Transcript It's a New World: Health Care Reform Hits Home

NAHU’s Capital Conference Website
• NAHU has an entire section of our web site devoted to Capitol
Conference. The link is:
http://www.nahu.org/meetings/capitol/2011/index.cfm.
If you haven’t been there already, please go to it ASAP to check it
out
• On this section of our site you will find:
Travel, hotel and registration information
The latest agenda
Overview of our issues
List of registered attendees
Tips for setting up your hill visits
Much more!
Meeting Logistics
• Headquarters Location:
Hyatt Regency (Capitol Hill)
400 New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001
1-202-737-1234
• The room block at the Hyatt Regency is full.
• If you would further information regarding
possible hotels, please send an e-mail to
[email protected] right away.
Meeting Logistics
• Meeting Dates
Regular Conference—Monday, Feb. 14-Wednesday, Feb. 16th
Leadership Meeting (Invitation Only for Future Leaders)—
Sunday, Feb. 13
• The first meeting begins at 8:00am on Monday, so
make your travel plans accordingly.
•We will end the general session on Wednesday
afternoon by 12pm, but your delegation will likely have
lobbying visits that afternoon. So check with your State’s
legislative chair for information on your appointments
Meeting Logistics
•Other Capitol Conference Events
In addition to the regular meetings and Hill visits, there are other important
events scheduled.
• Regional Meetings—Monday, Feb. 14th
11:45am - 12:45pm Regions 1, 3, 5, and 7
1:00pm-2:00pm: Regions 2, 4, 6, and 8
• HUPAC Congressional Reception at Top of the Hill at the Reserve Officers
Association—Tuesday, Feb. 15 at 5:30pm
• 365 Club Breakfast (invitation only for members who give at least $1 per day
to HUPAC)—Wednesday, Feb. 16th 7:00-8:00am
• HUPAC Capitol Club Luncheon (invitation only for HUPAC’s largest
contributors)--Wednesday, Feb. 16th from 12:00-2:00pm at Johnny’s Half Shell
Meeting Logistics
Free Time
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Washington, DC is an exciting city, with tons to see
and do. However, we also have a packed meeting
schedule, and you will not want to miss any of our
exciting speakers.
Good times to sight-see include Sunday afternoon
and Monday evening.
A restaurant guide will be part of your conference
materials. Most DC restaurants require advance
reservations for large parties.
Meeting Logistics
Attire
•The dress code for the meeting is professional business, with the
exception of the events on Sunday, which will be business casual.
•Washington is a conservative city in terms of dress. Most of the
floors in the hotel and on Capitol Hill are marble, and you will be
walking a lot between Hill appointments. Bring comfortable
shoes!!!
•Weather is Washington, DC is on the colder side during mid
February- lower 30s (if we’re lucky!). Bring warm clothes,
including a good overcoat- its also one of our wetter months, so
pack an umbrella!
Meeting Agenda
•You may have noticed that the agenda that is posted on the
NAHU website and printed in HIU is vague and does not
specifically list any speakers.
That is done on purpose.
• We invite many high-ranking Members of Congress and
administration officials, and we have to give them maximum
scheduling flexibility in order to assure attendance.
• Something major can come up at the last minute that could
require a high-ranking official to effect a schedule change, so that
requires us to keep the schedule fluid.
• You will receive a final updated agenda when you register for the
meeting, but please note that even it is subject to change!
Meeting Etiquette
•Please be aware that there will be print and possibly television/radio
media in the room during all sessions (except on Monday, which is a closed
session).
•Please keep your cell phones off or on vibrate during the entire meeting.
•Please try and keep talking/lingering in the hall outside the general session
room down to a minimum. The noise from the hallway/registration area
can be very loud and distracting inside the meeting room.
•Please be aware that many of our distinguished guests have very busy
schedules and may not have time for picture requests, questions, etc.
before or after they speak. If there is an opportunity for questions, it will
be announced from the podium. Photos are usually limited to members of
that individual’s state delegation for time purposes. If there is time for
additional photos with a specific individual, we will let you know at the
conference.
Capitol Hill Visits
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Members and chapters are responsible for making their own
appointments with legislators.
Capitol Hill appointments should be made in advance and scheduled
for Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons after 1:00pm.
If you are going to the HUPAC reception, remember event starts at
5:30pm
Once you have made your hill appointments, please go to
http://ssl.capwiz.com/nahu/lrm/feedback.tt?event=20624&mode=appointment
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and enter in the information for NAHU’s tracking purposes.
If you need to send a hill office a summary of what issues will be
discussed at your meetings, you can download NAHU’s overview of
federal issues from the Capitol Conference section of the NAHU web
site.
If you need help making your appointments or would like an NAHU
staff lobbyist to attend a meeting with you, please call Kristin Leighty
at (703) 276-3803 or [email protected]
Working With Congress
•With the shifts in Congress over the last few months, the political landscape
keeps changing
•Some of our past priority issues have taken a back-seat to new priority issues.
•NAHU has positive relationships with key legislators on both sides of the aisle
and has made many strides with the Democratic AND Republicans over the
past year.
•There will be a session meeting on Monday morning, February 14th at 8:30am
where we will go over in detail how to make your hill visits most effective
•Our government relations staff will also go over the issues in detail and answer
member questions on Monday afternoon at 5pm during the general session
Key Issues
•MLR and Agent/Broker Access
•Employer/Economic Issues of PPACA
•Insurance Market Reforms
•Helping People Afford Coverage
•Cost Containment
•Medicare and LTC Improvements
MLR and Access to Agents and Brokers
•A statutory fix to exempt agent and broker fees from
the MLR calculation is NAHU’s top legislative priority.
•Stress the economic impact that is reducing our ability
to stay in business and perform client services at the
very time the economy is the weakest and clients have
the most need for support.
•Also we are constantly advocating against any
imitations on licensed benefit specialists serving as a
consumer resource in either traditional insurance
markets and/or the exchanges.
Employer Issues
•PPACA burdens on employers are making them anxious about
hiring, affording compliance and being in the health insurance
benefits business altogether.
•Targeted improvements are needed to make health reform
employer-friendly and spur job development rather than hinder
it, including:
Repeal of employer mandate
Repeal of the 1099 and 105(h) nondiscrimination provisions
Improvements to the employer waiting period, W2 reporting, employee
notification and auto-enrollment requirements to make them more
consistent with time tested benefit practices
Market Reforms
•Insurance reforms in the new law are increasing premiums and will lead to a
huge adverse selection problem if not addressed right away. To start we
suggest:
A national open enrollment period/late enrollment penalties for child-only plans
Improvements to the grandfathered plan provisions
Annual limit waivers through 2014 and beyond, with greater waiver process
transparency
Incentives to maintain continuous health insurance coverage like open
enrollment, late enrollment penalties, and increased coverage verification
Graduated shift to modified community rating requirement and expanded age
rating bands and other premium rating factors
Eliminating the deductible cap on small employer health plans.
CDHC improvements
Helping People Afford Coverage
•We have to help the truly needy affords private coverage, but
assistance should not be contingent on coverage type or place of
purchase.
•Assistance programs must be adequately funded and financially viable
in the long-term.
•We need improvements to the small business tax credit program so
that it helps insure more Americans.
•Individual health insurance consumers and the self-employed need the
same tax benefits as those with group insurance, but not at the expense
of the existing employer-coverage income tax exclusion
Cost Containment
•PPACA fails to tackle the key driver of soaring insurance premiums:
skyrocketing medical costs
•Ways to reduce government and private-sector health care costs through the
health insurance coverage system include:
Wellness programs improvements
Medical liability reform
Greater provider quality and medical cost transparency
Provider payment reforms
•Other health care stakeholders need to propose cost containment ideas that
fall under their areas of expertise
Reducing costs through healthier lifestyles for all Americans should be a top
priority
•Congress also must take a hard look at public health care spending and make
tough changes
Senior Issues
•We need Congressional action to restore funding cuts from
PPACA on the Medicare Advantage program
•We support restoring the Open Enrollment Period for
Medicare beneficiaries.
•The CLASS Act, an under-funded government-run long-term
care benefit program established PPACA, must be repealed
and replaced with incentives to purchase private long-term
care insurance.
For More Information or Assistance
NAHU’s Capitol Conference General Information
http://www.nahu.org/meetings/capitol/2011/index.cfm
(703) 276-0220
Hotel Reservations/Logistical Questions
(703) 276-3820
Agenda/Legislative Questions
(703) 276-3817
Meeting Registration
(703) 276-3824
Hill Visits
(703) 276-3803
HUPAC
(703) 276-3803
Media
(703) 276-3835
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]