Sebelius Visits Maine, Releases New Report on Importance of Health Insurance Reform for Older Women and Senior Women

WASHINGTON--(Business Wire)--
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will
travel to Maine today and formally release a new report on the importance of
health insurance reform for older women (ages 55-64) and senior women (ages 65
and older). In Maine, Sebelius will participate in a roundtable discussion in
South Portland sponsored by AARP and the Maine Women`s Lobby. Later, she will
hear from Mainers who are struggling under the status quo at the University of
Maine, Orono at a discussion sponsored by Maine Change that Works. The report
Sebelius will formally release today, Strengthening the Health Insurance System:
How Health Insurance Reform Will Help America`s Older and Senior Women is
available at www.HealthReform.gov.

"Our mothers and grandmothers have unique health needs and under the status quo,
they aren`t getting the quality, affordable care they deserve," said Sebelius.
"Health insurance reform will strengthen health care for older women and senior
women in Maine and across the country."

The report released today identifies problems with the status quo for older
women and senior women and proposed solutions in health insurance reform
including:

* Senior women spent on average 17 percent of their income on health care in
2005.i The growth in Medicare Part B premiums from 2000 to 2018 is predicted to
cost seniors an additional $1,577 per year out-of-pocket.ii Health insurance
reform will reduce overpayments to private plans and clamp down on fraud and
abuse to lower premiums for all seniors and extend the life of the Medicare
trust fund by 5 years.iii
* One in five women aged 50 and above has not received a mammogram in the past
two years.ivBy ensuring that health plans cover preventive services for
everyone, investing in prevention and wellness, and promoting primary care,
health insurance reform will work to create a system that prevents illness and
disease instead of just treating it when it`s too late and costs more.

To read the complete report, visit www.HealthReform.gov.

iCMS 2005 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey
Cost and Use file
iiAnalysis preformed by Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services.
iiiOffice of the Actuary, Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services.
ivBehavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
Survey Data. Atlanta, Georgia: U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008.

Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are
available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.

HHS Press Office
202-690-6343

Copyright Business Wire 2009

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20090903005649/en