit a huge bill but the you know obviously the babies
are born healthy in another how long does there's a through for
reinsurance the can't go anywhere else that next
year because obviously they have this huge crime how long we are sure people going to ask
how long to take for a company to get back in good standing with a cam n shop
around the inner armour back to be clean again it depends on the
key answer that you that it was in most cases cancer that is
cancer if you're cancer-free for more than five
years that's a typical rule of thumb and if you're more than five years they
won't count against you but I'm trying these days is a few actually have a letter from your doctor that requires you to be cancer
free then they use the don't hit you as hard they will take a chance on you at that
point so they may not but against the entire group as far as a
premium it's the same day I'm there are different preemie sorry
you can have ones I have ongoing issues and this members us up templates in des moines
iowa there were seven other me now we're born route I love those kids
were fine in the year to dampen they were in the
hospital for I believe it is almost a year before
they came out but then from that point on those fire in C. There's 20 2010 ongoing medical
treatment so it really depends on on what happens so a preemie can be just as adverse to you as as eighty
answer keys on so again in stitches piece by piece in in the hearings yes go back to know
the more information you can get on it in get to your to your insurance carrier or to your carrier is is the same rule the more information you can get there
on that you know some people will tell me well I don't want to ask any questions
about that stuff hate you can ask questions on your employees if if you learn some through the health
plan you can share with somebody else you can certainly find out as much
information as you can on something that goes on within your
employee base nom just for the fact that being able to
get your costs down so find out if somebody is going to be
treated any more not find out if they have that letter
that since Aon cancer-free I'm it will help you a lot on renewal in your age group here may not give you
a 75 percent increase in in or may get rid of a laser if you can
prove that in fact the rich then the girder ours not going
to happen so great question yeah so so does not
necessarily a year or two it its usually a bit longer than that going
to be banned yeah totally depends on them you may
have a cancer cases you know it's been ongoing for three
years and now they're cancer-free a reinsurance chair looks and it has
been won the group for a long time for something you've been quoted with them in for three years may have it wanna do
well in Union a cancer-free letter from the
doctor know certain they're like K listener the
game in is so they give you quoted will help you either your current carrier to stay down or come down or you may want to move
Richards here you can go in go with a new it was on whether the laser you're not 7
you well wonderful thank you so much deal
for just a wealth advice and information I think I hope this is helpful to our clients
I'll do we have a number of these are questions sorry there are looking at self-funding already have been self
funding for a while and considering somebody's various issues
whether it be the if they don't photo policy interests that or I'm where they're looking to you are
finally reassures carrier or there is issue so thank you so much I I
hope this is helpful and obviously I know you're available up
they can reach you through a good neighbor people have clients Decatur illicit boat GHR stock ombre obviously just go to the website if they're not are there already
I'm so-called publishers Takayama the graph paper there as well white
paper on I'm stop loss reinsurance they might also
help but to the I thank you very much and I will 40
questions long as as we can thanks sir thank you he said but I..

Thursday, July 19, 2018

NC Health Insurance Risk Pool - Starts Jan 1, 2009

NC Health Insurance Risk Pool - Starts Jan 1, 2009
NC Health Insurance Risk Pool - Starts Jan 1, 2009

Starting January 1st, 2009, North Carolina will commence providing wellness coverage coverage hide to over the appropriate variety-chance participants. It is that is referred to as the North Carolina over the appropriate variety-chance wellness coverage pool. The state legislature passed Session Law 2007-532 (House Bill 265), AN ACT TO ESTABLISH THE NORTH CAROLINA HEALTH INSURANCE RISK POOL (NCHIRP). The NC High-Risk Health Insurance will now under no circumstances be loose,  the declaration that. It will now under no circumstances be a welfare application or public files. It is, in addition, now now not an entitlement application.

For years, poor residents of North Carolina have been now now not keen to sort out to pay for wellness coverage coverage hide. Even though Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina deals to insure each and every human being  pre-present scenarios, in apply it doesn't work neatly. The difficulty is the over the appropriate variety premium. Practically conversing, it does now now not rely in case which you need to be able to get a wellness coverage plan furnished to you, if the premium is so over the appropriate variety so that you need to be able to't sort out to pay for it. Premium premiums in the style of $1,200, $1,800, $2,300, and better monthly are furnished to americans with wellness disorders. Obviously, these premiums are most too over the appropriate variety for the hooked up individual.

Here is how the, North Carolina High Risk Plan works:

The over the appropriate variety-chance pool means Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, (BCBSNC), is the corporate of last hotel. It can't cost over the appropriate variety-chance participants more than 200% above the appeared as important wellness charge quote. 200% continues to be a massive differential to pay, nonetheless it's miles organized 50% better than what is furnished presently. For social gathering, if in case you have had coronary heart headaches, your present quote may most particularly most particularly be $1,900 monthly. Under the new over the appropriate variety-chance pool, you need to most particularly get coated for about $950 monthly. This is a mark downs of fifty%, even at the same time it continues to be a over the appropriate variety premium.

There are a pair of disabled americans who're presently receiving Social Security Disability and Medicare advantages who would love to re-enter the work drive. It doesn't make sense for them to re-enter the work drive since the expense of wellness coverage that they would be responsibile for, even at the same time it's miles the over the appropriate variety-chance pool, is solely too most for them to pay. It would exceed the pay they would acquire from the job. Actuaslly, the loss of Medicare policy hide is approach more major than the loss of the SSDI beneifits. Therefore, many americans who may most particularly enhance into effectual citizens are now now not organized to do so.

The NC Health Insurance Risk Pool for North Carolina will repeatedly resource a massive style of usa citizens who've pre-present scenarios that make it too luxurious to in achieving wellness coverage. This chance pool is achievable January 1st, 2009.

For added files, which you need to be able to contact:

North Carolina Health Insurance Risk Pool
3739 National Drive, Suite 228
Raleigh, NC 27612
Customer Service Center at (866) 665-2117.

Friday, July 13, 2018

Learn How To Get The Best Health Insurance Plan

Learn How To Get The Best Health Insurance Plan
Learn How To Get The Best Health Insurance Plan

We are all privy to how steeply-priced first-rate healthcare can grow to be at a indeniable moment in life. Without having Health Insurance, yow will discover very powerful to canopy those sort of premiums in case of emergency. That is the rationale why a non-public deserve to have a neatly-dependent fitness upkeep florida plan. When it comprises upkeep plans, there are varied preferences you can also make and a intensive amount of providers which you can call for assistance. To be guaranteed you plan for the maximum established upkeep, you would possibly be in need of to take roughly a sides into consideration. They allow you reap the advantages of encouraged decision.

The very first thing guarantee you do when it comprises a getting Health Insurance is to have faith what essentials you've. Determining your calls for is the maximum mandatory section. For a proper hazard, you would possibly be in need of to establish what form of fitness upkeep florida plan would canopy your comprehensive clinical investigations, treatments and drug treatments. You are in need of to confirm what benefits you'll be able to like to be given in alternate for the associated fee you pay. For your piece of brain, guarantee you make a series a more problematical plan providing a miles broader amount of benefits. In this manner, which you would be able to neatly guarantee which you are going to be merely or partly ordinary in case of emergency.

After identifying your calls for, motion extra and have faith how a lot you would possibly be willing to pay for this upkeep. The cash you would possibly be going to pay goes to depend on the length of the plan and on the seller providing it. You are prompt to evade too low cost or too steeply-priced Health Insurance plans. Too steeply-priced plans could likely be too a lot to your newest fitness kingdom, concurrently too low cost ones too can now not be able to canopy each little thing. You are prompt to visual attraction for a fitness upkeep florida vendor whose plans are as an alternative balanced: neither too steeply-priced, nor too low cost.

The 3rd element that deserve to fret you is the very best method by means of which you would possibly be going to make the payments. The payment rules differ from one Health Insurance vendor to an hazard. Before you're you make a decision, you would like have to get a obvious perception into the terms and cases of the fitness upkeep florida vendor you're you make a decision upon. See if their payment rules are in your capabilities or now not. Make bound that the contract you sign with them wont positioned you in hassle.

A forth a section of reliable significance is the standing of the maintenance vendor. Under no circumstance deserve to you ask the help of a vendor whose feedback are in overall detrimental. After all, it ought to be a proper motive why their motives dont have too proper directions. If you are taking those sort of 4 primary sides into consideration when gaining knowledge of for a proper plan, you don't have any motives to be concerned roughly. The percentages which you make an uninspired decision are minimum. When you come back around the maximum established company of the maximum established upkeep plans, make the smartphone call.

Are you in need of to make a proper Health Insurance? If you prefer the proper fitness upkeep florida plan, contact us.

Thursday, July 12, 2018

Self funded health insurance vs traditional employer health plans

Self funded health
Alright, this morning we're talking to
Rex Snyder, who's our consultant on level self-funded plans here in the US, and so
thank you for joining us Rex! Great to be here. What's your question, Mark? Yeah, so can you explain to us a little bit more the concept of level self-funded plans
compared to fully insured plans? Will you pull that slide up? Let's take a
look at that right now. Okay as you can see on the slide
here, we have self-funded on one side and fully insured on the other. Fully insured
plans are all subject to ACA laws and regulations.

So let's start through the
list. The first thing is, they're subject to age and gender ratios. What
that means to the employer is, he's seeing a significant increase in the rates for
his younger people. He actually might see a little bit lower rate for some of the
older people but overall because things like maternity are added in on males
even, on ACA plans, self-funded plans have better premiums.

We are not subject to
age or gender ratios like that, we do not have to put maternity on young males,
and so overall, lower rates for the self-funded plan. Fully insured plans are
all subject to the metallicized requirements. Their gold plans and silver
plans and bronze plans, and the employer has to pick from those designs. Our
self-funded plans are free to be designed the way that works the best for
the employer, for the employees.

Typically we tell the people is if you can
think of it, we can do it. Different deductibles, different co-pays, different
networks, we can do that for them. Funds on a fully insured plan are pooled, okay, when in other words, claim fines are pooled, and if the groups on the ACA. Plans are very healthy, which is unlikely
since they're guaranteed issue, that money goes to the profits of the
insurance company.

On the other hand, on self-funded, your claims are looked at on
an individual basis, and as we've talked about, about forty percent of every
premium dollar that you send in is set aside to cover claims. Your claims, and
not somebody else's. So if your group performs better than expected you can
expect to see that money coming back to you, the employer, at the end of the year.
That's a significant savings. Now, renewals, same thing, since ACA
business, ACA business, is guaranteed issue, experience is showing that claims
are significantly higher on those plans then under the self-funded.

Yes we do ask
a few medical questions, but we want to know for sure if self-funding is right
for you. Last but not least when you compare
these plans, they have made a big thing on the ACA plans that there are wellness
benefits. Well, the good news is self-funded plans
have wellness benefits as well, and we're capable of designing those benefits to
work best for the employer. We can do things, like teladoc, telemedicine, which
saves employees the trouble when their child is sick, having to go into the
office just to have a doctor say "here's a prescription, get it filled." We can do
those kind of things on wellness, we can do those kinds of things on sickness.
Great savings of time and money to the employers.

That's pretty much it, Mark. Well thank you, Rex. I appreciate that, great information, and I'm sure we'll be having people contact you. Thanks for
being here..

Saturday, July 7, 2018

Important Points to Ponder Before Buying a Health Insurance Plan

Important Points to Ponder Before Buying a Health Insurance Plan
Important Points to Ponder Before Buying a Health Insurance Plan

A wellness coverage plan is an substantive a area of business planning on this new release of skyrocketing clinical costs. Medical inflation has been aggravating at its full spree which makes it the overall more fundamental to buy a Health Insurance plan that would sponsor the hospitalization and clinical medicine debts or expenses.

It is fundamental to guage and appearance for the following parameters to get a optimal passable wellness plan for you and your domestic.

1. Check for the Waiting Period Clause

You has to be feeling care free after taking an coverage, yet your wellness coverage comes with a waiting period clause for right cases. There is an initial period clause which says that any hospitalization claim will now not be admissible in first 30 days of the policy commencement in conjunction with accidental hospitalization.The pre-existing illnesses or cases are also now not covered robotically whenever you purchase a policy.There is a waiting period ranging from 2 years to 4 years as according to the plan cases in the undertaking. Also, there are certain surgeries and coverings like hernia, cataract, joint substitute, etc. which have to as regards to be would becould okay be dealt with after a right waiting period of one or 2 years.

So,it truely is fundamental to attempt the waiting period clause beforehand you finalize the wellness plan.

2. Check for Sublimits

There are particular capping or sublimits in your wellness plan which says that the correct of expenses are paid by the coverage industrial upto a right restrict and beyond that the insured or person has to undergo them at his own. For example: Room hire costs are capped on according to day foundation for diverse wellness plans. Some wellness plans also come with a obligatory co-pay wherein the area of the admissible claim is to be borne by the insured and the remaining is paid by the coverage industrial.

Check for the sublimits in your wellness plan to hinder any very last minute surprises on the time of claim.

three. Check for Network Hospitals

The coverage businesses proposing wellness plans have particular empaneled community hospitals with whom they have a tie up. Any hospitalization or medicine taken in the discussed or specified community hospital list is finished on the cashless foundation area to policy cases.

Check for the list of community hospitals of coverage industrial and it's worthwhile to as regards to naturally have community hospitals of the insurer shut to your location of home in case of any emergency hospitalization. Also, a medicine in non-community hospital might also now not offer cashless medicine and some insurers have a co-pay clause in case you're taking a medicine in non-community hospital.

4. Check for the Claim Process

Different coverage businesses have varied claim systems. Some settle or administer claims by utilizing Third Party Administrators (TPA's) and some have their very own in condominium claim settlement unit to foster steered and crisis free claim processing. Also, attempt the claim settlement ratio of the insurer you ought to buy a wellness plan from to have a sparkling snapshot on the diversity of claims settled by the insurer.

It is fundamental to have a at hand support on claims way to have a straightforward and crisis free medicine in the instances of hospitalization.

5. Compare & Buy Online

It is fundamental to take a right buying resolution which have to as regards to be would becould okay be performed by comparing the reachable wellness coverage plans on-line. You can evaluate the associated fee, key self-assured aspects, policy compliment, significance as accurately as compliment, eligibility, exclusions,etc. of a range of wellness coverage plans to make a right urged greater than a few of your own without any interference of the brokers. Buying on-line wellness coverage plan is a complication free course of which required least documentation and steered policy processing. There are particular on-line portals so one can enable you to make an only secure comparison and might also enable you in determining on indisputably the proper Health coverage plan.

Online buying of the wellness plan is economical as businesses offer reductions on best possible rate for purchasing a policy on-line. The rationalization for an coverage policy to be low to blame if purchased on-line is as a outcome of the middleman charge of the best possible rate portion is removed. When there's now not any middleman in between, Co.'s keep on the commission and policy issuance charge, which the Co. transfers it to the customers.

Do evaluate your want and make a right buying resolution by checking the above considered parameters.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

President Obama Address to Congress on Health Insurance Reform

President Obama Address to Congress on Health Insurance Reform
The President:
Madam Speaker,
Vice President Biden, members of Congress, and the
American people: When I spoke here last winter, this nation
was facing the worst economic crisis since the
Great Depression. We were losing an average
of 700,000 jobs per month. Credit was frozen. And our financial system was
on the verge of collapse.

As any American who is still
looking for work or a way to pay their bills will
tell you, we are by no means out of the woods. A full and vibrant recovery
is still many months away. And I will not let up until
those Americans who seek jobs can find them -- (applause) -- until those businesses that
seek capital and credit can thrive; until all
responsible homeowners can stay in their homes.
That is our ultimate goal. But thanks to the bold and
decisive action we've taken since January, I can stand here
with confidence and say that we have pulled this economy
back from the brink.

(Applause) I want to thank the
members of this body for your efforts and your support in
these last several months, and especially those who've
taken the difficult votes that have put us on a
path to recovery. I also want to thank the
American people for their patience and resolve during this
trying time for our nation. But we did not come here
just to clean up crises. We came here to build a future.

(Applause) So tonight, I return
to speak to all of you about an issue that is central to that
future -- and that is the issue of health care. I am not the first President
to take up this cause, but I am determined
to be the last. (Applause) It has now been nearly
a century since Theodore Roosevelt first called
for health care reform. And ever since, nearly every
President and Congress, whether Democrat or Republican,
has attempted to meet this challenge in some way.

A bill for comprehensive health
reform was first introduced by John Dingell Sr. In 1943. Sixty-five years later, his son
continues to introduce that same bill at the beginning
of each session. (Applause) Our collective failure
to meet this challenge -- year after year,
decade after decade -- has led us to
the breaking point.

Everyone understands the
extraordinary hardships that are placed on the uninsured, who
live every day just one accident or illness away from bankruptcy. These are not primarily
people on welfare. These are middle-class
Americans. Some can't get
insurance on the job.

Others are self-employed,
and can't afford it, since buying insurance on your
own costs you three times as much as the coverage you
get from your employer. Many other Americans who are
willing and able to pay are still denied insurance due to
previous illnesses or conditions that insurance companies
decide are too risky or too expensive to cover. We are the only democracy -- the
only advanced democracy on Earth -- the only wealthy nation --
that allows such hardship for millions of its people. There are now more than 30
million American citizens who cannot get coverage.

In just a two-year period, one
in every three Americans goes without health care
coverage at some point. And every day, 14,000
Americans lose their coverage. In other words, it
can happen to anyone. But the problem that plagues the
health care system is not just a problem for the uninsured.

Those who do have insurance have
never had less security and stability than they do today. More and more Americans worry
that if you move, lose your job, or change your job, you'll lose
your health insurance too. More and more Americans
pay their premiums, only to discover that their
insurance company has dropped their coverage
when they get sick, or won't pay the
full cost of care. It happens every day.

One man from Illinois lost
his coverage in the middle of chemotherapy because his insurer
found that he hadn't reported gallstones that he
didn't even know about. They delayed his treatment,
and he died because of it. Another woman from Texas was
about to get a double mastectomy when her insurance company
canceled her policy because she forgot to declare
a case of acne. By the time she had her
insurance reinstated, her breast cancer had
more than doubled in size.

That is heart-breaking,
it is wrong, and no one should be treated that way in the
United States of America. (Applause) Then there's the
problem of rising cost. We spend one and a half times
more per person on health care than any other country, but we
aren't any healthier for it. This is one of the reasons that
insurance premiums have gone up three times faster than wages.

It's why so many employers --
especially small businesses -- are forcing their employees
to pay more for insurance, or are dropping their
coverage entirely. It's why so many aspiring
entrepreneurs cannot afford to open a business in
the first place, and why American businesses that
compete internationally -- like our automakers -- are
at a huge disadvantage. And it's why those of us with
health insurance are also paying a hidden and growing tax for
those without it -- about $1,000 per year that pays for
somebody else's emergency room and charitable care. Finally, our health care system
is placing an unsustainable burden on taxpayers.

When health care costs
grow at the rate they have, it puts greater
pressure on programs like Medicare and Medicaid. If we do nothing to slow
these skyrocketing costs, we will eventually be spending
more on Medicare and Medicaid than every other government
program combined. Put simply, our health care
problem is our deficit problem. Nothing else even
comes close.

Nothing else. (Applause) Now, these are the
facts. Nobody disputes them. We know we must
reform this system.

The question is how. There are those on the left who
believe that the only way to fix the system is through a single-payer system like Canada's -- (applause) -- where we would
severely restrict the private insurance market and
have the government provide coverage for everybody. On the right, there are those
who argue that we should end employer-based systems and
leave individuals to buy health insurance on their own. I've said -- I have to say that
there are arguments to be made for both these approaches.

But either one would represent a
radical shift that would disrupt the health care most
people currently have. Since health care represents
one-sixth of our economy, I believe it makes more sense to
build on what works and fix what doesn't, rather than
try to build an entirely new system from scratch. (Applause) And that is precisely
what those of you in Congress have tried to do over
the past several months. During that time, we've
seen Washington at its best and at its worst.

We've seen many in this chamber
work tirelessly for the better part of this year to
offer thoughtful ideas about how to achieve reform. Of the five committees
asked to develop bills, four have completed their work,
and the Senate Finance Committee announced today that it will
move forward next week. That has never happened before. Our overall efforts have been
supported by an unprecedented coalition of doctors and nurses;
hospitals, seniors' groups, and even drug
companies -- many of whom opposed reform in the past.

And there is agreement in this
chamber on about 80 percent of what needs to be done, putting
us closer to the goal of reform than we have ever been. But what we've also seen in
these last months is the same partisan spectacle that only
hardens the disdain many Americans have towards
their own government. Instead of honest debate,
we've seen scare tactics. Some have dug into unyielding
ideological camps that offer no hope of compromise.

Too many have used this as an
opportunity to score short-term political points, even if
it robs the country of our opportunity to solve
a long-term challenge. And out of this blizzard of
charges and counter-charges, confusion has reigned. Well, the time for
bickering is over. The time for games has passed.

(Applause) Now is the season for action. Now is when we must bring the
best ideas of both parties together, and show the American
people that we can still do what we were sent here to do. Now is the time to
deliver on health care. Now is the time to
deliver on health care.

The plan I'm announcing tonight
would meet three basic goals. It will provide more
security and stability to those who have health insurance. It will provide insurance
for those who don't. And it will slow the growth
of health care costs for our families, our businesses,
and our government.

(Applause) It's a plan that asks
everyone to take responsibility for meeting this challenge
-- not just government, not just insurance companies,
but everybody including employers and individuals. And it's a plan that
incorporates ideas from senators and congressmen, from Democrats
and Republicans -- and yes, from some of my
opponents in both the primary and general election. Here are the details
that every American needs to know about this plan. First, if you are among the
hundreds of millions of Americans who already have
health insurance through your job, or Medicare, or
Medicaid, or the VA, nothing in this plan will
require you or your employer to change the coverage or
the doctor you have.

(Applause) Let me repeat this:
Nothing in our plan requires you to change what you have. What this plan will do
is make the insurance you have work better for you. Under this plan, it will be
against the law for insurance companies to deny
you coverage because of a preexisting condition. (Applause) As soon as I sign this bill, it will be against the law for
insurance companies to drop your coverage when you get
sick or water it down when you need it the most.

(Applause) They will no longer be
able to place some arbitrary cap on the amount of coverage
you can receive in a given year or in a lifetime. (Applause) We will place a limit
on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses,
because in the United States of America, no one should go
broke because they get sick. (Applause) And insurance companies
will be required to cover, with no extra charge,
routine checkups and preventive care, like mammograms and
colonoscopies -- (applause) -- because there's no reason we
shouldn't be catching diseases like breast cancer and colon
cancer before they get worse. That makes sense, it saves
money, and it saves lives.

(Applause) Now, that's what
Americans who have health insurance can expect
from this plan -- more security and more stability. Now, if you're one of the tens
of millions of Americans who don't currently have
health insurance, the second part of this plan
will finally offer you quality, affordable choices. (Applause) If you lose your job
or you change your job, you'll be able to get coverage. If you strike out on your own
and start a small business, you'll be able to get coverage.

We'll do this by creating a
new insurance exchange -- a marketplace where individuals
and small businesses will be able to shop for health
insurance at competitive prices. Insurance companies will have an
incentive to participate in this exchange because it
lets them compete for millions of new customers. As one big group, these
customers will have greater leverage to bargain with the
insurance companies for better prices and quality coverage. This is how large
companies and government employees get
affordable insurance.

It's how everyone
in this Congress gets affordable insurance. And it's time to give every
American the same opportunity that we give ourselves. (Applause) Now, for those individuals
and small businesses who still can't afford the
lower-priced insurance available in the exchange, we'll
provide tax credits, the size of which will
be based on your need. And all insurance companies
that want access to this new marketplace will have
to abide by the consumer protections I already mentioned.

This exchange will take
effect in four years, which will give us
time to do it right. In the meantime, for those
Americans who can't get insurance today because they
have preexisting medical conditions, we will immediately
offer low-cost coverage that will protect you
against financial ruin if you become eriously ill. (Applause) This was a good idea
when Senator John McCain proposed it in the campaign,
it's a good idea now, and we should all embrace it. (Applause) Now, even if we provide these
affordable options, there may be those -- especially the
young and the healthy -- who still want to take the
risk and go without coverage.

There may still be companies
that refuse to do right by their workers by giving them coverage. The problem is, such
irresponsible behavior costs all the rest of us money. If there are affordable options
and people still don't sign up for health insurance, it means
we pay for these people's expensive emergency room visits. If some businesses don't
provide workers health care, it forces the rest of us to pick
up the tab when their workers get sick, and gives those
businesses an unfair advantage over their competitors.

And unless everybody
does their part, many of the insurance reforms
we seek -- especially requiring insurance companies to cover
preexisting conditions -- just can't be achieved. And that's why under my plan,
individuals will be required to carry basic health insurance --
just as most states require you to carry auto insurance. (Applause) Likewise -- likewise,
businesses will be required to either offer their
workers health care, or chip in to help cover
the cost of their workers. There will be a hardship waiver
for those individuals who still can't afford coverage, and 95
percent of all small businesses, because of their size
and narrow profit margin, would be exempt from
these requirements.

(Applause) But we can't have large
businesses and individuals who can afford coverage
game the system by avoiding responsibility to themselves
or their employees. Improving our health
care system only works if everybody does their part. And while there remain some
significant details to be ironed out, I believe -- (laughter) -- I believe a broad
consensus exists for the aspects of the plan
I just outlined: consumer protections for
those with insurance, an exchange that allows
individuals and small businesses to purchase affordable coverage,
and a requirement that people who can afford
insurance get insurance. And I have no doubt that these
reforms would greatly benefit Americans from
all walks of life, as well as the
economy as a whole.

Still, given all the
misinformation that's been spread over the past few months,
I realize - (applause) -- I. Realize that many Americans have
grown nervous about reform. So tonight I want to address
some of the key controversies that are still out there. Some of people's concerns have
grown out of bogus claims spread by those whose only agenda is
to kill reform at any cost.

The best example is the claim
made not just by radio and cable talk show hosts, but by
prominent politicians, that we plan to set up panels of
bureaucrats with the power to kill off senior citizens. Now, such a charge would be
laughable if it weren't so cynical and irresponsible. It is a lie, plain and simple. (Applause) There are also those
who claim that our reform efforts would insure
illegal immigrants.

This, too, is false. The reforms -- the reforms I'm
proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally. Audience Member:
You lie! (Boos!) The President:
It's not true. And one more misunderstanding I
want to clear up -- under our plan, no federal dollars will
be used to fund abortions, and federal conscience
laws will remain in place.

(Applause) Now, my health care
proposal has also been attacked by some who oppose reform as a
"government takeover" of the entire health care system. As proof, critics point to a
provision in our plan that allows the uninsured and small
businesses to choose a publicly sponsored insurance option,
administered by the government just like Medicaid or Medicare. (Applause) So let me set the
record straight here. My guiding principle
is, and always has been, that consumers do better when
there is choice and competition.

That's how the market works. (Applause) Unfortunately, in 34 states, 75 percent of the insurance
market is controlled by five or fewer companies. In Alabama, almost 90 percent is
controlled by just one company. And without competition,
the price of insurance goes up and quality goes down.

And it makes it easier for
insurance companies to treat their customers badly -- by
cherry-picking the healthiest individuals and trying
to drop the sickest, by overcharging small businesses
who have no leverage, and by jacking up rates. Insurance executives don't do
this because they're bad people; they do it because
it's profitable. As one former insurance
executive testified before Congress, insurance companies
are not only encouraged to find reasons to drop the seriously
ill, they are rewarded for it. All of this is in service
of meeting what this former executive called "Wall Street's
relentless profit expectations." Now, I have no interest in
putting insurance companies out of business.

They provide
a legitimate service, and employ a lot of our
friends and neighbors. I just want to hold
them accountable. (Applause) And the insurance
reforms that I've already mentioned would do just that. But an additional step we can
take to keep insurance companies honest is by making a
not-for-profit public option available in the
insurance exchange.

(Applause) Now, let me be clear.
Let me be clear. It would only be an option for
those who don't have insurance. No one would be
forced to choose it, and it would not impact those of
you who already have insurance. In fact, based on Congressional
Budget Office estimates, we believe that
less than 5 percent of Americans would sign up.

Despite all this, the insurance
companies and their allies don't like this idea. They argue that these private
companies can't fairly compete with the government. And they'd be right if taxpayers
were subsidizing this public insurance option.
But they won't be. I've insisted that like any
private insurance company, the public insurance option
would have to be self-sufficient and rely on the
premiums it collects.

But by avoiding some of the
overhead that gets eaten up at private companies by profits and
excessive administrative costs and executive salaries, it
could provide a good deal for consumers, and would also keep
pressure on private insurers to keep their policies affordable
and treat their customers better, the same way public
colleges and universities provide additional choice and
competition to students without in any way inhibiting
a vibrant system of private colleges
and universities. (Applause) Now, it is -- it's
worth noting that a strong majority of Americans still
favor a public insurance option of the sort I've
proposed tonight. But its impact shouldn't be
exaggerated -- by the left or the right or the media. It is only one part of my plan,
and shouldn't be used as a handy excuse for the usual Washington
ideological battles.

To my progressive friends,
I would remind you that for decades, the driving idea behind
reform has been to end insurance company abuses and make coverage
available for those without it. (Applause) The public option --
the public option is only a means to that end -- and we
should remain open to other ideas that accomplish
our ultimate goal. And to my Republican friends, I
say that rather than making wild claims about a government
takeover of health care, we should work together to
address any legitimate concerns you may have. (Applause) For example -- for example, some have suggested that the
public option go into effect only in those markets where
insurance companies are not providing affordable policies.

Others have proposed a co-op or
another non-profit entity to administer the plan. These are all constructive
ideas worth exploring. But I will not back down on
the basic principle that if Americans can't find
affordable coverage, we will provide
you with a choice. (Applause) And I will make sure that
no government bureaucrat or insurance company bureaucrat
gets between you and the care that you need.

(Applause) Finally, let me discuss
an issue that is a great concern to me, to
members of this chamber, and to the public -- and that's
how we pay for this plan. And here's what
you need to know. First, I will not sign a plan
that adds one dime to our deficits -- either
now or in the future. (Applause) I will not sign it if it
adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period.

And to prove that I'm serious,
there will be a provision in this plan that requires us to
come forward with more spending cuts if the savings we
promised don't materialize. (Applause) Now, part of the reason
I faced a trillion-dollar deficit when I walked in the
door of the White House is because too many initiatives
over the last decade were not paid for -- from the Iraq war
to tax breaks for the wealthy. (Applause) I will not make that same
mistake with health care. Second, we've estimated that
most of this plan can be paid for by finding savings within
the existing health care system, a system that is currently
full of waste and abuse.

Right now, too much of the
hard-earned savings and tax dollars we spend on health care
don't make us any healthier. That's not my judgment --
it's the judgment of medical professionals
across this country. And this is also true when it
comes to Medicare and Medicaid. In fact, I want to speak
directly to seniors for a moment, because Medicare is
another issue that's been subjected to demagoguery
and distortion during the course of this debate.

More than four decades ago,
this nation stood up for the principle that after a
lifetime of hard work, our seniors should not be left
to struggle with a pile of medical bills in
their later years. That's how Medicare was born. And it remains a sacred trust
that must be passed down from one generation to the next. (Applause) And that is why not a
dollar of the Medicare trust fund will be used to
pay for this plan.

(Applause) The only thing this plan
would eliminate is the hundreds of billions of
dollars in waste and fraud, as well as unwarranted subsidies
in Medicare that go to insurance companies -- subsidies that do
everything to pad their profits but don't improve
the care of seniors. And we will also create an
independent commission of doctors and medical experts
charged with identifying more waste in the years ahead. (Applause) Now, these steps will
ensure that you -- America's seniors -- get the benefits
you've been promised. They will ensure that Medicare
is there for future generations.

And we can use some of the
savings to fill the gap in coverage that forces too many
seniors to pay thousands of dollars a year out of their own
pockets for prescription drugs. (Applause) That's what this
plan will do for you. So don't pay attention to those
scary stories about how your benefits will be cut, especially
since some of the same folks who are spreading these tall tales
have fought against Medicare in the past and just this year
supported a budget that would essentially have
turned Medicare into a privatized voucher program. That will not
happen on my watch.

I will protect Medicare. (Applause) Now, because Medicare is
such a big part of the health care system, making the program
more efficient can help usher in changes in the way we deliver
health care that can reduce costs for everybody. We have long known that some
places -- like the Intermountain Healthcare in Utah or the
Geisinger Health System in rural Pennsylvania -- offer
high-quality care at costs below average. So the commission can help
encourage the adoption of these common-sense best practices
by doctors and medical professionals throughout the
system -- everything from reducing hospital infection
rates to encouraging better coordination between
teams of doctors.

Reducing the waste and
inefficiency in Medicare and Medicaid will pay for
most of this plan. (Applause) Now, much of the rest
would be paid for with revenues from the very same drug and
insurance companies that stand to benefit from tens of
millions of new customers. And this reform will charge
insurance companies a fee for their most expensive policies,
which will encourage them to provide greater value for the
money -- an idea which has the support of Democratic
and Republican experts. And according to
these same experts, this modest change could help
hold down the cost of health care for all of us
in the long run.

Now, finally, many in this
chamber -- particularly on the Republican side of the aisle
-- have long insisted that reforming our medical
malpractice laws can help bring down the cost of health care. (Applause) Now -- there you go.
There you go. Now, I don't believe malpractice
reform is a silver bullet, but I've talked to enough
doctors to know that defensive medicine may be contributing
to unnecessary costs. (Applause) So I'm proposing that
we move forward on a range of ideas about how to put patient
safety first and let doctors focus on practicing medicine.

(Applause) I know that the Bush
administration considered authorizing demonstration
projects in individual states to test these ideas. I think it's a good idea, and
I'm directing my Secretary of Health and Human
Services to move forward on this initiative today. (Applause) Now, add it all up, and
the plan I'm proposing will cost around $900 billion over 10
years -- less than we have spent on the Iraq and
Afghanistan wars, and less than the tax cuts for
the wealthiest few Americans that Congress passed
at the beginning of the previous administration. (Applause) Now, most of these
costs will be paid for with money already being spent -- but
spent badly -- in the existing health care system.

The plan will not
add to our deficit. The middle class will
realize greater security, not higher taxes. And if we are able to slow the
growth of health care costs by just one-tenth of 1 percent each
year -- one-tenth of 1 percent -- it will actually reduce
the deficit by $4 trillion over the long term. Now, this is the
plan I'm proposing.

It's a plan that incorporates
ideas from many of the people in this room tonight --
Democrats and Republicans. And I will continue
to seek common ground in the weeks ahead. If you come to me with a
serious set of proposals, I will be there to listen.
My door is always open. But know this: I will not waste
time with those who have made the calculation that it's
better politics to kill this plan than to improve it.

(Applause) I won't stand by while
the special interests use the same old tactics to keep
things exactly the way they are. If you misrepresent what's in
this plan, we will call you out. (Applause) And I will not -- and
I will not accept the status quo as a solution. Not
this time.

Not now. Everyone in this room knows what
will happen if we do nothing. Our deficit will grow. More
families will go bankrupt.

More businesses will close. More Americans will lose their
coverage when they are sick and need it the most. And more will die as a result.
We know these things to be true. That is why we cannot fail.

Because there are too many
Americans counting on us to succeed -- the ones
who suffer silently, and the ones who shared their
stories with us at town halls, in e-mails, and in letters. I received one of those
letters a few days ago. It was from our beloved friend
and colleague, Ted Kennedy. He had written it back in May,
shortly after he was told that his illness was terminal.

He asked that it be
delivered upon his death. In it, he spoke about what a
happy time his last months were, thanks to the love and support
of family and friends, his wife, Vicki, his amazing children,
who are all here tonight. And he expressed confidence that
this would be the year that health care reform -- "that
great unfinished business of our society," he called it
-- would finally pass. He repeated the truth that
health care is decisive for our future prosperity, but he also
reminded me that "it concerns more than material things." "What we face," he wrote,
"is above all a moral issue; at stake are not just
the details of policy, but fundamental principles
of social justice and the character of our country." I've thought about that phrase
quite a bit in recent days -- the character of our country.

One of the unique and wonderful
things about America has always been our self-reliance,
our rugged individualism, our fierce defense of
freedom and our healthy skepticism of government. And figuring out the appropriate
size and role of government has always been a source
of rigorous and, yes, sometimes angry debate.
That's our history. For some of Ted
Kennedy's critics, his brand of
liberalism represented an affront to American liberty. In their minds, his passion
for universal health care was nothing more than a
passion for big government.

But those of us who knew Teddy
and worked with him here -- people of both parties --
know that what drove him was something more. His friend Orrin Hatch
-- he knows that. They worked together to provide
children with health insurance. His friend John
McCain knows that.

They worked together on a
Patient's Bill of Rights. His friend Chuck
Grassley knows that. They worked together to
provide health care to children with disabilities. On issues like these, Ted
Kennedy's passion was born not of some rigid ideology,
but of his own experience.

It was the experience
of having two children stricken with cancer. He never forgot the sheer terror
and helplessness that any parent feels when a child
is badly sick. And he was able to imagine
what it must be like for those without insurance, what it would
be like to have to say to a wife or a child or an aging parent,
there is something that could make you better, but I
just can't afford it. That large-heartedness -- that
concern and regard for the plight of others -- is
not a partisan feeling.

It's not a Republican
or a Democratic feeling. It, too, is part of the American
character -- our ability to stand in other people's shoes; a
recognition that we are all in this together, and when fortune
turns against one of us, others are there to
lend a helping hand; a belief that in this country,
hard work and responsibility should be rewarded by some
measure of security and fair play; and an acknowledgment that
sometimes government has to step in to help deliver
on that promise. This has always been the
history of our progress. In 1935, when over half of
our seniors could not support themselves and millions had
seen their savings wiped away, there were those who argued that
Social Security would lead to socialism, but the men and
women of Congress stood fast, and we are all
the better for it.

In 1965, when some argued
that Medicare represented a government takeover
of health care, members of Congress --
Democrats and Republicans -- did not back down. They joined together so that all
of us could enter our golden years with some
basic peace of mind. You see, our predecessors
understood that government could not, and should not,
solve every problem. They understood that there are
instances when the gains in security from government
action are not worth the added constraints on our freedom.

But they also understood
that the danger of too much government is matched by
the perils of too little; that without the leavening
hand of wise policy, markets can crash, monopolies
can stifle competition, the vulnerable can be exploited. And they knew that when
any government measure, no matter how carefully
crafted or beneficial, is subject to scorn; when any
efforts to help people in need are attacked as un-American;
when facts and reason are thrown overboard and only timidity
passes for wisdom, and we can no longer even engage
in a civil conversation with each other over the things that
truly matter -- that at that point we don't merely
lose our capacity to solve big challenges. We lose something
essential about ourselves. That was true then.
It remains true today.

I understand how difficult this
health care debate has been. I know that many in this country
are deeply skeptical that government is
looking out for them. I understand that the
politically safe move would be to kick the can further down the
road -- to defer reform one more year, or one more
election, or one more term. But that is not what
the moment calls for.

That's not what we
came here to do. We did not come to
fear the future. We came here to shape it. I still believe we can
act even when it's hard.

(Applause) I still believe -- I
still believe that we can act when it's hard. I still believe we can replace
acrimony with civility, and gridlock with progress. I still believe we can do great
things and that here and now we will meet history's test.
Because that's who we are. That is our calling.
That is our character.

Thank you, God bless you,
and may God bless the United States of America. (Applause).