Category: Health and financial security

With Affordable Care Act, more Latinos insured

A new report from the Commonwealth Fund reveals that thanks to the Affordable Care Act, many more Latinos are insured.

Overall, there has been a 13 point increase in the Latino population with health insurance since last year. As of a few months ago, 23 percent of the Latino population is uninsured as compared with last year when 36 percent of the Latino population was uninsured.

Young Latinos between the ages of 19 and 34 have seen the greatest drop—20 points–in their uninsured rate. Between July and September 2013, 43 percent of the Latino population between 19 and 34 was uninsured. Nine months later, between April and June 2014, 23 percent of the Latino young adult population was uninsured.

States that have expanded Medicaid coverage have cut by half the percentage of uninsured Latinos from 35 percent to 17 percent. States that have not expanded Medicaid coverage still have 33 percent of their Latino population uninsured.

For decades, Latinos had the highest uninsured rate in America.

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October 14, 2014

Caregivers have rights too…at least in some cases

We all know how hard being a caregiver can be. The financial, emotional an physical tolls are often enormous. Caregiving demands are likely to pull people away from their paid jobs. Thanks to the Family and Medical Leave Act, caregivers have rights. And, it’s important to know your rights to balance work and family needs. In certain cases, you have the right to take up to twelve weeks unpaid leave from your job each year, without risk of losing that job or with the right to return to an equivalent job an benefits. If the care is for a family member with a serious illness, you do not need to take the time off in a block but can break it up (for example, take one day a week).

The Family and Medical Leave Act safeguards your job along with health insurance benefits, when these conditions are met.

The employer is a federal, state or local agency, a school or a private company with more than 50 employees.
You have worked for the employer for at least one full year and 1250 hours.
Your spouse, child or parent has a serious medical conditions.
You give 30 days notice.

Of course many of us will face caregiving demands and not qualify for the protections that the Family and Medical Leave Act offer. In those cases, speak with the human resources department at your job to see whether you can arrange a work schedule that better allows you to balance work and family caregiving needs.For more information , you can call the Family and Medical Leave hotline at 1-8000-959-FMLA.

October 10, 2014

Americans give our health care system a C on affordability
Just released survey findings from Consumers Union, the advocacy arm of Consumer Reports, reveal that a majority of Americans believe that key health care stakeholders are making too much money off of patients, and many believe that the federal government should take responsibility for reining in costs.In 2013, families typically spent $600 on their health care on top of health insurance premiums. And, almost one in eight of them spent more than $5000, excluding premiums. Overall, respondents gave the US health care system a C on affordability but, of that group, people with Medicare gave it a B on affordability.

The overall grade among all respondents on quality of care, affordability, fairness, choice of doctors and ease of access was a B-. Of note, the people with Medicare gave our health care system the highest overall grade of any other group, including the well insured, B-, and the light users, C+.Of the 1000 people surveyed, one in three (34 percent) believe the health insurers have “profited most excessively” from our health care system and one in four (26 percent) believe that drug companies have seen the most profits. Very few (2 percent) appreciate the extent to which the medical device manufacturers, makers of syringes and MRI machines among a wide array of other products, profit from the system.

More than 40 percent of respondents, two out of five, said that the federal government should address these excessive costs. An overwhelming majority, 86 percent felt that the government should not allow drug companies to charge Americans more than they do people in other countries. More than 80 percent of them also felt that the government should set standard prices for hospitals, doctors and drugs.

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October 10, 2014
How well do you understand the problem with health care costs?

Let Josh Sundquist explain four shocking facts about the problem with health care costs in his own delightful way.

September 26, 2014
How much truth do you think there is in medical conspiracy theories?

A new JAMA study reveals that a large swath of the general public agrees with a variety of medical conspiracy theories. More than a third of Americans surveyed believe that pressure from the drug companies has led the US Food and Drug Administration to prevent the public from getting natural cures for cancer. And, one in five Americans believe that health officials know that cellphones cause cancer but that big companies are pressuring them from doing anything about it. What do you think? The chart below tells more.

September 26, 2014
Are you spending as much on health care as you are on food?

If you have Medicare, you might just be spending as much on health care as you are on food: health care is typically 13.9% of household spending.As you age, watch out. Your healthcare costs can eat up a huge portion of your total household spending.

Healthcare spending often represents a large share of overall household spending, particularly for older adults with Medicare, living on fixed incomes, who need significant amounts of care. For sure, you spend a larger portion of your income on health care as you age and as your income decreases. And, of course, the more health care you need, especially if you need long-term care, the more likely a greater portion of your income goes to health care.

Household spending on health care is significantly higher on average for people with Medicare. As of 2012, the typical Medicare household has a lower income, $33,993, and higher health care costs than younger household’s income, $53,000. In 2012 Medicare households spent 13.9% of their total household spending on healthcare costs, $4722, whereas non-Medicare households spent closer to 5%, $2722.

So, what do people spend their health care dollars on? Mostly they are paying a lot for health insurance, such as premiums and coinsurance payments. Premiums alone typically account for two-thirds of total spending for people with Medicare, a yearly average of $3088. Other out-of-pocket costs include an average of $873 for medical services, $613 for prescription drugs, and $149 for medical supplies. The share of healthcare costs mirrors the cost of food and transportation for Medicare households.

Click here to read more from Kaiser Family Foundation.

September 4, 2014
Depressed? Ditch the concrete and go green

New research reveals that people who live in communities with green space have lower levels of depression and anxiety than people who live in urban areas with little or no green space. They may also experience less stress.

Green space can mean anything from forests to small parks, both of which can be health-promoting. Green space has also been shown to lower crime rates and reduce violence.

Green space can also lead to greater exercise and other physical activities that contribute to better health.

September 2, 2014
Diet Soda, No Solution for Weight Loss

A recent study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health finds that diet soda is no solution for weight loss. Overweight adults who drink diet soda end up consuming more calories from solid foods than overweight adults who drink sugar-sweetened drinks.

Interestingly, the researchers found that healthy-weight adults who drank diet soda did not consume more calories from solid foods. Drinking diet drinks helped them maintain their weight.

The study looked at data of almost 24,000 adults from the National Health and Nutrition Survey between 1999 and 2010.

August 25, 2014
Why does my healthcare cost so much?

Why does your healthcare cost so much? First, it’s because every procedure costs more in the United States than in other countries.

August 23, 2014
Happy 79th birthday, Social Security!
Today is Social Security’s 79th birthday. Let’s take a moment to reflect on its importance. Most Americans rely on Social Security for a large part of their income.
- People over 65 rely on Social Security for an average of two-thirds of their income.
- One in three people over 65 receive at least 90 percent of their income from Social Security.
- About 23 percent of White Americans over 65 rely exclusively on Social Security for their income, and approximately 35 percent of them rely on Social Security for 90 percent of their income. A significantly higher percentage of Asians (~32 percent), Blacks (~37 percent) and Hispanics (~42 percent) rely exclusively on Social Security for their income.
- Social Security income kept more than 15 million older adults from living below the poverty level in 2012.
- People over 65 receive an average of $1300 a month from Social Security.
- Relative to the other 33 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Social Security benefits are modest at best. The United States ranks 31st, behind the Slovak Republic, Estonia, Chile and Korea, in the income security we provide retirees.
To learn more about the critical role Social Security plays, check-out Nancy Altman and Eric Kingson’s recent article titled, “Happy Birthday Social Security: Time to Expand Your Protections.” Nancy and Eric are co-founders of Social Security Works.

Get Engaged
August 14, 2014