1. Is Congress proposing socialized medicine? I heard that these proposals will cause a government take over of healthcare, is that true?
   
   
2. Does the bill outlaw private insurance?
   
   
3. Does healthcare reform promote euthanasia? Will healthcare reform require doctors to ask seniors how they want to die?
   
   
4. Will healthcare reform hurt small businesses?
   
   
5. Isn’t Congress moving too fast? Why is Obama trying to push healthcare through before everyone has time to read through and discuss it?
   
   
6. Why shouldn’t we allow each state to decide how to reform healthcare?
   
   
7. Will healthcare reform put government between me and my doctor?
   
   
8. I’m on Medicare, will healthcare reform hurt me? How will healthcare reform affect Medicare?
   
   
9. How will we afford healthcare? In this economy, won’t it be too expensive?
   
   
10. Will the 'Health Choices Commissioner' decide health benefits for us?
    
    
11. Will all non-US citizens, illegal or not, be provided with free health care services?
    
    
12. Why should people with insurance pay for those who don’t have it? Aren’t we already paying enough?

Is Congress proposing socialized medicine? I heard that these proposals will cause a government take over of healthcare, is that true? These proposals are not attempting to create a Canadian or British style health care system. Reforms will build on the current employer-based insurance while ensuring affordable, quality insurance for those who lack it. Over 160 million Americans will have private health insurance coverage. Seniors will continue getting coverage through Medicare.

Thus, health reforms build on the strengths of American health care, offer solutions that respect American values, choice and competition while bringing stability and security to our families and small businesses.

Does the bill outlaw private insurance? No. The legislation relies heavily on the continuation of private health insurance plans. What health reforms will do is ensure that if you fall ill or have an accident, your premiums won’t go up just because you’ve been sick or had another birthday. In addition, you won’t be denied coverage because of a cancer you had five years ago. After a certain date, private health plans that engage in these egregious practices—such as denying someone for pre-existing conditions or charging people more based on gender or health status—cannot continue to be sold to new enrollees. Private plans that meet the rules not only can be sold, but will continue to be the main way people obtain health insurance coverage.

Does healthcare reform promote euthanasia? Will healthcare reform require doctors to ask seniors how they want to die? The provision pays primary care doctors to take time to discuss patient wishes around end-of-life treatment. It does not require anyone to obtain such counseling, let alone require beneficiaries to make any particular decision about end-of-life treatment. It does not promote euthanasia.

Will healthcare reform hurt small businesses? Helping small businesses is at the center of the health reform proposals. Utah small business owners have spoken in unambiguous terms about the need for comprehensive health reforms. As the economy falls deeper into recession, the urgency for reform grows stronger. 64% of Utah small business owners say health reform is important to getting the economy back on track. 68% of our small businesses agree that the state and federal government must be partners in reforming health care. The single biggest challenge facing Utah’s small business owners today is the cost of providing health insurance for their employees. Employers want to provide health benefits, but the cost is just too high. 88% of Utah small businesses not offering health insurance say they don’t because they can’t afford to, while 79% of those who do offer it say they are really struggling to do so.

Isn’t Congress moving too fast? Why is Obama trying to push healthcare through before everyone has time to read through and discuss it? There have been months of debate, negotiation and compromise, and that is continuing now. But there is urgency to pass health reforms this year to reform the marketplace so more small businesses and individuals don't face financial catastrophe. 88% of Utah small businesses not offering health insurance say they don’t because they can’t afford to, while 79% of those who do offer it say they are really struggling to do so. As the foundation of our economy, small businesses cannot lead the way to economic recovery without lasting relief from health care costs.

92% of Utahns are concerned about the cost of health care. And rightly so. Escalating health care costs will have caused 58,450 Utahns to lose their health coverage between January 2008 and December 2010. Premiums have skyrocketed up 119% from 1999 to 2008. The status quo is simply unsustainable. Providers, hospitals, business, insurers, and pharmaceuticals have all recognized this and have been working with Congress to build a consensus proposal.

Why shouldn’t we allow each state to decide how to reform healthcare? Health reform will be a partnership between the state and federal governments. It will be guided by American solutions but implemented by innovative state strategies. States do not exist in a vacuum. Having consistent laws and rules across the country is essential to creating a system that works for all Americans. National reforms are NOT about usurping state innovation but rather about ensuring consistency in our health care system in which access to affordable, quality health care, strengthening the doctor/patient relationship, expanding choice, and increasing competition are paramount. Only by partnering, can the state and federal governments pass comprehensive health reforms that meet these and other critical goals. Federal action is necessary to address items of federal jurisdiction, as well as larger issues such as financing, risk management, administrative structures, long-term fiscal sustainability, and legal challenges. Regardless of the final details, there will continue to be a big role for states on implementation, infrastructure and workforce development, and quality improvement. Utah can and will be a national model in these areas. In fact, we will be a step ahead of the rest of the nation, as our state has already begun to enact and implement reforms on the state level.

Will healthcare reform put government between me and my doctor? Private health insurance already comes between you and your doctor. And because each company sets its own rules, it’s hard to imagine a system with more bureaucrats. Insurers may decide which doctors you can see, which hospitals you can visit, and what drugs you can take, and still be covered. They refuse to pay your physician for answering your phone call or email. And they jack up your rates, or those of your employer, if you’re unwise enough to get sick. We need to reform the rules under which insurers operate to make sure health care decisions are made by you and your health care provider, based on what’s best for your health, instead of dictated by what the insurance company decides.

Everyone should be protected with at least basic, easy to understand, comprehensive care. The reality is that our current system is already a mixture of public and private financing for health coverage. While most insured Americans have coverage through a private plan, a sizable minority (30 percent) are covered by current government programs that finance care for the poor, the elderly and the severely disabled. In fact, when all government financing for health care is factored in—including the current tax subsidy for private coverage —over 60 percent of our health care dollars could be termed "publicly financed."

I’m on Medicare, will healthcare reform hurt me? How will healthcare reform affect Medicare? The proposed reforms do not cut Medicare services. They try to make some improvements. Using a fairly long timetable, they move to close the so called ―donut hole‖ in the Part D prescription drug benefit. The reforms eliminate cost-sharing for preventive care services. The bills provide new funding for research into treatments for the chronic diseases that affect so many elderly Americans. Importantly, the bill seeks to cut waste and end overpayments to insurance companies to strengthen the long-term financial health of Medicare.

How will we afford healthcare? In this economy, won’t it be too expensive? The economy remains fragile, and getting health care to millions will have a pricetag. But we pay a price for doing nothing as well. The question is: which price is higher. We currently spend more than $2 trillion dollars a year on health care. Health insurance reform will make a short-term investment of roughly $100 billion a year to lower costs and provide coverage to almost all the uninsured. We believe reform is absolutely necessary in order to get control of the real cost drivers like "fee for service" payment systems that encourage more "treatments" but discourage prevention. We need true competition to get better prices out of insurance companies. We need safer care so we don't spend billions extra to treat preventable mistakes like hospital acquired infection.

Will the 'Health Choices Commissioner' decide health benefits for us? Well, that's not true at all. The House bill says that the Health Choices Commissioner will review and approve health plans to make sure they meet some new standards. They can't be "junk insurance" (something Consumer Reports has discussed extensively); they don't exclude people with pre-existing conditions; and they have a way for you to fight for your benefits if the insurance company denies your claim. Does that mean someone is deciding your benefits? No. Does it mean that there's a minimum standard beneath which insurance companies cannot go? Yes.

Will all non-US citizens, illegal or not, be provided with free health care services? No. If you are undocumented, you will not be eligible for the discounts that will help millions of others purchase insurance at affordable rates. Here's the exact language in the House bill, "Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States."

Why should people with insurance pay for those who don’t have it? Aren’t we already paying enough? Most of us would rather pay a fixed, predictable, affordable premium amount – which may be more than the health care we consume in any given year – for the peace of mind of knowing that if we have a very large medical claim, we can cover those bills and won’t be forced into bankruptcy. This is the underlying principle of insurance. However, many people can’t afford coverage in today’s world, particularly if their employer doesn’t offer and help pay for that coverage. If they are uninsured, any medical costs that they can’t cover end up embedded in the costs that insured persons pay. Doctors and hospitals make sure they charge enough so that their costs are covered across all their patients—insured and uninsured. According to one study, covering the costs that the uninsured couldn’t pay added $1,000 to a family policy and $370 to an individual policy in 2008. Under the reforms envisioned, people would be required to have coverage and would be expected to pay a reasonable share of their income to help pay for it. If they couldn’t cover the whole premium, they would get help to pay the rest.