premium

(noun)

something offered at a reduced price as an incentive to buy something else.

Examples of premium in the following topics:

  • Health Care Reform Under Obama

    • It would subsidize insurance premiums for people making up to 400% of the FPL ($88,000 for family of 4 in 2010) so their maximum "out-of-pocket" payment for annual premiums would be on sliding scale from 2% to 9.5% of income.
    • Starting in 2014, the law will prohibit insurers from denying coverage (see guaranteed issue) to sicker applicants or imposing special conditions such as higher premiums or payments (see community rating).
    • Some analysts have argued that the insurance premium structure may shift more costs onto younger and healthier people.
    • Approximately $43 billion was spent in 2008 providing non-reimbursed emergency services for the uninsured, which the Act's supporters argued increased the average family's insurance premiums.

  • Health Care Reform

    • Coverage would be guaranteed regardless of health status and premiums would not vary based on health status.
    • The PPACA also set a minimum ratio of direct health care spending to premium income, created price competition bolstered by the creation of three standard insurance coverage levels to enable like-for-like comparisons by consumers, and also created a web-based health insurance exchange where consumers can compare prices and purchase plans.
    • Premium cap for maximum "out-of-pocket" pay will be established for people with incomes up to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Line.

  • Income Security Policy and Policy Making

    • Adverse selection causes profit maximizing private insurance agencies to set high premiums for the insurance because there is a high likelihood they will have to make payments to the policyholder.
    • High premiums exclude many individuals who otherwise might purchase the insurance.

  • Health Care Policy

    • Costs for employer-paid health insurance are rising rapidly: since 2001, premiums for family coverage have increased 78%, while wages have risen 19% and inflation has risen 17%, according to a 2007 study by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
    • Workers with employer-sponsored insurance also contribute; in 2007, the average percentage of premium paid by covered workers is 16% for single coverage and 28% for family coverage.
    • In addition to their premium contributions, most covered workers face additional payments when they use health care services, in the form of deductibles and copayments.

  • Medicaid and Medicare

    • Under managed care, Medicaid recipients are enrolled in a private health plan, which receives a fixed monthly premium from the state.
    • Some states operate a program known as the Health Insurance Premium Payment Program (HIPP).
    • As of 2008, only a few states had premium assistance programs and enrollment was relatively low.

  • Universal Coverage

    • Sometimes the healthcare funds are derived from a combination of insurance premiums, salary-based mandatory contributions by employees and/or employers to regulated sickness funds, and by government taxes.