New York law extends health care coverage
College students may now benefit from President Barack Obama’s new health care legislation, which will allow them to remain on their parents’ insurance plan until they are 26 years old.
New York is among 17 states making headway on the new policy and has nearly 2.8 million residents that lack health care, according to The Associated Press.
‘I think it’s going to be a great thing because it’s going to give students the opportunity to have health insurance, which so many students don’t have nowadays’ said Ashley Cruz, a senior philosophy major.
Benjamin Domingo, director of Health Services at Syracuse University, said the plan is a change from students being cut off from their parents’ insurance at a much younger age in the past. The new policy will allow students to save thousands of dollars and avoid the stress of having to find affordable health coverage while also paying for college, he said.
Domingo said he supports allowing students to remain on their parents’ health insurance plan for a longer amount of time.
‘The student health insurance at Syracuse University is very comprehensive, but generally speaking, a parent’s health insurance is going to be better than the health insurance you are able to purchase from the school,’ Domingo said.
John Palmer, professor and dean emeritus in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, said the new plan would help recent college graduates who don’t find jobs right away.
Obama’s new health care plan is estimated to provide medical coverage for roughly 32 million Americans who are currently uninsured. He plans to do this by expanding Medicaid and providing federal subsidies to help Americans buy private coverage, among other provisions, according to a March 21, 2010, CBS News article.
If completely approved, the legislation would require everyone to buy health insurance or face a penalty, according to the article.
‘(Obama’s) goal is to expand coverage and access to health care and to try and lay a foundation for beginning to reduce health care cost inflation over time,’ Palmer said.
Palmer also mentioned that although many people agree with the outcome of the health care legislation, many disagree with the proposed means of attaining it. Some citizens are against more government control over health care. Obama’s new plan also faces high opposition in the Supreme Court from officials who ruled it unconstitutional to mandate health care in various appeals, he said.
To combat the argument that the new system is imposing too much government control, Obama allowed states to create their own general coverage plans instead of a one-size-fits-all plan, according to a Dec. 21 article on The New York Times’ website.
One of the most recent components of the health care legislation, enacted last month, is a law that provides incentives for physicians to collaborate and form accountable care organizations that will coordinate patient care, help prevent disease and reduce unnecessary hospital admissions, according to HealthCare.gov.
Obama’s health care plan has been a controversial topic in the 2012 presidential campaign and remains highly contested by Republican candidates.
Published on February 5, 2012 at 12:00 pm
