Two sides of paradise - Healthcare
Healthcare in Hawaii can help those in need, but due to shipping of medication and the shortage of expertise the cost of it is high. Not everyone in Hawaii can get healthcare, only those with certain conditions are granted insurance. Those who are HIPAA eligible are guaranteed insurance. HIPAA is a federal law that allows people who are in a healthcare plan with other employees, to search for another insurance. Others may be protected by COBRA, which is a federal law that allows an employer to stay with a group plan until they are done working. Some health insurance plans also have renewed in Hawaii. That means insurance companies have to continue to cover a person as long as they are paying the company. If the person wants to for example move to another healthcare insurance and gets sick, the company will not allow them to move. The services that healthcare insurances have to cover include: mammograms for women over forty years old, care for diabetes, alcohol and drug treatment services, and care for mental health conditions.
In 2006, the average price for an individual with healthcare in Hawaii was $437 a month. For a family it was $747 a month. An individual with no managed healthcare payed $563 a month. For a family it was $936 a month.
Some people in Hawaii work for businesses that offer healthcare, instead of paying the full price for it. Those businesses will continue to pay 98.5 percent of the costs, which is higher than any state. Hawaii's Prepaid Healthcare act, which passed in 1974, requires private employers to offer health insurance to employees who work for more than 20 hours a week and for more than four weeks. In Hawaii about 92 percent of citizens are insured. But because of the cost, employers are often offered many part-time jobs instead of full time. Healthcare costs rose 94.2 percent, while people were earning only 25.7 percent over a nine year period.
By the year 2020, people are expected to pay $20,000 a year. In 2014 health insurance will be required. For those who are not insured because they can't afford coverage they would have to pay the full prices for prescription drugs. A change that was made to health insurance companies, was that for people to stay under their parents' insurance until they turn 26.
Hawaii's hospitals have lost more than $400 million in the years 2007 to 2008, since not everyone has paid there costs. Since not everyone pays their doctors, that means that Hawaii loses their physicians, and specialists. With that being said it will be hard for those who have certain health problems and will have to pay for plane tickets going to different parts of the world to get the care that they need.
The Patient and Affordable Care Act are for those who have had health issues and need healthcare.
The Pre-existing Condition Insurance plan, is not public but those who want to have this plan will still have to pay monthly prices. Citizens still have to follow the regulations just like regular healthcare. People would still have to pay the same amount that people without previous health issues pay. Monthly costs will be $215 for ages 0-34, $258 for ages 35 to 44, $330 for ages 45 to 54, $459 for ages 55 and up. With this plan a person would have to pay $5,950 a year.
Since healthcare in Hawaii is high, people look for the best plans as possible. With other things that they have to pay for, some people work multiple jobs. Not a lot of people can afford other things including healthcare, so they sacrifice their time to get what is worth getting for their family and their self.
