Triblive: Future of Latino Health Care
The Texas Tribune and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas present a panel discussion with Dr. Esteban López, president of the San Antonio Region for BCBSTX, Dr. ...

By: The Texas Tribune

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Triblive: Future of Latino Health Care - Video

Aurora Health Care - Eyewear Event

By: Aurora Health Care

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Aurora Health Care - Eyewear Event - Video

Journalist Steven Brills ground-breaking article Bitter Pill sent shock waves through the health care industry, highlighting the glaring difference between the industrys multimillion dollar profits and the high price patients pay for basic care.

Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills are Killing Us was a 36-page expose' in Time magazines March 4 issue that uncovered a world of outrageous pricing and egregious profits that exists because of a lack of competition and transparency, including consumers inability to decipher incomprehensible medical jargon.

Brills article prompted the American Hospital Association, representing more than 5,000 hospitals, to publish a three-page report defending the industry and disputing inaccurate or misleading statements in the story.

Multiple media outlets, however, said the story was a wake-up call for consumers, and Brill will bring his message to Longview next week through an appearance via video conference call service Skype.

(Patients) have giant bills that bear no relation to reality. You could conceivably ask a hospital about it. If you look at the bill, its based on nothing you would be able to understand, Brill said in a recent phone interview with the Daily News.

The author will discuss his experiences researching and writing the story and the current state of the health care industry at a public forum slated for 6 p.m. at Lower Columbia College. He will be joined by three leading members of Longviews medical community: Sy Johnson, PeaceHealths Columbia Network Chief Operating Officer; Sue Hennessey, Kaiser Permanentes vice president of strategy and health plan services; and Dian Cooper, executive director of the Family Health Center, which serves low-income patients.

The Healthcare Foundation organized the event to help consumers reduce their hospital bills, said Executive Director Mary Jane Melink.

Much of the debate over medical care focuses on who pays the bills. Brill questions why those bills are so high in the first place.

Brill said all hospitals use internal price lists called chargemasters that inflate charges for supplies and procedures to levels well above what federal Medicare pays.

The practice is not illegal, and hospitals say theyd go broke charging only what Medicare pays. Brill, however, contends the chargemasters are both the real and metaphoric essence of the broken market.

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Author of key health care expose' to discuss experience with local audience

By SAM HANANEL/Associated Press/September 12, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) The AFL-CIO on Wednesday approved a resolution critical of parts of President Barack Obamas health care law in spite of efforts by White House officials to discourage the labor federation from making its concerns so prominent.

The strongly worded resolution says the Affordable Care Act will drive up the costs of union-sponsored health plans to the point that workers and employers are forced to abandon them. Labor unions still support the laws overall goals of reducing health costs and bringing coverage to all Americans, the resolution says, but adds that the law is being implemented in a way that is highly disruptive to union health care plans.

Some individual unions have complained about the laws impact for months. The resolution marks the first time the nations largest labor federation has gone on record embracing that view. Unions were among the most enthusiastic backers of the law when it passed in 2010.

A labor official told The Associated Press that White House officials had been calling labor leaders for days to urge them not to voice their concerns in the form of a resolution. The official, who wasnt authorized to discuss the conversations publicly and requested anonymity, said many union leaders insisted that they wanted to highlight their concerns.

Asked about any efforts to discourage unions from passing the resolution, the White House said in a statement Wednesday night that officials are in regular contact with a variety of stakeholders, including unions, as part of our efforts to ensure smooth implementation and to improve the law.

The AFL-CIO, one of the presidents major boosters, approved the resolution just as the administration began rolling out a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign to encourage Americans to sign up for health care exchanges starting Oct. 1.

Harold Schaitberger, president of the International Association of Firefighters, said the intent of the resolution is to point out the criticisms without being overly caustic.

There have to be some changes made in the area that are giving a number of our unions great concern, said Schaitberger, who chaired the committee that hammered out the resolutions language.

The resolution was approved at the AFL-CIOs quadrennial convention in Los Angeles. It claims the new law will increase costs for health plans that are jointly administered by unions and smaller employers in the construction, retail and transportation industries. That could encourage employers to hire fewer union workers or abandon the health plans altogether and force union members to seek lower quality coverage on the new health exchanges.

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AFL-CIO steps up criticism of health care law

(CBS News) America's health care system is in the middle of a major transformation. One of the biggest parts of President Barack Obama's health care law is set to roll out in just weeks. And that is leading insurance companies to re-think how they do business with millions of Americans.

Soon everybody will be required to have health insurance, and many Americans will have to buy it for themselves. That's why insurance providers are rolling out retail stores to sell their product, allowing people to comparison-shop the same way they do for things like cars and appliances.

Recently, Phyllis Simon was out shopping for health insurance, looking for better coverage for less money. She visited the Blue Cross Blue Shield Horizon Connect store in southern New Jersey, which opened last year.

Tom Vincz, an employee at the store, said, "Having a health insurance retail center where you can come in and have questions answered about purchasing a policy and understanding the benefits will be a good thing."

It's a brick-and-mortar strategy that major insurers are turning to, as millions of Americans get set to add health insurance to their shopping lists. President Obama's health care overhaul requires people sign up by the end of March, or face a penalty.

Jayne O'Donnell has been covering the Affordable Care Act for USA Today. She calls this the "retailization of health insurance." O'Donnell told CBS News, "It's up to the insurers to really compete and increase their marketing and lure as many of them as they can."

In the past, the industry's main customers have been employers. Now insurers have to sell to individuals as well.

On July 18, President Obama said, "New online marketplaces will allow consumers to go online and compare private health care insurance plans just like you'd compare over the Internet the best deal on flat-screen TVs."

But some consumer advocates say the retail stores could keep customers from getting their best deal. O'Donnell said, "These insurance companies like having their own stores so they can be in control of the customer, who, once they get them in the door, are theirs."

O'Donnell argues the best deal could be found online. She said, "You can really compare and contrast them on the state exchanges and you're not going to be able to do that at a retail store."

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Health care insurers turn to brick-and-mortar option to lure customers

CHICAGO With fewer than three weeks left until a key launch date for the nations health care law, Illinois residents planning to shop for insurance on an online marketplace still dont know which companies will offer plans or what the policies will cost.

The uncertainty is vexing business owners, self-employers and others who want to create their budgets for 2014.

Heightened speculation and political spin are also in the air, with Republicans stressing increases compared with some current rates and Democrats crowing about subsidies many consumers will get.

Illinoisans arent likely to know more about policies and pricing until the Web-based marketplace opens Oct. 1, according to federal officials who addressed a group of health professionals and other stakeholders this week without explaining precisely why.

More than a dozen states have released their prices, but Illinois is waiting for final word from the federal government. Washington is controlling most of the important aspects of the states marketplace because Illinois didnt move fast enough to set up its exchange.

What concerns me about repeated delays in releasing rates is, will there be a delay in opening the marketplace? said Bill Pocklington, executive director of Employers Coalition on Health in Rockford. That enrollment window is a tight window. Anything that further narrows that would be really unfortunate.

Under President Barack Obamas health law, almost all Americans will be required to have health insurance in 2014 or face fines, and insurers will be prohibited from turning away people because of poor health. The marketplaces, one for each state, are a key part of the law.

The coverage offered on the marketplaces, which are supposed to be one-stop sites for easy comparison shopping and enrollment, will start Jan. 1. About 700,000 Illinois residents will be eligible for aid in paying for marketplace-bought health insurance. An additional 600,000 will be newly eligible for Medicaid, the state-federal health program for the poor.

Small-business owners and individuals are frustrated with the lack of disclosure. Chicago insurance broker Sean Whaley said his self-employed clients are frustrated that they cant plan ahead for their families health care costs in 2014.

The whole thing is ridiculous, he told The Associated Press. Theyre trying to plan their finances and nothings set in stone at all.

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Health care overhaul: Illinoisans wait for online-marketplace rates