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CDC Ad Campaign Reveals Harsh 5-year Reality of Smoking-Related Diseases Timeline “Tips from Former Smokers” shows real lives and bodies damaged by tobacco
A hard-hitting national ad campaign that depicts the harsh reality of illness and damage suffered as a result of smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke was launched today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Beginning Monday, March 19, ads will run for at least 12 weeks on television, radio, and billboards, online, and in theaters, magazines, and newspapers nationwide. The “Tips from Former Smokers” campaign features compelling stories of former smokers living with smoking-related diseases and disabilities, and the toll smoking-related illnesses take on smokers and their loved ones. The ads focus on smoking-related lung and throat cancer, heart attack, stroke, Buerger’s disease, and asthma. The campaign features suggestions from former smokers on how to get dressed when you have a stoma (a surgical opening in the neck) or artificial limbs, what scars from heart surgery look like and reasons why people have quit. The ads will be tagged with 1-800-QUIT-NOW, a toll-free number to access quit support across the country, or the www.smokefree.
gov web site, which provides free quitting information.
web and mobile based interventions.
“Hundreds of thousands of lives are lost each year due to smoking, and for every person who dies, 20 more Americans live with an illness caused by smoking,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “We cannot afford to continue watching the human and economic toll from tobacco rob our communities of parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, friends and co-workers. We are committed to doing everything we can to help smokers quit and prevent young people from starting in the first place.”
Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States, killing more than 443,000 Americans each year. Cigarette smoking costs the nation $96 billion in direct medical costs and $97 billion in lost productivity each year. More than 8 million Americans are living with a smoking-related disease, and every day over 1,000 youth under 18 become daily smokers. Still, nearly 70 percent of smokers say they want to quit, and half make a serious quit attempt each year. The “Tips from Former SmokThe “Tips from Former ers” campaign will provide Smokers” campaign is anoth- motivation, information, and er bold step in the administra- resources to help. tion’s commitment to prevent “Although they may be young people from starting tough to watch, the ads show to use tobacco and helping real people living with real, those that smoke quit. Recent painful consequences from milestones include the pas- smoking,” said CDC Direcsage of the Family Smoking tor Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., Prevention and Tobacco Con- M.P.H. “There is sound evitrol Act which gives the Food dence that supports the use and Drug Administration au- of these types of hard-hitting thority to regulate tobacco images and messages to enproducts to prevent use by courage smokers to quit, minors. Additional support to to keep children from ever help smokers quit is provided beginning to smoke, and to through state toll-free quit drastically reduce the harm lines and implementation of caused by tobacco.”
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Ironically, Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the deciding vote in favor of the bill, even though he got a negative vote from President Obama for the confirmation of his appointment. It is the court’s opinion that the purchase of insurance and payment of a fine is considered a tax, so it falls within the authority of Congress. This is a dramatic victory for President Obama and his landmark legislative achievement which he signed into law on March 23, 2010. The decision Roberts wrote stated that: “The Affordable Care Act is constitutional in part and unconstitutional in part.” The law requires individuals who are non-exempt to have health insurance or be liable for a tax penalty. The written decision also states that the justices including Roberts do not posses the expertise or the right to make judgments about policies. It is the court’s opinion that those decisions are made by leaders elected by the people. The people then can vote them out of office during elections if they so choose. The opposition to the Health Care Law claimed that the U.S. Constitution does not grant authority to the federal government to meddle with health care. It is for this reason that 26 States representing more than half of all the US States and private groups and organizations have challenged the health care law’s constitutionality and brought it before the Supreme Court. They also attested that Congress does not have the mandate to force its citizens to purchase products like insurance or regulate the health care industry. Before the law’s constitutionality was brought to the Supreme Court, there were a series of appellate court rulings which did not resolve the question of whether Obamacare is enforceable. The Affordable Health Care Law also expands Medicaid coverage. The decision is being viewed by oppositionists
as an expansion of the powers of the federal government. Many think that health care control and policies should be done at the state levels. Now that the decision has been handed down, the Obama administration can start implementing the timelines according to the provisions of the health care law. The law’s provisions have been broken down into timetables according to its important features from 2010 to 2015. It includes comprehensive and sweeping reforms in health insurance with many of the changes scheduled to take place by 2014. • The Act protects consumers, making it illegal for insurance companies to deny payment due to errors or technical mistakes in the insured’s application form. • The Affordable Care Act provides citizens with more coverage options, lower coverage costs and stronger protection for consumers. • It expands the options of families for health coverage, making health care more affordable as well as provides consumers with assistance programs for stronger protection for insurance claims. • Options have also been made available for coverage of pregnant women and their child and for Medicaid eligibility for pre-existing conditions. • Seniors are afforded new preventive benefits under the law, and they enjoy discounts for prescription drugs with more long-term care options. • Tax credits are made available for small businesses so that they can offset the additional costs of health insurance that they should provide to their workers. • Federal matching funds will
be made available to States so that low-income families and individuals can get Medicaid coverage. • Children and young adult’s eligibility for coverage under their parent’s plan has also been expanded up to age 26. • The new law also provides for funding of community health center services across the United States. • Physicians are also encouraged through incentives to form “Accountable Care Organizations” for improving the quality of patient care through better coordination thereby reducing hospital admissions. An easy-to-use website, HealthCare.gov has been made available to consumers, so that health insurance options can be easily compared and people can choose the coverage that they find most beneficial and cost-effective. Effective 2014, Affordable Insurance Exchanges shall have been established and they will offer health plans that comply with certain benefit requirements at affordable costs. It will also be the individual responsibility of people to obtain their basic health insurance coverage by 2014 and those who can afford to but fail to do so shall be made to pay a fee which will be used to fund the care of uninsured Americans. The health reforms outlined in the Affordable Care Act are expected to improve patient access to better health care by 2015 through incentives and regulations resulting in quality care for all Americans. But with Republicans determined to remove President Barack Obama from office by November, will Americans get to see the 5-year Affordable Care Act timeline through?
Health Care Law Saves Consumers Over $1 Billion Health Care Law Provides Rebates To More Than 12 Million Consumers
Today, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that 12.8 million Americans will benefit from $1.1 billion in rebates from insurance companies this summer, because of the Affordable Care Act’s 80/20 rule. These rebates will be an average of $151 for each family covered by a policy.
and advertising. Beginning this year, insurers must notify customers how much of their premiums have been actually spent on medical care and quality improvement.
Insurance companies that do not meet the 80/20 standard must provide their policyholders a rebate for the difference no later than Aug. 1, 2012. The 80/20 rule is also The health care law general- known as the Medical Loss ly requires insurance compa- Ratio (MLR) standard. nies to spend at least 80 per"The 80/20 rule helps encent of consumers’ premium dollars on medical care and sure consumers get fair value quality improvement. Insur- for their health care dollar," in one of the following ways: ers can spend the remaining Secretary Sebelius said. • A rebate check in the mail 20 percent on administrative Consumers owed a rebate costs, such as salaries, sales, will see their value reflected • A lump-sum reimburse-
• A reduction in their future premiums; or • Their employer providing one of the above, or applying the rebate in a manner that benefits its employees.
ment to the same account that they used to pay the premium if by credit card or debit card;
Insurance companies that do not meet the 80/20 standard will send their policyholders a rebate for the difference no later than Aug. 1, 2012. Consumers in every state will also receive a notice from their insurance company informing them of the 80/20 rule, whether their company met the standard, and, if not, how much of difference between what the in-
surer did or did not spend on medical care and quality improvement will be returned to them. For the first time, all of this information will be publicly posted on HealthCare.gov this summer, allowing consumers to learn what value they are getting for their premium dollars in their health plan. For many consumers, the 80/20 rule motivated their plans to lower prices or improve their coverage to meet the standard. This is one of the ways the 80/20 rule is bringing value to consumers for their health care dollars.