Washington, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today released the following statement detailing the benefits Iowans stand to gain from the comprehensive health reform bill passed earlier this week: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and The Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, passed today by the U.S. Senate.  Once the reconciliation piece is approved by the U.S. House and signed into law by the President, Iowans will see a number of benefits illustrated below.  Earlier this week, the President signed The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law.  Harkin is Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

"The legislation passed by Congress this week looks to the future and means big things for Iowa's working families," said Harkin. "Comprehensive health reform eliminates the practice of denying coverage because of a pre-existing condition, lets kids stay on their parents insurance until age 26, provides tax relief for small businesses and provides a historic investment in prevention and wellness to change our current 'sick care system' into genuine health care.

"The second proposal, passed today by the Senate, builds on the strength of comprehensive reform and includes provisions that boost college affordability.  For Middle Class families, one of the biggest challenges comes when their children reach college age.  The questions around the kitchen table are:  How do we pay for college?  And, in a couple years, our child will be too old to stay on the family's health insurance plan; what are we going to do?" continued Harkin. "This bill addresses these challenges head-on.  It allows adult children to stay on their parents' health insurance plan until age 26.  And it increases the maximum Pell Grant for college students from $5,550 in 2010 to $5,975 by 2017.  Starting in 2013, the grant will be indexed to the Consumer Price Index for five years.  Make no mistake, there is a lot at stake for America's Middle Class families in this reconciliation bill - both in terms of health care security, and in terms of access to an affordable college education."

Key Benefits for Iowa in the Health Reform Legislation

• Provide tax credits for up to 48,600 Iowa small businesses to help make coverage more affordable.

• Health reform will ensure that the 302,000 uninsured Iowans and 171,000 Iowans who purchase health insurance through the individual market have access to affordable health insurance options through state-based health insurance exchanges.

• Prohibit insurance companies from excluding coverage of pre-existing conditions for the 713,155 children in Iowa, starting this year.

• Close the "donut hole" and improve other Medicare benefits for 505,000 Iowa seniors.

• Each year, 89,700 Iowa seniors hit the Medicare Part D "donut hole."  Starting this year, seniors who hit this gap in their prescription drug coverage will receive a $250 check, and the "donut hole" will be completely closed by 2020.

• Reduce family health insurance premiums by $1,350 - $1,930 for the same benefits, as compared to what they would be without health reform by 2016.

• Starting this year, 300,466 young adults in Iowa will be able to remain covered by their parent's insurance policy until age 26.

• Create 5,600 - 9,000 jobs by reducing health care costs for employers.

• Provide more federal funding for 83 Community Health Centers in Iowa.

• Health reform will provide immediate access to quality, affordable health insurance for as many as 33,497 uninsured Iowans who are unable to obtain health insurance because of a pre-existing condition.

Comprehensive reform increases access to affordable care, makes health insurance companies more accountable and includes historic investment in prevention, wellness

Education reconciliation provisions increase college affordability

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) issued the following statement after the U.S. House passed the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010.  With this vote, comprehensive health reform has passed and will go to President Obama for his signature.  The reconciliation package now heads to the U.S. Senate for consideration next week.  Harkin is Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

"With this vote today, the House took a major step forward in the fight to put American families and small business owners?not the insurance companies?in control of their own health care.

"This legislation makes the Senate-passed comprehensive bill even stronger by providing coverage to some 95 percent of Americans.  This will be affordable coverage, which will save thousands of lives and give peace of mind to those who have coverage now, but have a 50/50 chance of losing coverage in the next decade.  It will provide relief from skyrocketing and unstable premiums and holds insurance companies accountable to keep premiums down and prevent denials of care and coverage, including for pre-existing conditions.

"I am particularly encouraged that in passing comprehensive reform, we will, for the first time make an historic investment in prevention and public health to change our current sick care system into a true health care system.  These reforms will truly bend the cost curve and rein in rising health care costs.

"And we provide all of these reforms while also reducing the deficit by $138 billion over next ten years, and by $1.2 trillion more over the following decade; reducing waste, fraud and abuse, paying for quality over quantity of care.

"With the reconciliation package, the Senate is also on track to enact one of President Obama's key education priorities - a move that will make college more affordable and accessible.  The measure eliminates billions of dollars in wasteful subsidies to banks and redirects that money to students and families in the form of increased Pell Grants to low-income college students, putting the priorities of students and families ahead of subsidies to lenders.

"We are on the cusp of history in this country.  I congratulate Speaker Pelosi and House leaders on this historic achievement and look forward to working in the Senate to get a final bill to the President's desk as soon as possible."

For a list of the immediate health benefits of the bill, please click here.

For a list of the key improvements to the bill, please click here.

For a list of the Harkin-led prevention benefits, please click here.

For more details about the education reconciliation proposal unveiled earlier this week, please click here.