This Week in Health Reform: November 6, 2009

As we near the end
of a busy week in Congress, WellPoint sent a letter to Congressional
Members highlighting the detrimental impact of current legislation on
our health care system. The letter focuses on the potential impact of
the Affordable Health Care for America Act (HR 3962) currently being
debated in the House of Representatives.

WellPoint also provided
Congress with a point-by-point response to the White House Blog's
criticism of its actuarial analyses released late last week.

And,
earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal published alead editorial
highly critical of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and the House
bill. In addition, House Republicans proposed their own health care
reform legislation.

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URGENT ACTION IS NEEDED

On
Saturday, November 7, the House of Representatives is scheduled to vote
on health care reform legislation that would force individuals to
purchase coverage through the government health care exchange. Section
202(c) of HR 3962 prohibits individual coverage from being sold outside
of the government health care exchange.

Forcing individuals to
purchase coverage through the exchange reflects a sharp departure from
the current system, and we believe Americans should have the choice of
not buying coverage through the government exchange if they choose not
to do so.

We encourage you to take action and contact your Congressional Member today.

House and Senate Negotiations

House
Republicans Offer Health Care Reform Plan: On Tuesday, House Republican
Leader John Boehner (R-OH) described key aspects of the newly proposed
health care reform bill that focus more on controlling health care
costs than on expanding coverage. The proposed bill will:

* cap medical malpractice damages;
* increase incentives for people to open health savings accounts;
* allow insurance companies to sell insurance across state lines;
* allow trade associations and guild members to band together to purchase group insurance , and
* create state-based, high-risk insurance pools for individuals who have difficulty obtaining health care coverage.

The
bill does not bar insurance providers from denying coverage based on
pre-existing conditions, nor does it create individual or employer
mandates. It also does not raise taxes. The media suggest that
Republicans may galvanize around their newly introduced bill. However,
the media also speculate that the proposed legislation may make
Republicans more vulnerable to criticism. Late Wednesday, the
Congressional Budget Office (CBO) indicated that the bill would only
cover 3 million additional people at a cost of $60 billion through 2019.

Biofuel
Tax Credit Restrictions Added to House Health Care Reform Legislation:
A measure introduced by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), a member of the
House Democrat leadership, would save the federal government $24
billion in biofuel tax credits over 10 years.

The measure would
restrict the paper industry from claiming tax incentives for use of a
fuel known as "black liquor." The tax credit savings could be used to
offset costs of the health care bill, Van Hollen said.

Abortion
and Immigration Issues May Imperil House Legislation: As House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi works to shore up 218 votes for the House health care
reform legislation introduced last week, two key contentious issues
remain at the center of debate - funding for abortions and coverage for
illegal immigrants . This week, anti-abortion Democrats circulated
legislation to strengthen prohibitions in the bill against federal
funding of abortion. It is also still up for debate as to whether or
not illegal immigrants would be allowed to shop for insurance within
the new exchange.

Senate Leader Signals Delay: Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) signaled Tuesday that Congress may fail to
meet the end-of-year deadline for health care reform imposed by
President Barack Obama. Senators are currently waiting for CBO cost
estimates on their health care reform proposal, which may not come
until late next week. Given this timeline and the upcoming Thanksgiving
holiday, a bill may not reach the Senate floor until December.

Public Option Developments

CBO
Indicates House Bill Would Attract Less Healthy: According to the CBO,
the House health care reform legislation would attract less healthy
enrollees in its version of the public option and would subsequently
result in higher health care costs. In addition, the CBO predicted that
of the 30 million Americans likely to purchase insurance through the
insurance exchanges, one fifth would purchase insurance from the public
option.

Looking Ahead

President Obama indicated that he
will visit Capitol Hill late this week to address House Democrats and
encourage a final push towards health care reform legislation. While
House leaders plan to hold a rare Saturday vote on their proposed
measure, Senate leaders still await a CBO cost estimate.