DODD: NEW HEALTH CARE RULES PUT FOCUS ON KEEPING PEOPLE HEALTHY
Preiss, Allison (Dodd)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2010
Contact: Bryan DeAngelis
DODD: NEW HEALTH CARE RULES PUT FOCUS ON KEEPING PEOPLE HEALTHY
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) today announced that new rules going into effect as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will put more focus on preventing disease and keeping people healthy.
The new rules will make preventative care more affordable for Americans. Insurance companies will now be required to provide proven services aimed at preventing and detecting diseases without additional cost to the patient.
“One of our goals throughout the health care reform debate was to improve our system in way that will keep more people healthy and help prevent chronic disease, especially in children,” said Dodd. “But too often, the high costs of preventative health services forced people to skip visits to the doctor for the tests and procedures needed to detect common diseases, such as breast or colon cancer. These new regulations will allow us to transition towards a new health care system that allows individuals to get the necessary screenings they need to live long and healthy lives.”
As Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Children and Families, Dodd has been a leader in efforts to improve the overall health of our youngest generation. He advocated strongly for the inclusion of the Bright Futures Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children, and Adolescents in the new prevention benefit rolled out today. As a result of these new regulations, children will now have access to regular well-baby and well-child visits, screening and counseling to prevent, detect, and treat chronic conditions like childhood obesity, and immunizations for diseases like the flu, measles, and polio.
An estimated 41 million individuals will benefit from the implementation of these new regulations. And that number is expected to rise to a total of 88 million Americans who will have improved preventative care by 2013.
Dodd played a key role in writing and passing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which was signed into law by President Obama in March. Dodd led the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s consideration of health care reform legislation and worked closely with President Obama and leaders from the House and Senate on the final legislation.
Attached is a fact-sheet on the new regulations and below are highlights of the new rules including, examples of the services that health insurance plans must now offer as part of their coverage plans:
· Preventative services like breast and colon cancer screenings; screening for vitamin deficiencies during pregnancy; screenings for diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure; and tobacco cessation counseling;
· Routine vaccinations ranging from childhood immunizations to booster shots for adults;
· Preventative care for children including regular pediatrician visits; vision and hearing screening; developmental assessments; and screening and counseling to address weight issues; and
· Preventative services for women such as counseling screening and vaccines for healthy pregnancies.
A complete list of covered services included in the new preventative care regulations is available at www.healthcare.gov/center/regulations/prevention.html.
In addition to increasing coverage, the new regulations include a large unprecedented investment in prevention and public health initiatives. A $15 billion investment over 10 years will be made to the Prevention and Public Health Fund for health care programs and providers to prevent disease, detect it early and manage conditions before they come severe. For fiscal year 2010, $500 million is dedicated to improving prevention efforts, research and data collection and increasing the number of primary care health professionals.
Through the Recovery Act, $1 billion is also available for community-based initiatives, tobacco cessation activities, chronic disease reduction programs and efforts to reduce health-care-acquired infections.
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