Highlights from two new reports - one underscoring high costs of health care, the other demonstrating doctors' support for public option - as well as background information on Medicare Advantage. Talking Points: New Reports Underscore Need for President’s Health Insurance Reform Plan ·          Two new reports – one from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust, and another from the New England Journal of Medicine – indicate that the experts agree: the status quo is unsustainable and it’s time for the kind of health insurance reform President Obama has proposed. Health Insurance Premiums Continue to Skyrocket ·          American families and businesses are being crushed by the high cost of health care. Anew report from the Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust found that premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance are still rising. ·          Highlights from the Foundation’s Employer Health Benefits survey: o         The average cost of a family policy in 2009 increased to $13,375: on average, employees pay $3,515 and employers pay $9,860. o         In the past 10 years, health insurance premiums have increased by 131 percent, rising much faster than wages or inflation, which have risen 38 percent and 28 percent respectively. ·          The report also underscores what effect high costs and the recession have had on the insurance employers are able to offer their workers. More than a fifth (21 percent) of firms reported that they had either reduced benefits or increased cost sharing, while 15 percent reported charging their employees more for insurance. ·          More workers are also paying for insurance at work and being asked to pay again at the doctor’s office. 22 percent of insured workers contribute to their health care premiums and pay a minimum of $1,000 for health care out of their own pocket. ·          You can read the full report by visiting www.kff.org. ·          President Obama’s health insurance reform will bring down the cost of health care for all Americans. His plan includes the best ideas from Democrats and Republicans. ·          President Obama’s health insurance reform plan addresses three simple goals: If you have health insurance, it will give you more security and stability. If you don’t have insurance it will give you quality, affordable options. And it will lower the cost of health care for our families, our businesses, and our government. ·          The President’s plan will cut costs by: o         Cutting waste and fraud in the system. o         Tackling the insurance bureaucracy by streamlining the payment system to save time and money that is currently processing claims and navigating the Byzantine insurance system. o         Computerizing medical records that will reduce medical errors and make sure your doctor knows know what medicines and treatments other medical professionals have prescribed for you. o         Changing the way we manage hospitalizations, to prevent mistakes and unnecessary readmissions. o         Prioritizing primary care by changing the payment scale for primary care providers and building up the workforce. o         Prioritizing prevention and rewarding care that focuses on treating the whole patient, rather than each episode of sickness. Doctors Favor the Public Option ·          A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that 60+% of doctors agree with President Obama that health insurance reform should include a public option which would operate  alongside private plans, bringing more choice and competition to the insurance market. o         Fewer than 3 in 10 doctors believe reform should not include any type of public health insurance option. (Background Note: the remaining 10% of doctors surveyed favor an entirely public system.) ·          Despite the claims by defenders of the status quo, the public option is not a “government takeover” of health care. President Obama has no interest in putting private insurers out of business. o         The public option would be an option for Americans who don’t have insurance.  Nobody would be forced to choose it and it would not affect those who already have insurance. o         The public option would not be subsidized by taxpayers