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Five Things Seniors Should Know About Health Reform

In 2010 senior citizens, along with the rest of Americans, were left wondering exactly what will happen to senior health care, particularly Medicare, as a result of the Affordable Care Act. We've collected five important facts so you can ensure you know the basics:

The Five Facts about Senior Health Reform

1. Most of the cuts to Medicare involve the Medicare Advantage program, not traditional Medicare benefits. There are no reductions planned for traditional Medicare benefits. The bulk of spending cuts for Medicare are in Medicare Advantage, the program that uses private health insurance carriers to deliver Medicare benefits. Many of these providers offer extra coverage, and some of those extras could be dropped. It's likely that the cost of Medicare Advantage policies will increase as Medicare Advantage subsidies are bought more in line with the cost of traditional Medicare benefits.
2. You will receive a free annual wellness visit along with certain screenings. Medicare will begin paying for annual checkups, along with certain screenings, such as colon cancer and breast cancer screenings.
3. The Medicare Part D 'donut hole' will be fixed. The Medicare donut hole, the out of pocket costs that senior must pay between the first and third levels of coverage for prescription drugs will slowly close over the next several years. In the interim, a $250 rebate check is being issued in 2010 for seniors entering this gap in coverage.
4. The Affordable Care Act allows the establishment of an Independent Payment Advisory Board for Medicare. This is perhaps the most controversial aspect of the bill. Although this board would not be established or meet for 3-4 years, their purpose is to submit ideas and proposals for legislation in order to cut the per capita spending of Medicare if this spending starts growing too quickly and becomes unsustainable.
5. Medicaid coverage will be expanded. In 2014, Medicaid (the state-run, federally funded, need-based program) will expand to include everyone who makes less than 133% of the poverty line (the poverty line is $14,400 this year for individuals). In the meantime, under Health Care Reform, states may expand their Medicaid programs to cover these people, and receive federal funding to do so.