Still having trouble figuring out what people are talking about when they mention a health insurance exchange?
Well, back in January, I mentioned a project that NY State policymakers were working on with 9 other states called UX2014 – or “User Experience 2014” – to build a prototype for a health insurance exchange (or, at least the part of it that the public will use).
Well, it looks like they are done designing their model and it is up on the web for people to look at and try out. Again, this is just a prototype. Each state (including NY) has the option of using this prototype as a model for their own exchange and customizing it, or designing their own from scratch.
I just took a look at it, and it does seem to be pretty user-friendly, for me anyways. It actually reminded me somewhat of the turbo tax software I use to file my taxes online each year. The website is set up using a hypothetical family of three as the potential enrollee, and then walks you through all of the steps they would go through to see if they are eligible for tax credits, look at available plans, and enroll. The model also has an option for help and lets people choose between finding in-person help in their area, utilizing an online chat function, or calling a hotline.
It’s worth taking a look at, if you get a chance, and will help to create a visual of what we mean when we talk about a “health insurance exchange.”
The UX2014 website, with the prototype, can be accessed at: http://www.ux2014.org/
This week is National Emergency Medical Services Week, where we honor professionals in emergency services for the dedication they have for their communities. Guest blogger Maryanne Tomazic from Raising Women’s Voices writes about some of her experiences in the back of the ambulance. She has volunteered with local EMS for almost five years, and has seen how needed the health care reform law is to protecting and improving the health of our communities.
As an Emergency Medical Technician, I feel I get a good picture of where my community’s health is the weakest. While many of the calls are accidents or unexpected, a majority of them are medical in nature, and unfortunately, avoidable.
I remember one call I had where a patient had reportedly fallen out of consciousness. When we got to the house, the woman said that she had become lethargic for a few seconds – probably because of her diabetes. We asked if she had tested her blood sugar. She said no, and that she didn’t have enough money to buy a lot of testing strips, so she tried to “ration” them when possible.
Diabetes is a serious chronic condition, and in this woman’s case, required daily monitoring of blood sugar. Because of cost, this patient wasn’t managing her health, and had gotten to a point where she needed emergency medical services.
I don’t know what type of insurance she had, or what type of care her doctor was providing, but it was clear that this woman needed help. She needed better control over her diabetes, and whatever situation she was in medically or financially, wasn’t working.
Governor Cuomo recently established a state health insurance exchange, where uninsured New Yorkers can buy quality, affordable health care plans. To make sure we get the best coverage value for our premium dollars, the exchange can act on our behalf as “active purchasers” and select only the best health care plans. They can set certain standards to make sure plans address what is important to our community.
Our state exchange could require plans to meet standards for properly managing chronic conditions. They could accept only plans that actively assist enrollees who have chronic diseases like diabetes, or that have the fewest hospital admissions due to mismanagement of health. A standard like this would encourage plans to provide support for patients, like text message reminders to test your blood sugar or more affordable testing strips.
But opportunities like this won’t likely happen unless our exchange serves as an “active purchaser”. We need to make sure our voices are heard. We want access to health care plans that address our needs – and to help promote that, we need to have an exchange that acts in the best interest of the community.
Ask any EMT, and they will be able to tell you countless of calls like this one – where a patient couldn’t afford or couldn’t get the care they needed, and ended up taking a trip to the emergency room. These are our neighbors, our families and friends, and if we have the chance to help improve the health care they get and make a difference, we need to put our full support behind it.
Lois Uttley of Raising Women’s Voices and Gloria Steinem, Co-Founder, Ms. Foundation for Women
Just wanted to send a hearty round of applause to HCFANY’s own Lois Uttley and Jasmine Burnett, who were both honored last night with the Ms. Foundation’s annual Gloria Award.
The Gloria Awards honor women activists who fight for change on behalf of women, families and communities.
Lois gave a speech to a packed room of over 400, promising that “Raising Women’s Voices NY will be working hard with our allies on creation of a state health exchange that will offer affordable coverage to more than 1 million un-insured New Yorkers.”
Also honored last night were Louise Gund, Artist, Conservationist, and Entrepreneurial Philanthropist, Sheila Nevins, President, HBO Documentary Films, Gert Boyle, Chair of the Board of Columbia Sportswear Company, Klarissa Oh, Executive Director of Oregon Abuse Advocates and Survivors in Service, and Felicia Brown-Williams, Regional Director of Public Policy of Planned Parenthood Southeast.
Congratulations to all these amazing women!
Well, today’s health reform update webinar was a success! Perhaps too successful – we had so many people sign up that the system went over capacity and many were not able to join in.
To compensate, HCFANY will be hosting a 2nd webinar presentation for folks who were not able to make it into today’s. This will be held next Thursday, May 10th, at 1:00 PM.
Click here to RSVP
Again, please remember to RSVP as soon as possible as space is limited!
For an who were not able to make today’s or next week’s presentation, Thursday’s presentation will be recorded and posted on the web for future use.