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Posted on Sunday, March 4, 2007

Healthy Americans Act

The Healthy Americans Act guarantees universal, portable, affordable health insurance for all Americans.

Every American will have the power to choose a comprehensive health insurance plan, and—with individuals, employers and government each investing something into the system—insurance will be guaranteed to be affordable for every American.

Insurers will be matched with consumers in an market designed for competition. Each state, with financial support from the Federal government and insurance companies, will establish a Health Help Agency. Health Help Agencies will lower administrative costs by coordinating payments from employers, individuals and government. Consumers will have access to unbiased information about competing private health plans. The HHAs will determine premium reductions that will ensure every American can afford their health plan. With the ability to compare plans based on quality, cost and service, individuals—rather than their employers—will be able to choose the health plan that works best for them and their families.

We will ensure that every American has and can afford health insurance. Every time an individual interacts with state, local and federal government—registering their car, enrolling their children in school, applying for a driver’s license or paying their taxes—they can be required to verify their enrollment in a private health insurance plan. We will in turn ensure that everyone can afford health care. The Health Help Agencies will work to lower premiums and provide standard health care tax deductions for individuals and families.

The Healthy Americans Act offers the same high-quality care that Members of Congress have at an affordable price.

The Act creates a system of tax benefits and premium reductions to make sure that every American can afford a high-quality, private health plan that is comparable to what Members of Congress have now. Pre-existing conditions, occupation, genetic information, gender and age will no longer be allowed to impact eligibility or the price that you pay. Instead, insurance companies must cover every individual who chooses to enroll and cannot raise prices or deny coverage if individuals are sick.

The Healthy Americans Act puts more money in people’s pockets, ensuring affordability. For the first two years of the new system, employers who currently provide employee health benefits will be required to convert their health care premiums into higher wages for employees.

Employers who don't provide health benefits will be required to begin making phased-in “Employer Shared Responsibility Payments.” These payments will be used to subsidize health care premiums for everyone.

After two years, all employers will be making "Employer Shared Responsibility Payments." These payments will reflect the relative ability to pay of small and large employers and low- and high-wage industries and will have no impact on the insurance coverage of their individual employees.

As part of a competitive compensation package, employers can continue to provide wellness, prevention benefits and long-term care insurance. They can also help their employees sign-up for health plans through a state-based Health Help Agency. Just as under the current system, employers can continue to withhold premiums from their employees’ paychecks.

The Healthy Americans Act focuses insurance companies on keeping Americans healthy.

The Healthy Americans Act focuses on preventive care by giving insurance companies a financial incentive to keep their subscrbers healthy. By investing in prevention and disease management, insurance companies will be able to give individuals a reason to choose plans that keep them healthy and, in the long run, to stay with the same insurer. And as consumers will have access to information on every plan’s success in prevention and disease management, insurance companies will ultimately be competing to keep Americans healthy.

Individuals will be rewarded when they or their children successfully participate in wellness programs. Primary care will assume greater importance in the system by allowing patients to designate a primary care provider to manage heir care and help them navigate the health care system, and by reimbursing health care providers for time spent outside of the exam room, The Healthy Americans Act rewards providers for helping their patients stay healthy.

The Healthy Americans Act contains the rising cost of health care—saving $1.48 trillion.

The Healthy Americans Act relies on competition to drive down costs and promote quality. No longer grouping individuals according to their employees, the plan expands the pool of health care consumers — allowing insurance companies to remain profitable while driving down prices.

The Healthy Americans Act also works toward better investment of America’s health care dollars. By assuring that every individual has adequate coverage and use of prevention and wellness services, taxpayers will no longer be asked to foot the bill for expensive visits to the emergency room.

Ultimately under the Healthy Americans Act, the average annual rate of growth in health spending will slow by 0.86% between 2007-2016; this will result in savings of $1.48 trillion.

The Healthy Americans Act assures every American that their health care can never be taken away.

The Healthy Americans Act provides health care that is more dependable than employment. By putting Americans — rather than their employers — in charge of health care, everyone will be guaranteed quality care, even if they change jobs, lose their job or become too sick to work a job. By reducing premiums for individuals and families who may encounter difficulty, The Healthy Americans Act promises that you will not only always be able to afford your insurance, you will always have care.