Fact or Fiction: What’s in the Health Reform Law

Last month the Dallas Chamber did one of the things that it does best: It brought together leading authorities on a subject to answer questions and brief the business community on topics that will affect North Texas. Britt Berrett of Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, Chris Beinecke of Towers Watson, Susan Wetzel of Haynes and Boone, and Darron Gill of KPMG all provided a spirited discussion on healthcare reform and tried to separate the fact from fiction in regards to the recently passed legislation.

“The overriding observation is that it is shifting how the United States of America is looking at health care,” said Britt Berrett. A statement that demonstrates how encompassing the changes are and that major happenings are taking place in an industry that makes up roughly one sixth of the U.S. economy.

The panel explored numerous provisions of the bill including affects on Medicare, grandfathering, mandatory coverage, pre-existing condition exclusions, vouchers, insurance exchanges, timeline, reporting requirements, state lawsuits, and much more. Being such a hot topic, the bulk of the discussion was driven by an inquisitive audience looking for clarity on various provisions or just to gain a sense of what is happening to the system.

On May 21st the Dallas Regional Chamber will be hosting a healthcare conference called “This is Healthcare” at the Fairmont in downtown Dallas. One of the featured speakers, Dennis Bishop, will discuss healthcare reform and what the future will entail. Den, who is quickly becoming one of the leading national authorities on the subject, will be someone that you do not want to miss and provides a truly enlightening look into the new law.

Then, the Chamber is putting together a special session for companies that employ 50 or fewer individuals on a “full-time” basis. Taking place in the Chamber conference center, this meeting will delve into exactly what smaller businesses need to be doing to adjust to the new health reform law. It will be posted in the events section of the website (www.dallaschamber.org/events) once a date is confirmed and spots will be limited.

As with numerous other issues, we will continue to track changes made by our government and elected officials while promoting prosperity through sound public policy. Not only are there constantly evolving issues on the national level but the Chamber continues to stay engaged on the state and local levels. There are always hot topics popping up and with the help of our gold sponsors, Methodist Health System and BlueCross BlueShield of Texas, we will continue to hold these informative breakfasts.