At our first Organizing for America meeting on Health Care Reform, many people said that they didn't understand the meanings of the terms being used in the debate.
If this is true for the people motivated enough to come to a meeting, it must be even more true for the general public.
As part of our day of service activity, we will be handing out informational material on health-care reform, including a glossary, which is where this diary comes in.
I'm trying to prepare the glossary and I need help. If you want to lend a hand, please follow me below the fold.
Health Insurance Reform Glossary
There are a lot of terms being used to describe the varying health care reform proposals that are being debated. This glossary attempts to define the most common ones that you will hear. We cannot guarantee that all people will use these terms in a way that matches these definitions, we believe that we have captured the most common meaning.
Health Care Reform Any of a number of proposals to change the way that health care is paid for and delivered.
Single Payer Making the government the sole health care insurer for basic benefits. Generally includes the idea that a private market could still exist for coverage above what is offered in the basic plan.
Medicare For All Extending Medicare to the whole population. This is generally presented as a single payer plan, where private insurance would go away. It could also be presented as a public option, where people under 65 could opt in to medicare by paying a premium.
Public Option A plan where the government becomes a health insurance provider, offering plans that compete with private insurance. Individuals and/or companies would be free to choose the government run plan or a private plan.
Mandate There are 2 meanings:
- A requirement by the government that individuals purchase insurance, or that Employers provide subsidized plans for their employees. This is referred to as a mandate to purchase insurance.
- Mandated coverage is a requirement that all insurance policies offer certain benefits.
Universal Coverage Any system where everybody in the country has medical insurance.
High Risk Pool A state-run health insurance mechanism for people who are likely to need a lot of medical care, and therefore cannot get affordable health care in the public market. Private insurers may be required to offer coverage in the high risk pool in order to sell any insurance in a particular state
State Run Medicine A plan where the government takes over the actual provision of medical services and pays doctors directly. The Veterans Administration system is an example of state run medicine.
Pre-Existing Conditions Medical conditions that a person has prior to selecting insurance that make them more likely to need medical services. Insurers charge more for people with certain pre-existing conditions or deny them coverage entirely. Regulations limit the degree to which insurers are allowed to do this.
High Deductible Plan Health insurance that provides coverage only after the insured has paid for a large amount of health care expenses.
Patient Centered Medical Home A reform of the health delivery process where patients have a primary medical center that coordinates all of their care.
Health Insurance Exchange A clearinghouse where insurance purcahsers can compare multiple competing insurance providers and decide which one to select. Many employers offer this for their employees with a limited number of insurance providers. President Obama has talked about a National Exchange where all insurance providers would be available.
Health Insurance Co-Op There are 2 meanings:
- A group of people (or companies) organized to buy insurance by negotiating lower rates than they could get on their own.
- An insurance company run as a not-for-profit business for the benefit of the people it insures.
I am looking for help with:
Terms: Are there any terms that you hear used in the reform debate that you think should be included?
Definitions: Do you think that any of the definitions here are wrong? Can you think of a better way to express the same meaning?
We are trying to keep the definitions short, readable, and politically neutral. We will be handing out plenty of information on why reform is needed and what kinds of reform will be best, but we want to keep the glossary neutral.
Sources: Are there good glossaries out there that I can crib from?
Please help. Debate is hard enough when we do not have a common language.