Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Latest Mass. Report, Pt. 2 – Successes and challenge.

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This $372 million figure did not include consideration for the health insurance coverage of employee households (like spouses without jobs and other dependants). The expense of this additional coverage came to another $265 million. When added together, the grand total for health insurance/care of these employees and their families is almost $637 million. Based on the 2006 Fiscal figures of $559 million, the trend was determined to be a 14% increase over one year. Part of this increase was accountable and expected. A decision had been made to extend dependant childrens’ health insurance/care services to include households with slightly higher ‘poor incomes’, as high as 300% of our nation’s established ‘poverty line’.

Trends of the strengths and weaknesses of the program were evaluated from these, and other figures. They are explained here by Dr. JudyAnn Bigby, who is Secretary of Health and Human Services. In her assessment, she states: “This report demonstrates both the success we have had with health care reform and some of the challenges.” Her advice is to increase what works well, like “increasing enrollment of low-income children…into MassHealth.” She explains that a large number of these children come from families who can’t get employer-sponsored health insurance. These households have to rely on the state-sponsored programs, otherwise they’d have no health insurance coverage. To boot, standard rates for employer-based health insurance premiums in their state are generally more expensive, on average than is found nationwide.

Another double-good report was the favorable finding of the high percentage of employer-based health insurance coverage in Massachusetts, when compared to national levels. There already was an accepted anticipation that the percentage would fall for several reasons, not the least of which was the national trend. But, when studied, the trend discovered was an increase in percentage. In fact, it was found to be the only state where the percentage actually went up.

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