The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. Obviously, many of your senior citizen clients will have inquiries regarding this historic event that will bring much change to their health care. Here is a list of provisions that will significantly impact them:

Closing the hole – This year analysts estimate there are 4 million senior citizens who will experience the “doughnut hole” in the Medicare prescription drug program. The government will provide them with a $250 rebate to help reduce the cost of the hole.

Co-pays eliminated for pre-screens – one way to lower the cost of health care is to treat symptoms and health problems earlier, so the new law eliminates co-pays for preventative screenings.

4-5 more years of the Medicare Trust Fund – The new PP&AC Act is expected to achieve significant cost savings. The savings, if they materialize will keep the solvency of the Medicare Trust Fund well into the future.

The Physician Payments Sunshine Act – this new law will reduce medical costs by requiring pharmaceutical, biologic, and medical device companies to report payments and gifts given to doctors. The government hopes that this will keep doctors from prescribing only those products from companies they receive payments and gifts from.

Medicare Payment Improvement Act of 2009 – health care providers will be compensated for their services based on the quality, not the quantity, of care they provide. States that achieve higher quality-to-cost ratios will receive an increased reimbursement from Medicare.

The Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act – this law aims to motivate nursing homes to provide the best care possible by giving consumers more access to data and records. Nursing homes will essentially have public records and any major problems could lead to a serious loss of business.

The Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act – many senior health care issues stem from employees having violent or criminal histories that were never discovered by their employers. This new law will set up a system of nationwide background checks on candidates applying for senior health care positions.

Retooling the Healthcare Workforce for an Aging America Act of 2009 – expands, trains, and supports all sectors of the health care workforce to care for the growing population of older individuals in the United States.

The Home and Community Balanced Incentives Act – gives states added incentives and better financial support to motivate them to improve Medicaid programs by expanding HCBS (home and community-based services).

The PP&AC Act will be especially beneficial for seniors on the Medicare program believes Joe Baker, president of the Medicare Rights Center saying, “People with Medicare will save hundreds of dollars each year as the coverage gap in the Medicare drug benefit is phased out. They will have better access to preventive services and primary care. Hospitals and doctors will have new incentives to provide high-quality, coordinated care that will help people with Medicare manage chronic conditions. Medicare’s finances will be stronger and the budget deficit will be reduced.”

This document spotlights the changes that the PP&AC Act introduces (note: Medicare specific information starts on page 23): http://www.kff.org/healthreform/upload/housesenatebill_final.pdf

More information regarding health insurance reform and Medicare can be found here: http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/medicare/index.html

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