COVID-19 has brought to light the need for healthcare reform. In the last few months all throughout the US, citizens are facing hard challenges, highlighting the areas of vulnerability in the healthcare system. More than half of the US population have health coverage through their employer, but with record filings for unemployment, millions of Americans now either find themselves with unaffordable insurance or without health insurance at all, amidst a pandemic.
It also appropriated $1 billion for the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund to cover testing for uninsured individuals under state Medicaid plans. Although the FFCRA assists with testing costs, patients remain vulnerable to cost-sharing expenses associated with treatment (such as hospitalization) until they reach their yearly out-of-pocket maximum, which can exceed $8,000 for an individual and $16,000 for a family.
In an effort to address the issues brought on by COVID-19, Congress has passed two pieces of legislation with more to come in the upcoming months. The first piece passed was the The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) which mandates that all private insurers along with Medicare and Medicaid covers 100% COVID-19 testing. To the American people, that means no copays, deductibles, and coinsurance payments. The legislation also covers uninsured Americans under state Medicaid plans.
The second piece of legislation passed was the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. This is a $2.2 trillion pandemic-relief bill that mandates all private plans to cover Covid-19 testing and future vaccines. The CARES Act ensures that the government will reimburse providers at Medicare rates for treating uninsured Americans. The CARES Act also provides tax credits, emergency grants, and loans to help businesses keep employees on the payroll or on furlough through June 2020, while extending unemployment benefits for Awmericans who have lost their jobs.
Though these pieces of legislation have provided much needed relief for many Americans, we need additional policies to ensure that Americans can continue to access affordable care as the crisis continues.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made holes in our healthcare coverage more visible than ever. Our policies on health and health care, both during this pandemic and in the future, should reflect this reality, and we should not let the lessons of this crisis pass us by.
