Since 03-27-10
National Health Reform and You Please read in it's entirety
Since 03-27-10
From: Waspscpo@aol.com
[mailto:Waspscpo@aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, March 27, 2010 10:29 AM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: National Health Reform and You Please read in it's entirety.
http://www.moaa.org/
.............
Dear Captain Woodbury,
In recent days, we’ve seen a barrage of information (and misinformation, in many
cases) about how national health reform legislation might affect currently
serving and retired servicemembers and their families.Now that President Obama
has signed the initial legislation into law, I want to lay out for you what we
know.The biggest question on our members’ minds has been: “How will passage of
national health reform legislation affect me?” For members under age 65, based
on what we know so far, the answer appears to be, “Not much, if at all.
”There are some changes to Medicare, but it remains to be seen what the real
impact of those may be over time. The most significant of them is likely to be
some reduction of availability of Medicare Advantage HMOs.In the meantime, MOAA
has prepared Q
that we hope you’ll find useful.Unfortunately, there already are messages
flying around the internet to the effect that “I heard this will end TRICARE” or
“This will force military people to buy other coverage.
” That’s simply not true. If you get such messages, please help educate the
senders with MOAA’s answers.As MOAA has said from the beginning, everyone we’ve
talked to in the Administration or the House or the Senate, of either political
party, supports protecting military and VA beneficiaries from adverse effects
associated with national health reform.Just to be sure, MOAA and loyal members
like you generated more than 100,000 messages to Congress urging protection of
the unique military and VA health benefits and protection against any taxation
of those benefits.
And your voices were heard.In as clear an indication of that as anyone could ask
for, the House unanimously passed separate legislation explicitly citing TRICARE
as “qualifying health coverage” for purposes of the new law. The Senate is
working now to pass the same legislation. VA care and TRICARE For Life already
were explicitly designated in law.
That means eligible beneficiaries of those programs won’t be subject to
financial penalties that can be imposed on people who don’t have qualifying
insurance.That said, let’s be clear on another key issue.Can anyone guarantee
that there will never be any unfavorable changes to military and VA programs?
No.Do we know for sure how all the details will play out?
No.There’s always a potential for unintended consequences, and there’s always
the potential for new initiatives to arise (see below).But if you were worried
that national health reform legislation is somehow aimed at whacking military
beneficiaries’ health coverage, that’s just not so.
Frankly, we think the much more significant issue for Medicare – and for the
military community and the rest of America -- is what proposed changes will be
recommended by the new National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform
that’s supposed to report by Dec. 1 on options to reduce the national debt.
You have my personal pledge that MOAA will continue to be vigilant as
implementation of national health reform proceeds – and as the new debt
commission proposals become known – and your association will continue to do
everything in our power to protect your interests and your service-earned health
benefits.All the best,
VADM
Norb Ryan Jr., USN (Ret)
President
This message was sent to you at the following email address: dewoodbury@msn.com
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