Unemployment is reaching historical highs. With an unemployment rate of close to 10% in many state, the lack of jobs in the United States continues to perpetuate the recession.

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Unemployment Does Not Cover Health Insurance

If you are on unemployment, you do not automatically qualify for health insurance discounts. In fact, if you receive more unemployment than 133% of the federal poverty level, you don't qualify at all. Where does this leave you, the newly unemployed?

Unemployed and Uninsured

Unless you can afford monthly COBRA payments, you will find yourself quickly uninsured. If you live in Massachusetts, where health insurance is mandatory, you will have to find a way to make your COBRA payments or face a significant tax penalty.

Reduced COBRA Payments are Available

If you meet certain criteria, you may qualify for reduced COBRA payments. Under the ARRA, or the American Recovery and Reinvestment act of 2009, individuals are eligible for a reduced COBRA payment if they are involuntarily terminated from their job. This would result in a payment of 35% of the COBRA premium instead of 100%. Only people fired between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2010 qualify for this reduced COBRA payment. The reduction can last for a period up to 15 months, but may require extensive paperwork to be approved.

Do you pay health insurance premiums that you really can't afford?

Have you decreased your plan coverage, taking the chance with high deductables if you become hospitalized?

Are you prepared if you lose your job and need to continue with COBRA payments?

President Obama had created a reduced COBRA plan that allowed families to pay for 35% of their COBRA while the former employer covered the other 65% for a period of nine months, but this reduced COBRA plan has now expired.

What would you do if you were faced with a $1,000 month bill to have health insurance for you and your family and you became unemployed?

What if your unemployment was enough so that your family earned just above 133% of the federal poverty level ($2,800) for a family of five and you didn't qualify for any state health insurance reduced/free program?

If you receive $2,801 or more from unemployment and you are a family of 5 (the amount is even less for smaller families), you must pay for health insurance premiums on your own.

Is really the best we can come up with in this country?

http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/statehealthreform/massachusetts.html

The costs of health care in the United States will continue to rise if changes are not made. On both the state and federal levels, health care costs take up a significant percentage of budget allowances. It is estimated that the United States spends almost $8,000 per person a year on health care costs, or in total, 2.2 trillion dollars. This is only expected to rise if changes are not made.

Revamping and Creating a Modern Healthcare system.

Americans spend a good portion of their hard earned money on the high cost of health care each year. Many families are only an accident or health debilitating illness away from financial despair.

Consider this: the health insurance premiums employers pay directly reduces the amount of take-home pay for the employee.

The Obama Administration has been trying to make changes, but has been met with opposition for many reasons. Change is hard and it's not possible for any one person to have the answer. The Obama Administration instituted a temporary provision that allows Americans who have been terminated from employment to pay COBRA at a reduced rate of 35% of the traditional cost. While effective for those that were terminated between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2010, this legislation is only temporary and will not be available to workers terminated after February 28, 2010 if it is not extended.

The Obama Administration is also pushing for the computerization of America's health records within a five year period. Paper records are more prone to error and more difficult to reproduce. With computerized record keeping, medical records will be available more readily and help streamline information sharing, reducing both waste and costs.

Investing in Wellness

Wellness is not given for many Americans. Poor diets, lack of exercise and smoking lead to many chronic, debilitating illnesses that could be prevented with quality wellness care. As Americans, we need to take responsibility for our actions and we lose the right to complain if we do not take action against the things that hurt us.

Although good health should be reward enough for healthy living, the Obama Administration has devoted one billion dollars in the Recovery Act in order to provide Americans with prevention and wellness support.

Author Don Potter

The subject of health care reform has been a big issue in Washington and the news media for the past year. Citizens jumped into the fray, for the most part uninvited, when it became apparent that our elected representatives were botching the process. Town hall meetings, rallies and protest marches sent a message to legislators that they were out of step, if not out of touch with mainstream Americans. Recent election results from Massachusetts indicates the will of the people is something politicians shouldn't ignore.

Democrats cannot write bills behind closed doors and try to jam legislation through based on their current power in Washington. By the same token, Republican have got to stop hiding in the weeds and taking shots at everything the opposing party does. Rather, it's time to go back to the peoples' business. This means agreeing that the health care system needs to undergo significant change over an extended period of time but in a common-sense, fiscally-responsible, bi-partisan manner. Otherwise, the finger pointing and bickering in Washington will spell the end of the careers for many politicians.

It's not rocket science. Health insurance costs continue to climb. Too many Americans are without coverage. Waste, fraud and abuse abounds within the system. The problems can't be addressed or fixed all at once. So, let's agree that health care is going to be studied immediately and adjusted over time with the goal being coverage we can afford and quality of care second to none. We can figure out how to make this work, but do the politicians, the insurance companies and the medical organizations must come together, forget their own agendas and start considering what's best for the citizens of this country?

As part of the pre-boomer generation (those born between 1930 and 1945), I remember how people from all walks of life came together and fought our enemies in World War II. Folks forgot about labels. We weren't Democrats or Republicans we were Americans pulling together in a common cause. If addressed honestly, health care can be something that unites rather than divides us.

Remember, health care accounts for about a sixth of our economy. This is a real concern when combined with a deficit beyond belief, out-of-control government spending and a double-digit unemployment rate that just won't go day. On top of this, there are more spending plans waiting to be introduced in Congress. The only thing to do is to stop Washington from doing what it's been doing or we're going to keep getting what we've been getting. Translated, this means no new spending. Prioritize the country's need. And re-evaluate where our money is going now and where it needs to go in the future.

At the same time, businesses around the country need to join in the fight to keep America afloat and bring it back to the land of opportunity. This requires the best minds we have focusing on what they know best to get the job done. By applying this same kind of discipline to health care reform, we will undoubtedly end up with something that meets the needs of each individual American. And, that's good for all of us.

Don Potter, a Philadelphia native, was born in 1936 and is a 50 year veteran of the advertising agency business. Now living in Los Angeles, he has written two novels in retirement, frequently writes on marketing issues, and has a blog dedicated to pre-boomers (those born between 1930 and 1945).

Read more articles for and about pre-boomers with thoughts, comments and opinions designed to spark thinking, foster discussion, and stimulate debate by logging on to http://www.pre-boomermusings.com

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