As with most companies, this has been a hard year at General Electric.  Its 75,000 employees and 8,000 retirees under age 65 are having to move from the traditional plans to a HDHP.  They will no longer have a choice. 

“GE says the plan is being rolled out to make employees better health-care consumers. While GE says its future cost savings are unclear, people with knowledge of the situation estimate it could save $1 billion over the next decade or so. With three tiers of premiums and deductibles, GE spokesperson Sue Bishop notes, employees still have options. “It’s not that different from their car insurance,” she says. “You get to choose the amount of your premium, and that determines the amount of your deductible.”   

This is truly a bold move.

Use Medicare’s online Drug Plan Finder - it automatically does the math to find your best deal based on the specific drugs you take.  Remember to do the homework.  It could save you some money.

As our state prospers in many ways, some segments are invariably left behind. Some have chronic illness. Some are migrant workers. Others live in rural communities with limited access to health care. Most are hardworking and aren’t looking for a handout. But they could use a hand. Through our Health of Vulnerable Populations focus area, we are committed to improving the well-being of North Carolinians that need it the most.

Our plans encourage this through Member Health Partnerships.

        CQ HealthBeat explained “that 800,000 low-income Medicare beneficiaries will have to switch prescription drug plans next year if they want to continue in coverage that doesn’t entail having to pay monthly premiums. The switch means a number of those beneficiaries may find that their current drugs are not covered and that they will have to switch to similar drugs.” Peter Ashkenaz, CMS spokesman, said “that if beneficiaries facing reassignment ‘need to take specific drugs, they should look for a plan that covers as many of their current drugs as possible.’”

CQ HealthBeat reports that on Thursday, Finance Committee member Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) said that the committee dropped consideration of end-of-life provisions similar to those that have prompted claims by opponents that the House health overhaul bill authorizes so-called ‘death panels. The panel, according to Sen. Grassley has been trying to avoid ‘unintended consequences’ by working methodically through the consequences of policy options. The end-of-life provisions were dropped entirely because of the way they could be misinterpreted and implemented incorrectly, Grassley said, adding, “Maybe others can defend a bill like the Pelosi bill that leaves major issues open to interpretation but I can’t.”

The Boston Globe adds that the language is still in the House legislation, which would permit Medicare to pay doctors for voluntary counseling sessions on end-of-life issues, including living wills, making a close relative or friend a healthcare proxy, hospice care, and information about medications for chronic pain. According to the Globe, the issue illustrates the intense passions in the healthcare debate. The phrase ‘death panels” proved to be a volatile buzzword, and it quickly caught on in talk radio, cable television, and at town hall meetings conducted by members of Congress on summer recess.