Obamacare legislation amends the Internal Revenue Code to apply a tax penalty for individuals who cannot prove that they are covered by qualifying health insurance.
It also establishes a Medical Advisory Council to determine the “amount, duration, and scope” of the items and services that must be included as “essential health care benefits” in a plan that qualifies for subsidies.
The costs were estimated at 1+ trillion dollars at the end of June 2009 and covered only about 30 million people. But the plan was liberated over the July 4th holiday.
The costs are now 611 billion dollars with total coverage – whatever that means.
Critics say the revamped Kennedy Health Care “Reform” Plan does not account for Medicaid coverage – which is crushing state budgets.
Additional provisions include:
- Expand Medicaid to 150 percent of the federal poverty level.
- Require health insurers to accept every employer and individual in the state for coverage.
- Require health insurance providers to report to the government how premiums are spent.
- Ban annual or lifetime limits on coverage.
- Establish committee boards, called Affordable Health Benefit Gateways, in each state to certify and inform residents about insurance plans.
- Extend dependent coverage so citizens may be covered on their parents’ insurance until they are 26 years old.