Affordable Health Care Plans
@ NY State Marketplace .
What’s new in the 2019 NY Affordable Health Care :
1. Uninsured – Starting at 2019 , purchasing Health Care
plan is not mandatory anymore . It means , that no one
will have to pay a penalty fee , when filing 2019 tax return .
2. Deadlines – Enroll by : 12 – 15 / 2018 , for a coverage
starting : 1 – 1 / 2019 .
3. Eligibility – To enroll to NY State marketplace you must
be : A legal U.S. citizen or resident & not incarcerated .
4. Coverage – Essential health benefits , pre – existing conditions
& preventive services .
Other Health Care options , including the uninsured :
1. Federal – U.S. Department of Health & Human Services .
Find a Health Care center near you here . Free or low cost .
2. New York – The Institute for Family Health .
Sliding scale fees – Based on your ability to pay , but no one
is turned away .
3. New York City – Free & low cost Health Care resources .
Click here .
Why is health insurance so expensive
in the U.S. ?
The Human Factor .
1. Administrative Costs – According to Harvard economist ,
David Cutler , the administrative costs of running the U.S. Health
Care system are astronomical & are responsible for about one
quarter of the Health Care cost .
Other developed countries have a single – payer system , while
the U.S. has numerous billing methods , that occupy numerous
billing specialists .
2. Defensive Medicine – Practice of defensive medicine is very
popular among U.S. doctors ; More than care for your health , it’s
practiced to protect themselves against lawsuits .
According to a Gallup survey , about $ 650 billion , annually ,
attributed to defensive medicine . All of us share & pay the bill .
It’s pathetic how a great idea , Preventive Medicine , that helps
to save human life , realized as a wasted individual & public
monetary resources .
3. Too Many Referrals To Specialists – Specialists charge a lot
more than primary care physicians . More & more treatments ,
that can be performed by p.c.p.s are being referred to specialists .
The Drug Factor .
4. Drug Costs – In other developed countries , governments negotiate
drug prices with the drug manufacturers ; Not in the U.S. .
The Facility Factor .
5. Over Use Of Expensive Technologies – In comparison to other
developed countries , the U.S. Health Care system uses three times
more mammograms , two & a half time more M.R.I.s & so forth .
Hugh investment in latest technologies .
6. Branding – The more prestigious the medical institute is ,
the higher it charges patrons for the services it provides .
7. Cross Market Hospital Mergers – Cross market is either
operating in different geographical areas of the same state or
providing different service lines in the same area .
Both ways , competition is reduced & the hospital system
leverage against the health insurance companies is stronger .
The bottom line .
A survey done on 2015 , to the request of the International
Federation of Health Plans , compared Health Care prices in
seven developed countries , including the U.S. .
The survey found :
1. Health Care costs in the U.S. were elevated , compared to
costs in the other countries :
2. There was a significant difference in what people , in the
U.S. , paid for the same drug or medical procedure .
Tom Sackville , the C.E.O. of I.F.H.P. , concluded – The survey
pointed the damaging effects of the inadequately regulated
U.S. Health Care market .
Health Affairs journal , which is considered ” The bible of health
policy in the U.S. ” , projected that by 2025 , Health Care costs
will be about 20.1% of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product .
Till then , spending on Health Care will grow by 5.8% each year .
This should alarm our government & have it find a solution
a.s.a.p. . A solution that will benefit all the citizens & residents
of this amazing country .