Health Insurers Will Keep Parts of 'Obamacare,' Regardless of Court Ruling

UnitedHealthcare and Humana, two of the nation’s largest health insurance companies, will keep major and popular parts of President Obama’s health care initiative regardless of how the U.S. Supreme Court rules.

UnitedHealthcare announced on Monday morning that it plans to continue to provide customers with preventive health services without co-pays or out-of-pocket charges. The company will also allow parents to keep children on their health plans until age 26. Humana followed suit with its own statement on keeping the same regulations on Monday afternoon.

Both companies will also observe the law’s prohibition against lifetime limits on insurance payouts and canceling coverage after a patient gets sick, unless that patient intentionally lied on the insurance application.

According to Bloomberg News, health insurance giant Aetna also vowed to maintain some new rules, but did not specifically detail which provisions should stay.

“A number of provisions in the health-reform law have been woven into the fabric of our health-care system, bring value to customers and consumers, and should be maintained,” Aetna said in an e-mail to Bloomberg.

The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing several major challenges to the law, and is expected to issue rulings this month that could dispatch all or part of the law.

“The protections we are voluntarily extending are good for people’s health, promote broader access to quality care and contribute to helping control rising health care costs,” Stephen J. Hemsley, president and chief executive of UnitedHealth Group, said in a statement. “These provisions are compatible with our mission and continue our operating practices.”

Health and Human Services' chief health information technology officer, Farzad Mostashari, said it was part of a larger trend of the health reform law delivering permanent improvements to the health care industry.

"It goes to show how there are some changes afoot that are in the direction that we need to move," Mostashari told National Journal in an interview. "I'm greatly encouraged by what a lot of the commercial plans are doing."

The health insurance industry lobby also welcomed United's announcement.

"This is an example of health plans stepping up to give consumers peace of mind about their health care coverage," Americans Health Inusrance Plans Spokesman Robert Zirkelbach said in an e-mail.

Jonathan Miller contributed.

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Biggest Health Insurer Will Keep Parts of 'Obamacare,' Regardless of Court Ruling

UnitedHealthcare, the nation’s largest health care provider, will keep major and popular parts of President Obama’s health care initiative, regardless of how the U.S. Supreme Court rules.

The company announced Monday that it plans to continue to provide customers with preventive health services without co-pays or out-of-pocket charges. The company will also allow parents to keep children on their health plans until age 26.

UnitedHealthcare will also observe the law’s prohibition against lifetime limits on insurance payouts and canceling coverage after a patient gets sick, unless that patient intentionally lied on the insurance application.

The announcement affects roughly 9 million consumers in the U.S. The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing several major challenges to the law, and is expected to issue rulings this month that could dispatch all or part of the law.

“The protections we are voluntarily extending are good for people’s health, promote broader access to quality care and contribute to helping control rising health care costs,” Stephen J. Hemsley, president and chief executive of UnitedHealth Group, said in a statement. “These provisions are compatible with our mission and continue our operating practices.”

Health and Human Services' chief health information technology officer, Farzad Mostashari, said it was part of a larger trend of the health reform law delivering permanent improvements to the health care industry.

"It goes to show how there are some changes afoot that are in the direction that we need to move," Mostashari told National Journal in an interview. "I'm greatly encouraged by what a lot of the commercial plans are doing."

The health insurance industry lobby also welcomed United's announcement.

"This is an example of health plans stepping up to give consumers peace of mind about their health care coverage," Americans Health Inusrance Plans Spokesman Robert Zirkelbach said in an e-mail.

Meghan McCarthy contributed.

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Discrimination Seems to Harm Health Regardless of Race

FRIDAY, Jan. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Discrimination can be a threat to health, according to a new study that included both blacks and whites.

The analysis of 2004 data from the ongoing U.S. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System project found that about 18 percent of blacks and 4 percent of whites reported emotional and physical distress caused by discriminatory treatment.

"Discriminatory behavior very well may be a 'missing link' in the analysis of racial and ethnic health disparities. It's important to acknowledge and study its impact on long-term health," study author Jenifer Bratter, a sociologist at Rice University in Houston, said in a university news release.

The study's inclusion of people in both races "is important because we examine whether discrimination is equally harmful to the health status of black and white adults -- or whether experiencing discrimination is disproportionately harmful to either black or white adults," fellow author Bridget Gorman, also a sociologist at Rice University, said in the news release.

"For example, since, on average, black adults typically experience more health risks in their social and personal environment than white adults (including higher poverty and lower-quality medical insurance), they may be especially vulnerable to negative health effects as a result of racial discrimination," Gorman noted.

Along with finding that more blacks report poorer health due to discrimination, the researchers also determined that the harmful effects of discrimination do play a role in health disparities between blacks and whites.

And while discrimination can increase some of the economic-based health risks typically experienced by black adults, the situation is different for whites.

Regardless of social-class position, white adults who believe they've experienced workplace or health care discrimination report poorer health, the investigators found.

"A relatively small proportion of white adults report unfair treatment that is race-based, but those who do say their health status is harmed more than blacks who report the same experiences," Gorman said.

The study was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about health disparities.

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