White House Busy with Health Care Issues

By Senior Staff Writer, Laurie Lenihan

This week Congress overrode President Bush's veto of legislation that delays a Medicare physician payment and approved a bill that would preserve health coverage for college students.

The new Medicare law blocks a 10.6% cut in Medicare physician payments for 18 months and gives physicians a 1.1% pay increase in 2009. The law requires some private fee-for-service plans to join provider networks and eliminates payments to private insurers in the Medicare Advantage program for indirect medical education. The law also postpones for 18 months a Medicare competitive bidding program for certain types of durable medical equipment. A legislative solution to prevent future cuts could be included in a larger health care bill next year. In 2010, physicians will face a 20% payment cut.

The House of Energy and Commerce Committee clarifies, in an amendment, that insurers must provide coverage to students who change their status to part-time because of injury or illness while under full-time student status. The coverage would be extended for one year from the time of medical leave when students change their status to part-time from the full-time vecause of injury or illness.