Adding new covered services (dental, vision, hearing). Is it covered now and should that change?

A bill has been introduced by U.S. Rep. Sander Levin, Michigan Democrat to expand Medicare to include vision, hearing, and dental. This is a bit bold when you consider the current climate in Washington.

Dental, vision, and hearing problems leave a lot of seniors affected and Levin says Medicare should cover this. Many people don’t realize that these types of conditions aren’t covered for the elderly which are most likely those who will need these treatments.

Levin stated it is important to expand and improve our health insurance in the United States, not to limit it or be tied to how well someone is doing economically.

Levin says a Congressional Budget Office score has not been received for the bill so it does not include funding. But he said the federal budget could be allowed time to adjust if the expansion would be phased in over the course of time and limiting the benefits could help keep the expansion for taxpayers affordable.

Levin’s bill faces no chance in getting a hearing since Washington has zero appetite when it comes to increasing federal benefits especially while Republicans continue to move forward in an effort to gut the ACA “Affordable Care Act” which reduced the amount of uninsured from 12.4% for 2010 to only 6.1% in just 5 years.

Under the Republican’s bills it has been estimated by the Congressional Budget Office that between 22 million and 24 million Americans nationwide may lose their insurance.

There has been a additional separate bill which has been proposed which would prevent the IRS “Internal Revenue Service” from enforcing the mandatory insurance provision in the Affordable Care Act. The ACA’s success has factored in the individual mandate being crucial in that it will discourage the young and healthy uninsured individuals from waiting to get insurance when they become ill.