NC Senate bill offers cheap health care but the sick and the elderly could be left out
A proposal to give North Carolinians cheaper health care coverage cleared the state
Those who support the proposal, including the
Opponents say allowing such plans will let the
"For the folks who are struggling now, it will only get worse," said
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The proposal would allow certain nonprofit organizations to offer "health benefit plans" that were largely outlawed as "junk" insurance by the ACA, which passed
Health benefit plans are controversial because they allow organizations to reject applicants with cancer or other pre-existing conditions, or charge older or seriously ill people much higher fees. These plans also can cap lifetime financial benefits and, because they are not regulated, are not required to meet financial solvency requirements that guarantee they will have sufficient funds to pay customers' medical bills. They also don't have to cover mental health benefits or preventive health, unlike health insurance regulated under the ACA.
Only organizations that have been in existence for a decade and have statewide memberships would be eligible to offer the health benefit plans that would compete with health insurance. But the organizations are not restricted on who they can accept as members, raising the prospect that thousands of people would join for the cheaper health benefits. An annual membership in the
"There is no force on the plans that says you have to offer anything to anyone," said sponsor Sen.
During a Wednesday committee debate in the
Opponents of the bill include the March of Dimes and the
"It is important to ensure that a product that is not regulated by the State protects against potential risks such as inadequate coverage and insufficient capitalization,"
"When you have a
The provision passed as part of House Bill 933, which deals with licensing school psychologists. The health benefits provision was added by the
Only two states allow nonprofits to sell membership health benefit organizations.
In
The
Most people covered under the ACA, including nearly 520,000 in
The bill doesn't directly affect the majority of people who buy their health insurance through an employer or from Medicare or Medicaid.
"We can provide some relief to some of our members who are basically trapped," Wooten said. "I've got horror story after horror story from our farm members."
Wooten said the
"This is not going to be cheap health insurance," Wooten said. "What we're doing has got to be actuarially sound, capitalized, and on and on.
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