SENATE TO VOTE TO END INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR SUBSTANCE ABUSE. OVER 1 MILLION PEOPLE COULD LOOSE THEIR LIVES DUE TO LACK OF COVERAGE AND DENIAL OF TREATMENT BY 2026.
Insurance for drug rehabilitation is in jeopardy for millions of Americans.
Get the help that is needed immediately, to handle addiction for you or a loved one. In the coming weeks, we are going to find out if this bill will affect your ability to receive the treatment you or someone you love needs for an addiction or dependency to drugs or alcohol. If you wait to see what happens, it may be too late already for some states. The uncertainty in the insurance market has already caused many providers to drop out and see if they want to continue providing insurance to people in every state now.
Drug rehabilitation is expensive if you do not have insurance to offset the cost of inpatient treatment for addiction to drugs or alcohol. With the recent heroin and opioid epidemic, there is an urgency to get as many people help as soon as possible before addiction ends their lives. The outlook of this new proposed bill in the Senate is grim for tens of millions of people and millions of addicts throughout our country. With states being able to opt out of the essential benefit guaranty that was mandated through the Affordable Care Act, drug or alcohol addiction treatment paid for by your insurance provider in your state may be terminated with a waiver to the federal government.
Free drug rehab centers and missions are not enough to handle the ever growing drug epidemic. Finding a free treatment center for addiction can be an arduous task, to say the least. Looking for a treatment program that can handle addictions, detox, and interventions that are free is almost impossible. With the new proposed cuts to the Medicaid programs, there will be much more of a need for communities to step up and help handle the drug addiction epidemic. Without addiction treatment, there will surely be a rise in crime violent and otherwise.
Do not wait to get the help you need. Addiction is a progressive disease and can have long lasting consequences even after the addiction is under control. Getting help sooner than later can help in recovery before health or legal issues are added to the list of things that need to be handled.
Addiction No More is urging people with insurance through the marketplace to seek treatment immediately if you want to be able to utilize your insurance benefits. In the coming days, we are going to see what will happen with the healthcare system. This is a very scary prospect for the millions of Americans that were able to finally have health insurance coverage.
If you are one of the fortunate people that have healthcare coverage through your work and are using drugs or alcohol in excess, seek treatment immediately. Your insurance is in question as well as those who seek insurance through the marketplace. With businesses being able to opt out of essential services, most companies will look at saving money at the expense of your health care coverage.
Opioid epidemic on the list of targets for the GOP.
With the recent opioid epidemic figures in, for therapy and aftercare, there will be a significant shortage of money available for the treatment for addiction. It is estimated that the opioid epidemic will cost hundreds of billions of dollars over the next 10 years. With cuts to the Medicaid program which pays for more than 40% of Buprenorphine (a life-saving opioid addiction drug) prescriptions, could affect millions of lives nationwide.
States being able to opt out of ObamaCare protections.
Under ObamaCare, there is a requirement that makes it mandatory for an insurance provider to sell insurance to the American public offer Essential Health Benefits. These “Essential Health Benefits” include provisions that cover addiction treatment, mental health, preventative care, contraception, and emergency services. For a full list of benefits please visit https://www.healthcare.gov/coverage/what-marketplace-plans-cover. The new Senate bill, if passed will end essential benefits for people covered under the Medicaid expansion programs by 2020.
Insurance prices will be going up with fewer protections
We have done research into the new proposed plans and have come to the conclusion that the prices of healthcare within the privatized system, that the GOP is proposing will, in fact, raise rates and deny coverage to the people with pre-existing conditions. The middle class once again will pay even more than they are paying with the Affordable Care Act for less coverage, with higher deductibles.
Our country is in the middle of an opioid epidemic and the prospect that these conditions could be denied insurance coverage could be a death sentence for thousands of people. Those that lose coverage through the marketplace could be placed in high-risk pools and the funding proposed is inadequate to provide coverage for those who buy insurance in the individual marketplace.
The overall impact of this bill that is being pushed through our Senate this upcoming week will impact the ability to use your insurance coverage to help offset the costs of rising drug or alcohol rehabilitation in the United States. The essential benefits program also requires that states follow strict guidelines in how they structure their Medicaid programs. The states that opted out of the Medicaid expansion program are set to be hit the hardest and at lightning speed as predicted by many treatment providers that accept Medicaid.
Medicaid expansion was playing a huge role in the battle against the opioid epidemic. In the 31 states that expanded Medicaid, there has been a significant decrease in people being admitted to the emergency rooms for addiction problems without insurance to cover the cost of treatment. In 2013, a number of uninsured people seeking medical intervention for their addictions were at 20% and that number has had a significant drop down to 5% in 2015 after just 2 short years of Medicaid expansion.
Medicaid expansion was playing a huge role in the battle against the opioid epidemic. In the 31 states that expanded Medicaid, there has been a significant decrease in people being admitted to the emergency rooms for addiction problems without insurance to cover the cost of treatment. In 2013, a number of uninsured people seeking medical intervention for their addictions were at 20% and that number has had a significant drop down to 5% in 2015 after just 2 short years of Medicaid expansion.
The changes to the Medicaid system have changed the Medicaid system to a “Per Capita Cap” System. This type of system gives a lump sum for each enrollee with a set cap for services, or the individual states can opt for a block grant (a sum of money that the federal government sets that has no bearing on how many enrollees are insured through Medicaid). This is a completely different system than we have now where the federal government covers all of the treatment expenses for a Medicaid patient no matter the costs.
This new Medicaid proposal will surely be the end of many state-sponsored treatment options for our addicted family members and friends at the moment in their lives when they need our help the most.
States opting out of ObamaCare protections.
There are provisions in the new healthcare bill “Better Reconciliation Act of 2017” or ‘TrumpCare’ that make it possible for states not to cover substance abuse treatment at all. The TrumpCare bill being voted on Friday will make it possible for individual states to decide if they want to cover addiction treatment as part of their healthcare coverage plans or not. The bill being voted on will make it so critical areas see addiction coverage ended in the midst of an opioid epidemic.
Leana Wen, a Baltimore Maryland Health Commissioner stated shortly after the new healthcare bill was revealed “insurers can stop providing coverage for mental health services at the time of a public health emergency around opioid overdose. This will cost millions more lives.”
Getting help for addiction is a phone call away. Our counselors are available to answer all your insurance questions, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. We will help you find the correct solution to handle any addiction to drugs or alcohol. Do not wait until your insurance plan changes and the essential benefits package you thought you were entitled to changes or is taken away from you all together.
NOTE: Senate suspends vote until after the July 4th recess.
NOTE: Senate suspends vote until after the July 4th recess.
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