Health Insurance Blog

According to the article “Geisinger Study Aims to Find Fun, Effective Way to Combat Pediatric Obesity” found of their website, childhood obesity in the US is on the rise.  With this comes a significant raise in the risk of type 2 diabetes.  This has motivated Geisinger Health Plan to do something about it.

Researchers at Geisinger Health System’s Henry Hood Center for Health Research and University of PA received a grant by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to look for creative ways to prevent as well as treat children ages 4-8 who are in the 85th percentile for weight or who have a higher BMI. 

Geisinger Health Insurance is taking on this initiative partly because The American Academy of Pediatrics report the prevalence of kids who are obese has doubled over the last 20 years.  According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 31.9% of children and teens are overweight, and 16.3% are considered obese.  These statistics are staggering and shows that something must be done to curb these numbers.  Geisinger is heading in the right direction to take action and find ways to decrease obesity in this country.

This Monday, health officials in Dallas reported the 17th death linked to the H1N1 virus in Dallas County according to the article “Dallas County Reports 17th H1N1 Death” by WFAA.com staff on that website.  A 51 year old man with an underlying health issue passed away recently and was infected with H1N1 according to Dallas County Health and Human Services.

The health department has been urging everyone to get the H1N1 vaccine to protect themselves from getting severely ill.  The county has administered around 10,000 vaccines to residents without Dallas health insurance last week and they now have ran out.  There is no word yet when it will be made available. 

There are certain people on a priority list to get the vaccine.  These include pregnant women, health care workers, people who care for babies under 6 months old, and those between 6 mos and 24 years old and those 25-64 with health conditions.  Many are frustrated that there has been such an emphasis on getting the vaccine, yet it is challenging to find the vaccine in many parts of the country.

To recognize Veterans Day, State Farm Insurance is helping to say thank you to military members and their families according to the article found on reuters.com through PRNewswire sourced from State Farm.  State Farm, which offers State Farm health insurance, auto, and property insurance, will be donating $1 for every “thank you” sent on the newly launched website, ThanksforBeingThere.com.  The money will be donated to the Fisher House Foundation. 

The Fisher House Foundation is a military support organization which offers a helping hand to military families whose relatives are being treated at military or VA medical centers across the country as well as Germany.  They will be sending donations up to a total of $50,000. 

There are 43 Fisher Houses located on 18 military bases and 13 VA medical centers in the US.  Homes are operated by the Army, Navy, USAF, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.  Their main goal is to provide a home away from home for families struggling with a loved one who is injured or sick and seeking treatment.  In 2008, these homes saved military families over $12 million in lodging expenses, which is a huge relief, especially during these tough times. 

Go Blue Florida has helped many Florida residents find affordable health insurance.  At blueadvocacy.org you can learn a bit more about the program.  This product, which was designed to provide affordable access to health care, makes health insurance simpler for people in Florida.

Go Blue health insurance provides easier access to doctor visits, preventative dental care, and pharmacy services at competitive premiums.  Prices can be as low as $26/mos for a 25 year old.  Members have access to the Florida PPO network and protection against balance billing, which can be a huge relief for many.  Another excellent benefit is that no applicants are denied enrollment. 

Some other health care needs that are covered include prescription drugs, dental care and lab services.  They reimburse up to $50 toward each visit for qualified services.  As long as members pay their monthly premium they can receive benefits indefinitely.  This is a unique approach to ensuring more Florida residents are insured.  With the economy struggling and health care up for a possible major reform, it’s definitely good information to have. 

Geisinger Health Plan recently released an update on the 2009 Influenza flu season.  This is found in the article “Influenza Update From Geisinger Health System: 900 Cases” by Dr. Lisa Esolen who is the director for Geisinger Health System Infection Control on Poconorecord.com.

They continue to see a steady increase in the number of flu cases with about 900 cases in the last 3 weeks at both of their Pennsylvania hospitals.  There have also been about 30 hospitalization cases.  Nationally, 46 states have reported widespread influenza cases.  Shipments of the H1N1 vaccine continue to be shipped but there are lower quantities than expected.  These are first being given to health care providers, schools, and hospitals throughout the state.  Currently, there are no public vaccination sites for the H1N1 vaccination since the vaccinations are not plentiful as of now.

Geisinger Health Insurance continues to receive shipments of the H1N1 vaccine, but in small amounts.  Most of the vaccines have been used for pregnant people as well as children.  Many organizations encourage pregnant women to get vaccinated since they are more likely to get severely sick from the flu virus.  It’s important to wash your hands regularly to help limit the spread of the flu. 

Dallas County will lead the state of Texas in the percent of kids without insurance according to the article “Dallas County Leads State In Uninsured Children” by Jason Roberson on dallasnews.com.  The rate of uninsured children in Dallas County is about triple the national average based on the report released by The Children’s Medical Center Dallas.

This is a statistic that is very upsetting for residents.  More than half of the 730,000 kids in Dallas County do not have full access to preventative health care.  The report, called “Beyond ABC: Growing Up in Dallas County”, uses state demographic data from 1998-2008 to research the well-being of resident children.

Dallas health insurance isn’t necessarily difficult to find, but families are having difficulty affording rising premiums.  Children’s and other hospitals support the initiative to get all children insured because it places them in the care of a regular doctor and eliminates expensive visits to the emergency room.  This can prevent the mounting of debt for hospitals.  31% of Dallas County children will be uninsured by 2010 unless something is done. 

One of the regular items we blog about here at healthinsurancesort.com is finding affordable health plans across the country to assist our uninsured readers in finding health plans that fit within their budgets. These plans might not be for everybody, but it can’t hurt to be aware that they exist.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) offers and affordable health care option called Foundation Hospital Care PPO. This health plan is not comprehensive major medical insurance but rather a limited benefit plan that only covers health care expenses related to inpatient hospitalization coverage.

The plan offers

• Affordable, cost effective health coverage for inpatient settings
• Freedom to choose your hospitals
• Individual, spouse and child coverage
• 24 hour worldwide coverage
• No balance billing above the Allowable Amount

Limited benefit plans are not right for everybody, but might fit your needs in a pinch.

more information about Texas health insurance and BCBSTX

Consumer Reports recently came out with a survey about consumers and their satisfaction with their current health insurance plan.  This is according to the article “Health Plans Get Only So-So Reviews” on the Washington Post’s website.

The survey’s findings were based on responses from 37,481 readers who reported their health insurance experience over a course of a year.  The numbers represent a good benchmark for HMO’s and PPO health insurance.  84% of the respondents have an employer based plan they will be able to keep under most proposals being discussed in Congress.

The Consumer Reports National Research Center found that only 64% of readers were very or completely satisfied with their current individual health insurance plan.  This shows a drop from the 2007 survey which revealed 67% was satisfied.  Based on other Consumer Reports surveys people are less satisfied with health insurance than other industries such as pharmacies and real estate agents.  Over 30% of readers are not completely satisfied with their health insurance and this leaves a lot of opportunity for health care reform.

Health Care Lane is a new and interactive website where experts explain health insurance topics offered by UnitedHealthcare health insurance according to their Newsroom on uhc.com.  Health Care Lane enables an online community to get common health insurance questions answered quickly.

Health Care Lane was launched in time for open enrollment and offers help with selecting the right health insurance plan and understanding health insurance quotes.  The straightforward conversations are designed to be user friendly and easy to understand. 

Not only is Health Care Lane available to UnitedHealthcare members, but it’s also offered to anyone interested in learning more about health care topics.  Visitors can learn about simple topics such as the definition of a premium or more complex topics such as the benefits of a Health Savings Account.  This site is a great opportunity for consumers to educate themselves on the many facets of health insurance, now more than ever as the health care system is up for debate. 

According to the article “How Health Care Bill Would Net $81B” from CBS News’s website, the Finance Committee will vote on the health care reform plan next week.  The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office says the plan meets President Obama’s requirement that it will not increase the nation’s budget deficit. 

The article states that the $829 billion cost for the Finance Committee’s bill would be offset by fees on drug companies, taxes on top health insurance companies and cutbacks to Medicare.  They estimate to have a net savings of $81 billion over ten years for the government.  This may affect the way Americans go about finding health insurance and how they pay for it. 

The proposed bill would allow 29 million Americans to purchase health insurance who are not currently covered.  Families making under $88,000 could get a subsidy of $5500 for a family of four.  Wealthier citizens would be required to purchase individual health insurance or pay a penalty.