What last night means for local readers...

Well the Democrat's could not be any more excited about what happened last night.  Not one Republican voted for the House Bill.  Still...the bill must go through the Senate where changes can be made.

As of now, what you will notice in the near future of 2010 after the Bill is enacted is:

• A dependent child can be covered up until the age of 26, no matter what their current education status is. (this was enacted in Illinois in July of 2009)
• Private insurance companies can not decline coverage for children (17 and under) based on a pre-existing medical condition.
• Individuals with income below $14,400 annually (133% of FPL) or $29,327 for a family of four can begin to receive subsidy to buy private health insurance.

For those who are 18 years of age an older and are being declined coverage for a pre-existing condition or having an exclusion rider on that specific condition will not see change until 2014.

What is going to happen until 2014, is that states are going to create high risk pools of insurance for those who are uninsurable.  Right now, the State of Illinois, already has one in place called the Illinois Comprehensive Health Insurance Coverage (ICHIP) plan.

Feel free to call or stop by the shoppe to learn more.

-The Shoppe