Headlines: May 7, 2010
by Meg Larkin
In the wake of the health care overhaul, President Obama has announced that the government will help pay for health insurance for retired employees. The new government program will reimburse employers for up to 80% of the cost of claims from $15,000 to $90,000 per year for retirees who are over 55 and not yet eligible for Medicare. The program will spend up to $5 billion between 2010 and 2014, and is designed to help a population that often has trouble obtaining insurance by providing incentives for employers to continue offering insurance programs. According to the New York Times, “The federal aid will be available to private employers, state and local governments, nonprofit and religious organizations and labor unions that sponsor health benefit plans.”
In other government news, the President’s Cancer Panel has released a report warning of grievous harm from chemicals in the water, air and food. The Panel said that previous reports linking only a small percentage of cancer to chemicals had “grossly underestimated” the cancer risk. According to the Washington Post, children are particularly affected by the levels of chemicals in the human environment. Recent tests have found industrial chemicals in the umbilical cord blood that provides growing fetuses with their only source of nutrition. The report blames much of the problem on weak regulation of chemicals by the U.S. Government. For an interesting perspective on the report, read Nicholas Kristof’s Op-Ed in the New York Times.
In other research news, an artificial pancreas that is under development could help people living with diabetes. The device measures glucose levels every five minutes and uses that information to mimic the responses of a healthy pancreas. While the system has tremendous potential to improve life for diabetics, it does not yet control insulin or glaucagon finely enough for the device to be ready for market.
Finally, in insurance news, the Obama Administration has asked state insurance regulators to scrutinize any rate hikes by Wellpoint. According to the Washington Post, “Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius made the request after WellPoint withdrew a proposal to raise rates by as much as 39 percent for Californians with individual policies. California regulators determined that the proposed increase was based on erroneous assumptions. “ Under the new health care law, insurers will have to compete more directly with one another, and there is increased funding for review of insurance rates.
Meg Larkin is a second year law student at Boston University. Please feel free to email her with any questions, comments, suggestions or concerns.
