Last night, we elected Illinois Senator Barack Obama to the presidency. In addition, the Democrats now have strengthened majorities in both Chambers of U.S. Congress and the White House.
That hasn’t happened since President Bill Clinton’s first term.
Democratic lawmakers have been long proponents of universal health care and insurance ideas, and expanding the federal government’s role in health care.
Now that they have power, what will they do with it? Will they, and can they, really change the fundamentals of how our health care system works?
Pretty loaded questions, yes, but we might as well speculate if anything will actually change when it comes to health care and health insurance.
Let’s take a look at five major health care issues that may be addressed in the coming years with a new president and new Democratic majority in Congress. The following will be ranked from least to most likely to change during Obama’s first term in office.
5. Universal health care for all
A one-payer universal health care and health insurance system in the United States is a long shot, no matter who is in office. President-elect Barack Obama has said if he could do it over, he would start with a one-payer system, but also said it’s likely not realistic.
Universal coverage for everyone probably won’t happen in the next 20 years, if ever.
4. Mandates for businesses to provide health benefits or help employees buy coverage
This was a big piece of Obama’s health reform plan — require all businesses, except small businesses, to offer coverage to their employees or help them pay for their own plans. But expect this part of his plan to be heavily opposed by business groups, and a likely candidate for a U.S. Senate filibuster by the Republicans.
3. Universal access to the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program
Another piece of Obama’s plan was to allow every American to buy into the group health insurance plan that’s currently only available for federal employees. On the surface, this seems like a good idea to let happen — the more participants in the group, the better they can negotiate with health insurance companies for lower rates. On the other hand, no one knows what this might cost the government and the taxpayers to fund.
2. Expanding State Children’s Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP)
The expansion of SCHIP has been a political battle since the Democrats took a majority in Congress two years ago. Twice they passed a sweeping expansion of coverage for more children, and twice it was vetoed by Republican President George W. Bush. But with the Democrats still in control and a president who himself voted for the expansion, look for this one to get passed under an Obama administration.
1. Expanding the use of electronic medical records
Most lawmakers, health care experts, and the like agree that moving medical records from paper to the computer will not only reduce medical errors and improve the quality of care, but also reduce overall health care costs and administrative overhead.
If electronic medical records don’t come into fruition in the next couple of years, we"ll be fully surprised.