Subscribe to Health Beauty Cares

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Multiple Health Care Issues To Be Funded Next Year

By Ethan Kalvin

Next year's stimulus package will include large investments in health care and health insurance reform, according to the Washington Post. The package could top $500 billion. There are a few major financial assistance health care programs slated to get a significant funding boost. Here are the programs in question:

SCHIP The State Children's Health Insurance Program is expected to be prominent in the new stimulus package. Though it is regarded as a costly program to get children the health care they need, it has been very successful. It is expected that the Obama budget will help get the program expanded, since Congress has already supported its expansion.

COBRA, which allows the unemployed to continue their health insurance coverage from their previous employer for a designated period of time is also a costly plan. U.S. Representative Pete Stark from California is promoting an expansion of COBRA. His plan proposes providing subsidies to help the unemployed pay for the plan.

MEDICAID The Federal health coverage program for low income Americans is scheduled to receive up to $40 billion in the next two years as part of the Obama stimulus plan.

The updating of medical recordkeeping procedures has long been one of the deficiencies that most agree needs to be addressed. The stimulus plan is likely to include up to $10 billion to begin that process, with the money being paid to doctors, hospitals and other healthcare providers. It remains to be seen which of these make it into the final bill.

About the Author:

No comments:

Post a Comment