Notes From Healthcare Reform Seminar
Memphis, TN 7/14/11
(sponsored by Memphis Daily News)
Keynote Speaker: Philip Johnson – Argyle Benefits
Panelists: David Elliott (Baptist Healthcare), Scott Morris (Church Health), James Terwilliger (Duncan Williams)
1. Most of the enabling legislation for the Affordable Healthcare Law (Obama-care) is still being written. Hence, you & I can still have an impact.
2. “Sexiness is having insurance.”
3. In 1960, Healthcare represented approx. 5% of U.S. GDP. In 2011, it represents 17% of GDP (and growing). Sound like a problem?
4. Employer h/c benefits cost increase has averaged 10% since 1960’s
5. In 2010 Avg. employer h/c benefit cost/employee was $8211. Avg. contribution by single covered employees was $415. Avg. contribution per covered family was $1009,
6. Coverage changes created by Affordable Healthcare Law
<51 Employees – No new rules on coverage
>51 Employees – IF you offer coverage, there are minimum coverage and maximum cost requirements
>51 Employees – IF you do NOT offer coverage, a financial penalty is incurred
7. McKinsey survey suggests that 1/3 of employers will eliminate h/c insurance coverage, pay the fine, and dump employees into state exchanges, which become effective 1/1/14.
8. Prediction that many employers will convert employees to “Part Time” in order to avoid insurance requirements.
9. Beginning in 2012, employers will be required to auto-enroll employees into their h/c insurance coverage.
10. Employers will need to do a MUCH better job of communicating with their workforce re h/c benefits, charges, coverages, challenges, or will lose the ROI from that investment.
11. The much ballyhooed Individual Coverage Mandate becomes effective 1/1/14.
12. Each state currently has available a “Pre-existing Condition Uninsured Plan” for residents who have not had coverage for 6 months and have pre-existing conditions that would otherwise limit the coverage they could get. Despite the fact that this is touted as a “great product”, only 21,454 people nationwide have enrolled.
In his best-selling book, “
Anyone who has spent even fifteen minutes genuinely listening to the current “debate” about health care reform can’t help but conclude that, as with most things insurance related, there is a whole lotta ignorance goin’ on. Sadly, most of us couldn’t find our insurance card with both hands in a full moon. We don’t really understand our own health care coverage (assuming we have it), and haven’t the faintest idea how the present health care business model, payment system, and having 47 million uninsured using the local hospital ER as their primary care physician impacts each and every one of us.
Yesterday, at the conclusion of a routine office visit with my primary care physician, I asked for his opinion on the most important aspects of fixing our health care system. Actually, use of the word “system” is off the mark, because we really don’t have a health care system at all, just a bunch of component parts that don’t work together especially well. I digress.
Within the next year, it seems likely that three things will happen, each of which will put added pressure on employers. In likely order of occurrence they are:
Our 1998 book, 
As the debate over health care heats up, we are being exposed to more flatulence than what we’re typically forced to endure during an election period. Unfortunately, most of us are ill-prepared to advocate or even recognize a reasoned position in the great health care debate because we’ve failed to do much fact gathering. If our knowledge on the subject doesn’t gain altitude soon, our ignorance will cause us to pay a very steep price.
There is a compelling piece in today’s 
This morning, President Obama did what GM’s board should have done years ago by effectively administering last rites to the ailing automaker, at least in its current incarnation.
Sometimes when putting together a new presentation, I visit the archives of great speeches done by others in search of useful perspective and maybe a quote or two. Such is the case today, as I work on a presentation for a group of health care professionals.
