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Several studies suggest that undergoing routine preventive health services has the potential to save lives, by catching chronic diseases at a stage when treatment is still possible, among other reasons. However, for some Americans, the cost of these services has been prohibitive, that they are willing to risk the odds of not having them at all.
Unfortunately, this tradeoff may be dangerous; 7 out of 10 Americans die due to causes that are preventable. These include such chronic diseases as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.
Through the Affordable Care Act, however, access to preventive health services will be made available to more Americans. Mayra Alvarez, Director of Public Health Policy at the Department of Health and Human Services, shared some of the preventive services that more Americans may be able to enjoy, in a feature on HealthCare.gov.
Those who enroll in new health plans on or before September 23, 2010 are entitled to free preventive services, as all health plans are now required to cover certain preventive services without charging co-pay, co-insurance, or deductible.
Examples of these preventive services are as follows: blood pressure readings, cholesterol tests, and nutrition counseling; cancer screenings, such as mammograms and colonoscopies; flu and pneumonia shots; and routine vaccinations against diseases such as measles, hepatitis, and meningitis.
Those who are enrolled in Medicare are qualified for a free yearly wellness exam, as well as various preventive services. To date, more than 150,000 seniors and Medicare beneficiaries have been able to enjoy an annual wellness visit.
One of the things that the Affordable Care Act calls for is the formulation of a National Prevention Strategy, which provides an outline regarding what public and private entities could do to help Americans stay healthy. A healthy population is something that, in turn, will ensure that Americans are able to contribute significantly towards the prosperity of the nation.
The National Prevention Strategy is an affirmation of the importance of wellness and prevention of diseases, as opposed to focusing on illness. The way to a healthier America is to ensure that Americans are able to enjoy preventive services, in order to ensure that they do not fall ill to begin with; indeed, an ounce of prevention goes a long way, when compared against a pound of cure.
According to a press release shared on BusinessWire, a press conference that will unveil the National Prevention Strategy is scheduled for June 16, 2011, Thursday, at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington D.C.
The following will be present during the press conference:
Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;
Melody Barnes, Domestic Policy Adviser and the Director of the Domestic Policy Council at the White House;
Regina M. Benjamin, M.D., M.B.A., Surgeon General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;
R. Gil Kerlikowske, Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy; and
Robert Velasco, II, Acting Chief Executive Officer, Corporation for National and Community Service.
EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and U.S. Senator Tom Harkin are also expected to attend, according to a post on HealthCare.gov.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, known also simply as the new health care reform law, include several provisions that ultimately have the welfare of the American in mind in terms of health care. One of the things that it touches on is the importance of prevention in ensuring better health.
This provision led to the creation of the National Prevention Council, as shared in a post on HealthCare.gov. Serving as chairperson for the council is the Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, the author of the post.
Dr. Benjamin listed the responsibilities of the National Prevention Council as the coordination of efforts towards prevention, wellness, and health promotion across the government. She wrote further that the Council is expected to develop a National Prevention Strategy, based in part on input received from the public, as well as from interested stakeholders.
“The National Prevention Strategy brings prevention and wellness to the forefront of our national conversation on health,” Dr. Benjamin said. “A focus on prevention will offer an opportunity to not only improve the health of Americans, but also help to reduce health care costs and improve quality of care.”
In connection with the effort to develop the National Prevention Strategy, Dr. Benjamin shared that the Council hosted a meeting for stakeholders, set on December 15, Wednesday, simulcast on www.hhs.gov/live from 9 am to 1 pm Eastern. The purpose of the meeting is to allow the Council “to hear directly from stakeholders, including, local, state, and community-based organizations, as well as public and private sectors who are engaged in prevention programs and activities.”
In a previous post, we shared with you how Medicare is being expanded to include tobacco cessation programs, ensuring that beneficiaries are given the opportunity to undergo such programs when these can be more helpful and effective, which is before the onset of disease.
Preventive care is not just a Medicare provision, but a provision that includes everyone, regardless of age. After all, it is not just seniors who have smoking habits; come to think of it, there may be more yuppies that are into smoking when compared to seniors.
Health care reform recognizes that being able to prevent disease from occurring is just as important as meeting the health care demands of patients. It is for this reason that cancer prevention tools, including such programs as annual mammograms for women over 40, regular pap smears, HPV vaccination, tobacco cessation counseling or medication, and screening tests for colon cancer for adults over 50.
New health plans are also mandated to offer coverage sans cost-sharing services, for services such as obesity screening, counseling from physicians or health professionals in order to promote sustained weight loss, blood pressure screening, counseling on the daily use of aspirin in order to reduce the risk of a stroke, and screening for high cholesterol and diabetes.
Children are also taken care of by healthcare reform, through the availability of new health plans for children without cost-sharing. Among these services are well-baby and well-child doctor’s visits every few months and screenings for such childhood problems as obesity and depression.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act includes provisions that indicate an important fact: prevention of diseases is as important as the treatment of diseases. Thus, focus is also given towards ensuring that health care coverage for Americans will include access to important preventive care.
According to a feature on the Wall Street Journal, the White House has released rules that specified the preventive health services that insurance companies should provide to consumers at no additional cost. The First Lady, Michelle Obama, gave the following statement: “Services like these will go a long way in preventing chronic illness.”
The regulations stipulate that health plans that are initiated after September 23 should include coverage of preventive health services, at no additional cost. This is only applicable to new health plans, though; those who choose to stay with their existing health plans will not be able to benefit from the change.
The list of services that are covered for adults include the following, as shared in the report: mammograms, colonoscopies and other cancer screenings, diabetes screenings, counseling for tobacco use and selected types of pre-natal care. Pediatric visits, vision and hearing screening, developmental assessments, immunizations and obesity screenings are among the services that are covered for children.
Since it is rare for anything to be given for free, insurers reportedly revealed that new plans will have to raise premiums overall in order to cover the cost of covering the added services. According to the administration, the change may increase the cost of premiums by 1.5 percent annually.
