Effect of Health Insurance Reform on PA

The feds have put together a state by state analysis of what effect health insurance reform will have. The info for PA is at:

http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/statehealthreform/Pennsylvania.html

Here are a few of the fun facts presented:

# Eliminating Discrimination for Pre-Existing Conditions, Health Status or Gender: 9% of people in Pennsylvania have diabetes9, and 28% have high blood pressure10 – two conditions that insurance companies could use as a reason to deny you health insurance. Health insurance reform will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on your health, and it will end discrimination that charges you more if you’re sick or a woman.
# One-Stop Shopping – Putting Families in Charge: With the new health insurance exchange, you can easily and simply compare insurance prices and health plans and decide which quality affordable option is right for you and your family. These proposals will help the 1,206,100 residents of Pennsylvania who currently do not have health insurance to obtain needed coverage, and it will also help the 648,500 Pennsylvania residents who currently purchase insurance in the individual insurance market.11

There's a lot more along those lines, plus, be still my heart, footnotes!!