Like most Americans, I’m concerned about our medical coverage for next year. We’re already paying more a month for premiums than for food. All this so we don’t lie awake at night worrying about the “what ifs.” My concern comes from two places: First, insurers telling us during open enrollment to expect at least a 10% increase in premiums, and second, insurers telling us that if healthcare reform passes we’ll see higher costs because we’re going to let everyone in who is sick.

The good news, and thank goodness there is some, is that new companies are sprouting up everywhere, including My Health and Money, to help us all become smarter healthcare purchasers. The result will be that we learn how to decipher an industry that is overly complicated and not consumer friendly.

Which takes me to healthcare reform. Could this be any more complicated? There are several contentious issues, but the top ones are the inclusion of a government public option and mandatory coverage for all Americans. The public option is supported by liberal Democrats and abhorred by conservative Republicans. Senator Reid pushed hard to get it back on the table in any form imaginable, but it doesn’t look like he’ll have the votes to get it into the Senate bill. This is too bad because there is no guarantee that without it there will be affordable insurance coverage available.

The mandatory coverage hot topic is bringing corporate America to the podium, saying if we mandate coverage everyone’s insurance costs are going up. The fear is that if penalties for not playing aren’t high enough we’ll end up with only sick people in the insurance pool. Obviously, insurance companies make money when the amount they bring in through premiums is higher than the amount they pay out in claims.

In the news today, it was reported that the Republicans have ideas of their own on how to reform healthcare, which mainly include malpractice reform and allowing a national sales channel for insurance companies so there’s more market competition. I’m not opposed to these ideas in theory, but really, this will solve all of our access and cost woes?

The bottom line is that consumers need options for care and insurance coverage, which means we need to understand what we’re buying. The entire industry is built around keeping us out of the financial discussions, and financially vulnerable when we require care. Of course, this isn’t true for everyone. Some employees have tremendous coverage and very little out-of-pockets costs. But too many Americans don’t.

What questions do you have about healthcare reform?
We can help you decipher what all these policy changes could mean for you.

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