Health Insurance Articles
Is Health Coverage Universal For Federal Employees?
2009-09-24
Since the election of President Barack Obama, the topic of health insurance coverage has not only caused intense debate among U.S. citizens, but the expression of loud opinions among the media and a health care bill that has caused a stir among representatives and senators. One of the often-cited groups in this debate has been federal employees, mostly due to the contested fact that they have universal health insurance. However, while some federal employees enjoy excellent health care policies, others cannot afford health insurance coverage. Because of this, it is easy to see that the myth of universal health care for federal employees is just that - a myth.
Out of the estimated two million civilian employees of the federal government, approximately 250,000 have reported not having the coverage offered by the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program because of cost. An even greater number report not being insured by this program due to other reasons not related to expense, such as being insured through another member of the family. A possible reason for this gap is the fact that the government has strict limits on what it can pay into the insurance it offers employees - a limit that private companies have the ability to raise in order to lower costs. When health insurance companies raise their prices, the federal employees are often left to make up the difference in order to get health insurance coverage because the government cannot offset the costs. However, the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program has often been praised for its ability to keep costs lower than private insurance plans. Thus, even though federal employees might not be able to afford health care in general, it remains that the federal program performs rather well when it comes to the ratio of costs to benefits.
Regardless, the fact that a large number of federal employees do not have health insurance at all shows that federal employees do not have universal health care. Like many employees in the U.S. who work for private companies, a number of government employees are unable to take advantage of insurance offered to them simply because they cannot afford it. In fact, some officials even call the estimated 250,000 uninsured federal workers an underestimate, suggesting that the number may have grown. In order to protect themselves and their children, some of these workers have turned to Medicaid, which does offer a universal program for qualifying residents of some states.
Federal workers who don't qualify for universal health care, such as Medicaid, and can't afford the insurance benefits offered to them by his or her government employer end up just another statistic, figured among the many U.S. citizens who cannot afford health insurance coverage of any kind.
