Survey Shows TennCare Beneficiaries Remain Satisfied With Their Care
Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical InsuranceArticle Date: 02 Oct 2008 - 12:00 PDT
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Fewer Tennessee residents are uninsured, and satisfaction with the state's TennCare program remains high, according to a University of Tennessee study released on Monday, the Knoxville News-Sentinel reports. For the study, the university's Center for Business and Economic Research interviewed 5,000 heads of households by telephone between April and June of 2008. According to the study, about two-thirds of household heads in TennCare said their care was "good" or "excellent," and three-fourths said the same for their children's care. The study also found that slightly more TennCare beneficiaries visited the emergency department this year, compared to last year (Knoxville News-Sentinel, 9/29).
The study is available online (.pdf).
Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
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http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/123909.php.
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Visitor Opinions In Chronological Order (1)
TennCare Doesn't Help The Ones Who Really Need It
posted by Sincere on 2 Oct 2008 at 10:13 pmI am an appreciative recipient of TennCare, but have been through so much stress and anxiety regarding their frequent changes of "qualifying". Every time I receive a notice from TennCare, I freeze at the mailbox. I wonder if this time will be the time that the eligibility standards are changed once again.
I walk inside my apartment with my thoughts, and stomach, churning. Will this be the time that I am "cut" from the program? I slowly open the envelope and do a quick scan of the enclosed information to try and ease some of the anxiety that is trying to overwhelm me. I scan the letter a second time, to make sure that the most recent change does not disqualify me from the program. As my shaking hands begin to settle, I can finally focus on the information the third time I read it. "Advance notice" at this point in the changes in TennCare, is the day you receive the letter that your benefits have once again been cut.
I am on Social Security Disability. I don't want to be the "charity case", I want to be able to work! Unfortunately, due to a combination of three mental disorders -one incapacitating, two are severe. . Does TennCare realize what a person with a mental illness goes through every time we received letters informing us of more cuts to our benefits? I am "on the wire" right now. The only thing that is keeping me eligible, is my QMB (Quality Medical Benefit). If somehow they figure a way to cut recipients with QMB from the system, there is no way that I, and so many others, could manage healthcare costs.
My healthcare is primarily psychiatric, but do to being a hard-to-treat (atypical) patient, I have had many physical disorders as a result of "guinea pig" treatments.
My concern is not just for me. There are many "poverty-level" people, some who make a mere $30 over the QMB income limits, who are not receiving the coverage they desperately need. My close friend is one of those people. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder three years ago, and has gone through some really tough times. Now he has just been diagnosed with rapidly-spreading cancer. As he is not eligible for QMB due to his SSDI check being $30 too much, he has become completely overwhelmed. The bills, of which he has to pay his deductible, his 20% of the doctor bills, and his premium every month. Not to mention copays on so many medications. With his history of depression, suicidal tendencies (and attempts), he is starting to give up his fight for his life. His doctor says he needs to drink 7-9 cans of Ensure a day to try and prevent him from losing the strength that is zapped out with every radiation, chemotherapy treatment. 9 cans times 30 days times $7.99 plus tax for 6 cans of Ensure....
How would anyone deal with all that he is being put through? He pays $22.16 every time he sees his mental health professional. How can you chose what is more important? Mental health stability, sustenance, medicine, rent, electricity, doctors, hospital bills, transportation-he has to have someone drive him, if he had TennCare, he could get assistance with the 5x/week radiation 1x/chemo. If he doesn't keep his weight up, he's been told they will have to put a feeding tube in him!!
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