Please take a minute to call your Senators today.

As I was researching a post to explain why the COBRA provisions contained in the House version of the economic stimulus bill are so critical to economic recovery, I discovered that the Senate version of the bill does not have any provisions for subsidizing COBRA benefits to terminated and laid-off employees.

The COBRA subsidies are, in my opinion, one of the key parts of any recovery. Here’s why:

• Companies are laying off more and more workers, and those workers cannot or will not be able to afford to continue their health insurance at the COBRA rates. This means we will add 3-5 Million more to the ranks of the uninsured, placing a much larger burden on our economy than we have now.
• Those who do manage to opt for COBRA benefits are likely to be those with chronic illness who absolutely must have health insurance coverage, resulting in adverse selection for the health insurers and companies maintaining the COBRA benefits. Down the line, this will mean higher and higher costs for everyone.
• Laid-off workers who are uninsured run the risk of bankruptcy and foreclosure if any medical catastrophe should hit, exacerbating the issues already rampant with regard to mortgages and housing.

The COBRA subsidies should not be optional or negotiable. The fact that they are not even contained in the Senate bill is disturbing and of great concern.

Here is a link to a tool to email your representatives. Please call your Senator today and urge them to include the COBRA subsidies in the final compromise bill.

From the WSJ Health Blog:

A bullet point within his economic agenda says:

Obama and Biden will create an exemption in bankruptcy
law for individuals who can prove they filed for bankruptcy because of
medical expenses. This exemption will create a process that forgives
the debt and lets the individuals get back on their feet.

This is great news for those who are facing bankruptcy or have already declared bankruptcy because they simply couldn’t pay the bills.

What isn’t clear is how debt forgiveness will work. Right now, declaring bankruptcy does not release individuals from the obligation to pay the bills. Discharging debt will leave hospitals and providers with a need to write off assets, which will certainly cause a tilt on their balance sheets.

Still, it’s a step in the right direction, no question.