health insurance tagged posts

Congress Kicks Off Mental Health Month by Shifting Priorities for Health Care Access

Susan Weinstein, Co-Executive Director
Families for Depression Awareness

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives welcomed the first week of Mental Health Month by approving the American Health Care Act, the latest iteration of a bill to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare”).

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Insurance Coverage Doesn’t Guarantee Timely Access to Care

Picture of Simon F. Haeder

Simon F. Haeder, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Political Science, West Virginia University

With a national shortage of healthcare providers and insurance companies continually seeking to contain costs, it’s no secret that networks are shrinking. And as more patients opt into Affordable Care Act plans, there’s a lot of chatter about whether patients with marketplace plans (most of whom are lower income and rely on subsidies) face restricted access to care.

But when it comes to actually comparing these new marketplace plans to traditional commercial plans, there’s not much in the way of data. So, my colleagues and I decided to conduct a secret shopper-style survey of 743 primary care providers throughout California.

Our findings were revealing. While there was little difference between commercial and marketplace plans, both performed poorly. Less than 30% of patients—for both plans—were able to get appointments with the primary providers of their choice.

The research proved insurance coverage doesn’t necessarily guarantee timely access to care. In order for our healthcare system to improve, we must start giving patients accurate information and adequate networks so they can access the care they need and deserve.

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BCBS North Carolina Isn’t Paying Claims. People Are Suffering. What to Do?

Rhonda Karg, Ph.D.
New Leaf Psychotherapy, Asheville, NC

Imagine being a small business owner. You’re passionate about what you do, you serve your community, and your main purpose is to help people in need. But suddenly your biggest client withholds payment for six months or more. Would you find this unacceptable, illegal, infuriating? How would you keep your doors open or pay your car insurance, phone bill, or mortgage?

For many behavioral health providers who’ve contracted with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC), that’s the situation they’ve faced since January.

Citing a software problem, the insurance giant is now months behind on paying 9-15% of its claims from providers. In addition to the outrageous financial toll this is taking on clinicians—some of whom rely on BCBSNC for 90% of their income— thousands of patients statewide have lost their access to care.

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Health Insurance Mergers: Increased Profit, Not Better Care

By Joseph Valenti, MD, FACOG
Past Chair, Council on Socioeconomics, Texas Medical Association

Think back to your last airline flight. After paying a premium price for your ticket you probably waited in a long check-in line, paid hefty baggage fees, dealt with delays—and spent hours in a cramped, narrow seat. (I assume, like most of us, you fly in economy.) Commercial flying has become increasingly miserable in recent years. But as travelers, most of us feel pretty powerless; if we want to fly, we have no choice but to take what the airlines are offering.

We can trace the unpleasant state of airline travel to one overriding cause: industry consolidation. In the past 12 years, 10 major U.S. airlines have merged into four mega-carriers—and they have all the power.

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The Clock Is Ticking on the 7 Million Uninsured with Behavioral Health Conditions

Ron Manderscheid

Ron Manderscheid, PhD
Executive Director
National Association of County Behavioral Health & Developmental Disability Directors

Now is the time to help the 7 million uninsured Americans with behavioral health conditions understand their health coverage.

In a recent post, Hannah Sentenac discussed the challenges young adults face accessing mental healthcare. Because many Millennials are choosing job flexibility and self-employment over traditional employment, they are faced with the costly prospect of purchasing their own health insurance; and many have simply chosen to go without. Even for Millennials who have insurance (either employer-sponsored or self-purchased), high co-pays and hefty out-of-network charges have prevented many from obtaining mental health treatment, she states.

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Are Millennials Receiving Adequate Mental Health Coverage?

By: Hannah Sentenac

How hard is it to find the right health insurance, one that covers all of your medical and mental health needs and is affordable? It’s difficult for all of us, but more challenging for some. Now is the open enrollment period for many employer-sponsored health insurance plans, the ACA, and Medicare. Over the next several weeks CFYM will look at a variety of challenges facing different populations, beginning with today’s post on the generation of Millennials. .

Millennials are a lot of things: large in number, highly nontraditional, devotees of the almighty Google. A massive generation, we encompass everyone born between 1980 and 1999, which totals 80 Million+ Americans.

Unfortunately, we’re also a generation suffering from a lot of mental health woes.

Studies show Millennials tend to suffer from higher stress levels and mental health concerns than other generations. A 2013 study by the American Psychological Association and Harris Interactive found that more Millennials have been diagnosed with depression and anxiety than any other living generation, and that we’re more stressed than any other living generation.

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The Pro’s and Con’s of High Deductible Health Insurance Plans

Are you familiar with the term “high deductible health insurance plan” (HDHP)? This type of coverage saves you money on monthly health insurance premiums in exchange for higher deductibles—the annual upfront amount of covered health expenses you must self-pay (out-of-pocket) before your plan pays for medical expenses. Read today’s post to better understand if these plans are right for you.

Autumn brings a change in the weather, the onset of fall colors, and for many, it signals the annual rite of choosing a health insurance plan for 2015. Employers are increasingly offering HDHPs to their employees. In fact, according to a National Business Group on Health survey, of the 136 large companies studied, almost 33% offer HDHPs to their employees. These plans are also available from the health insurance marketplace for individuals and families who do not receive their health insurance through employers.

Before deciding on whether or not this plan is right for you and your family, it is wise to evaluate your own and your family member’s mental health care needs.

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Can Medicaid Managed Care Programs Deliver on the Promise to Improve Outcomes?

Heather O’Donnell
Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy, Thresholds

Autumn ushers in a time to evaluate your current health insurance plans. Over the next few weeks, CFYM will provide information on Medicaid, employee-sponsored plans, and ACA marketplace plans. In today’s post, Heather O’Donnell provides guidance about moving to a Medicaid managed care plan.

As the Affordable Care Act is implemented across the country, Illinois, like most states, is making changes to its Medicaid program. As the largest insurer of Illini living with a mental health condition, this program has a responsibility to

  • improve health outcomes
  • reduce preventable hospitalizations
  • reduce costs.

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