Reviews for Landmark: The Inside Story of America's New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All

The average rating for Landmark: The Inside Story of America's New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-06-04 00:00:00 Adam Oneil Had a detailed review of this, but when I went to save it I received the dreaded 504 error and the review was gone. So disheartening. Here goes another attempt. Found Landmark easy to read and nicely laid out. It is divided into three parts: Part I - How We Got There by Ceci Connolly Presented a brief history of prior attempts to pass a health care reform, and what happened in both the House and Senate during the Barack Obama administration. Found this part informative as I only read or heard bits and pieces at the time and reading this section helped fill in some of the blanks. This part spent a lot of time on Nancy Pelosi and how she fought for women's right to choose and how churches wanted to use the Bill as a way to strip those rights. Also, explained what happened in the Senate and how those last votes came to be. A few paragraphs on Joseph Lieberman and his rationale for holding out. I'm still scratching my head on that one, though. This section is only 62 pages long, so very brief. Part II - What It Means for Us All by Alec MacGillis, David Brown, Howard Gleckman, Amy Goldstein, David S. Hilzenrath, Lori Montgomery, and Shailagh Murray (whew!) This part contained graphs and was very well laid out. It explained what changes were coming, by timeperiod, and what that could mean to us. It explained how this $538 billion dollar reform would be funded and it settled the rumors that the media and other politicians threw around that were completely untrue. I was relieved to read this part and learn more about the Law. A great deal of the pertinent details have not been ironed out, yet. And the bulk of the Law will not go into effect until 2014. For the most part, what I got out of the book was the new Law will aim more for prevention than treatment. An analogy used in the book was that the health insurance industry would run more like the electric companies. The more people that participate the lower the rates can be and they will be governed and watched by the government. Here's a rundown: July 1, 2010, tanning salons will pay an additional 10% tax. Also in 2010: - Adult children can stay on their parent's health plans until age 26. - Insurance companies will be banned from placing lifetime limits on coverage, children with pre-existing conditions cannot be denied, and dropping coverage when someone gets sick cannot be done unless blatant fraud can be proven. Interesting that insurance companies will be punished by not being allowed to participate in the upcoming "Exchanges" if they push limits, raise rates unfairly, etc while all this is coming together. In 2011: - Employers will be required to disclose the value of health benefits on W-2 forms. - Annual fee will be imposed on drug companies (the big ones agreed to it) - Chain restaurants (of 20 or more) and vending machine food must disclose nutritional info. (It's about time!) In 2013: - Threshold for claiming a medical deduction will increase from 7.5% to 10%. - 2.9% excise tax will be imposed for medical devices (I was curious if this would include spas?) In 2014: The American Health Benefit Exchange (Exchanges) will go into effect. This is BIG, and the book gives a lot of great information on what and how. Who will get a subsidy (there's a chart based on income and members in the family). And the law states that if you have private insurance or are in a plan you like with your employer you do not have to participate in the Exchange. Also exempt are American Indians (who have their own plan and got a much needed increase with this Law), Veterans, and military personnel using their system. Illegal immigrants will not be allowed into the Exchanges. And in order to receive aid, must present tax form, no longer will a pay stub suffice. Pregnant illegal immigrants exempt. The Exchanges will have different tiers depending on the coverage you can afford: Bronze tier is the lowest and covers 60% of medical expenses. Not clear if many health insurance companies will offer this tier. Silver tier has 70% coverage and must be offered. Gold tier has 80% coverage and must be offered. Platinum tier has 90% coverage. There is also a plan for young people until they turn 30 that they may be able to purchase for about $100 per month. If you are single and earn more than $43,320 you will not be eligible for any subsidy. If you are in a family of four (doesn't say married), you will not be eligible for a subsidy if you earn more than $88,200. Also, a biggie is health companies will be required to cover preventive care including vaccines without meeting a deductible or co-pay. No more annual or lifetime health benefit restrictions. Businesses can no longer require a 90 day waiting period before you are eligible for the company plan. There will NOT be criminal prosecution or property liens for failure to have health insurance. There will be fines that will be added to your tax return. There will not be "death panels." The theory is more people will buy insurance, keeping rates down and helping out the government, which has been paying a lot of tax dollars on uninsured. There are a lot of changes to Medicare and Medicaid that are also outlined in the book. I was shocked to see what some states considered (income wise) before someone can use Medicaid, $7,500 per year!! While other states were so upset with the Medicaid system, they have their own and if they want to continue using it, they can. States that should be concerned the most are the ones (like Texas) that give the bare bones in Medicaid. Others who have been paying more will have an easier time adjusting. Businesses will be able to reward employees for good health in bonuses or other methods. They cannot fine employees for bad health. Part III - The Law This is a copy of the actual law. The print is fairly small, but readable.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-08-02 00:00:00 Lucas Wright The passions and pain of the Vietnam War have subsided to a degree to which we are now able to look at the broader achievements of the Johnson administration," said playwright Robert Schenkkan, whose Broadway show about the president, "All the Way," is playing to packed houses.