UP Ibalon Bicol: Medicaid

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ADA not so happy about Obama’s healthcare bill

8/24/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

The American Dental Association (ADA) is not all smiles for the Obama healthcare reform. Reason? The new proposal doesn’t increase Medicaid payment rates and doesn’t decrease the administrative burden in taking care of indigent patients. The healthcare revamp doesn’t answer the dentist’s main concern--- the need to fix the Medicaid payment scheme which pays less than cost of keeping the business. ADA does not approve of a single-payer plan if it will mandate their compulsory participation.

For lack of monetary incentive, only about 15%-20% of dentists service Medicaid patients and some dentists opt to just give free treatment because of low and tedious reimbursement process.

Yet there are provisions in the bill that ADA supports. The group somehow agrees with the new house bill and the Senate Health Labor and Pensions (HELP) plan of expanding dental care---more for prevention treatment and infrastructure funding.

ADA supports greater patient access to dental services by increasing personnel in community health centers. The organization supports the bill’s proposal of eliminating out of the pocket payments for patients. (Photo Credi: Leannemichelle) =0=

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Labels: American Dental Association, Dentists, Health, healthcare reform, Medicaid, reimbursement, Totie Mesia

US jobless rate up to 9.4%

6/06/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

In whatever prism one looks, the US jobless rate in May went up to 9.4% from 8.4% in April, the highest in more than 25 years. Some consolation comes from a slower lay-off rate that economists look with optimism. Employers cut off “only” 350,000 jobs in the same time period. This is a cause of joy for optimistic financial analysts who feel relieved that the lay-off rate is lesser than in the previous months.

“Construction companies cut 59,000 jobs, down from 108,000 in April. Factories cut 156,000, on top of 154,000 in the previous month. Retailers cut 17,500 positions, compared with 36,500 in April. Financial activities cut 30,000, down from 45,000 in April. Even the government reduced employment — by 7,000 — after bulking up by 92,000 in April as it added workers for the 2010 Census.”---AP (06/04/09, Aversa, J.)

Perhaps to boost a brighter outlook and lessen alarm that the economy is still sliding down the cliff, the Department of Labor thinks the new data are signs that the recession is abating. In spite of the spike in joblessness, the highest since 1983, many insist Barack Obama’s $787 billion stimulus package is working and the economy is improving.

Critics aren’t happy though. Healthcare alone is costing taxpayers $450 billion for Medicare and $200 billion for Medicaid yearly. The government may require $1.3 trillion to cover medical coverage for the 47 million uninsured Americans in a decade once the universal health care is pushed.

This surely isn’t a consolation if one is left without work, underemployed, holds a temporary job or has given up looking for employment at this difficult economic time. (Photo Credit: AskOne)=0=

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Labels: Department of Labor, economy, employment, joblessness, jobs, Medicaid, Medicare, national economic planners, Totie Mesia, unemployment, USA

UP Ibalon Bicol

ADA not so happy about Obama’s healthcare bill

US jobless rate up to 9.4%

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