Ed note: this post was originally published on the blog at healthcare.gov

When we pay for health insurance, we want to know that most of what we are paying for is for health care, not advertising, executive bonuses or overhead. It’s pretty simple: we want to get a good value for our premium dollars.

Thanks to a new rule (the “80/20 rule”) in the Affordable Care Act, you can be sure that insurance companies are spending generally at least 80 cents of every dollar you pay in premiums on your health care or activities that improve health care quality. If the insurance company fails to meet this standard, or the “medical loss ratio”, in any year, they have to pay you a rebate.

Insurance companies that didn’t meet the standard for coverage provided in 2011 are required to provide these rebates no later than August 1 of this year, and to make sure you know what you are owed, insurance companies that owe rebates will also send a letter telling you how much you’ll receive. You can see what that letter will look like here. According to early estimates from the Kaiser Family Foundation, insurance companies will provide 15.8 million Americans with $1.3 billion in rebates.

Today, we’re also finalizing a notice for insurance companies to send you if they meet or exceed the standard. If your insurance company is providing fair value for your premium dollars, you should know that too. You’ll be able to see your plan’s medical loss ratio on HealthCare.gov starting this summer. 

If you don’t get a rebate, that means your plan may have lowered prices or improved your coverage already.  For example, one insurer in West Virginia improved its medical loss ratio by lowering premiums by an average of $2,500 for 4,200 small businesses, cutting their premiums to give consumers welcome cost relief.  This is one of the ways the 80/20 rule is bringing value to consumers for their health care dollars.

Ed. Note: This is the first in a series of posts on the importance of strengthening the Violence Against Women Act.  Additional posts will follow on addressing violence against Native women and LGBT victims.

Since 1994, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has been an essential tool in helping to protect victims of domestic and sexual violence.  While seeking to improve criminal justice and community-based responses to victims of abuse, VAWA ultimately changed the landscape for those previously left to suffer in silence.    

Since then, Congress – on a bipartisan basis -- has repeatedly shown its commitment to preserving and enhancing the core goals of VAWA by increasing protections in all subsequent VAWA reauthorizations. This was recently demonstrated by the Senate’s VAWA reauthorization bill (S. 1925) introduced by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) that passed last month on a vote of 68 to 31, with strong bipartisan support. S. 1925 was introduced after months of input from a wide range of stakeholders. Unfortunately, Republican leaders in the House have taken a different approach, with the introduction of H.R. 4970, a bill authored by Rep. Sandy Adams (FL-24), that actually rolls back protections for victims of domestic violence. On Tuesday, on a vote of 17-15, House Republicans passed this measure out of the House Judiciary Committee, without properly considering the cross-jurisdictional sections that provide for protections on tribal lands, in federal housing programs, and on college campuses around the country. 

The Adams bill adds burdensome, counter-productive requirements that compromise the ability of service providers to reach victims, fails to adequately protect Tribal victims, lacks important protection and services for LGBT victims, weakens resources for victims living in subsidized housing, and eliminates important improvements to address dating violence and sexual assault on college campuses.  Among the most troubling components of this bill are those that jettison and drastically undercut existing and important, long-standing protections that remain vital to the safety and protection of battered immigrant victims.  

This week, President Obama announced a "to-do list" for Congress to create jobs and help restore middle class security.

Tomorrow, the President is traveling to Reno to discuss an initiative on the list which calls on Congress to cut the red tape so that responsible homeowners across the country who have been paying their mortgage on time can feel secure in their home and refinance at today’s lower rates.

Watch the latest White House White Board video with Brian Deese, Deputy Director of the National Economic Council. Then, ask Brian your questions on Twitter:

After the speech, Brian will be on Twitter starting at 2:00 p.m. EDT to answer questions during a session of Office Hours. Do you have questions about the President's plan? Here’s how it works:

• Ask your questions now and during the live event on Twitter with the hashtag #WHChat
• Follow the Q&A live through the @WHLive Twitter account
• If you miss the live session, the full session will be posted on WhiteHouse.gov and Storify.com/WhiteHouse

So, stop by for Office Hours at 2:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, May 10th with Brian Deese and be sure to follow @WhiteHouse on Twitter for the latest news and more opportunities to engage.

Learn more:

Today, the White House hosted a Summit on Financial Capability and Empowerment, aimed at empowering Americans to make informed financial decisions. At the Summit, the Administration announced new private and public sector commitments to promote financial empowerment,as well as a new resource guide for schools, colleges and universities, employers, and communities to help leaders begin their own financial capability initiatives. Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Richard Cordray gave opening remarks highlighting the work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).  In the below blog post, Gail Hillebrand, Associate Director of Consumer Education and Engagement for CFPB, highlights some of the Bureau’s important work related to financial literacy.  

There are certain occasions in everyone’s life when one decision can have long-lasting effects. How will you pay for college? Which mortgage should you choose? Where will you turn when you need credit? When will you start saving for retirement? How you answer these questions and others like them can profoundly impact your financial future.

Unfortunately, too many graduates are entering the workforce saddled with student loan debt, limited employment opportunities, and important financial decisions for which they are often unprepared. There is simply too wide a gap between complex financial products and the level of education that many consumers have about them.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is dedicated to closing that gap by making financial products more transparent and helping to educate consumers so they can make better-informed choices when pursuing their own financial goals.

As we celebrate National Travel and Tourism Week, the U.S. government is doubling down on its commitment to create more jobs for Americans by growing international and domestic travel and tourism that powers our economy.                                                                      

Last year, 62 million international tourists visited the United States and pumped a record $153 billion into local economies, helping to support the 7.6 million jobs in our travel and tourism industry. These numbers make tourism America’s number one service export.

That’s why the White House released a new National Travel and Tourism Strategy today, charting a new course toward making America a more attractive and accessible destination than ever before. The Strategy sets a goal of drawing 100 million international visitors by 2021, which is expected to generate $250 billion annually in visitor spending by 2012. The strategy also encourages more Americans to travel within the United States.

America is the land of extraordinary natural wonders – from the Grand Canyon to the Florida Keys; from Yellowstone to Yosemite. America is where we do big things, and as a result, we have incredible landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge and the Empire State Building; the Hoover Dam and the Gateway Arch. This is the land of iconic cities and all their sights – from Independence Hall in Philadelphia to the Space Needle in Seattle to the skyline of Chicago. From the Mall of America to Walt Disney World, we have it all right here.

Smart regulations save lives and dollars. For example, the number of deaths on the highways is now down to its lowest level in over 60 years. This is an extraordinary achievement, produced not only by the commitment and creativity of the private sector but also by educational and regulatory initiatives from local, state, and national governments. In areas that include food and workplace safety, clean air, fuel economy, energy efficiency, and investor protection, well-designed regulations are preventing tens of thousands of premature deaths and hundreds of thousands of illnesses and accidents -- and saving billions of dollars.

Under the President’s direction, we have finalized rules, in our first three years, with more than $91 billion in net benefits – over 25 times the corresponding figure in the first three years of the Bush Administration, and over 6 times the corresponding figure in the first three years of the Clinton Administration.

But we don’t need all of the regulations that are on the books. By streamlining some and eliminating others, we can save billions of dollars in unnecessary costs. As President Obama has emphasized, it is possible, even indispensable, both to issue sensible, protective regulations and to eliminate rules that are no longer justified.  Today, we are taking three important steps in that direction.

Manufacturing accounts for 26 percent of our national economic growth since 2009. Over the same period, our workers and factories have become more productive, leading companies to open their businesses here in the United States instead of overseas. This, in turn, creates good, middle-class jobs jobs and generates broader economic benefits for the communities where these companies choose to set up shop, and our economy as a whole. In fact, since February of 2010, the industry has added 485,000 jobs.

But more can be done to continue this trend. On Tuesday, President Obama traveled to Albany to introduce his To-Do List for Congress, a list of 5 initiatives that will create jobs and help the middle class—if Congress takes action before leaving for summer recess. The first item on that list: pass legislation that gives companies a new 20 percent tax credit for the cost of moving their operations back to the U.S. and pay for it by eliminating tax incentives that allow companies to deduct the costs of moving their business abroad.

Want to know what else is on the To-Do List? Check it out here

Ed. note: This post was updated on May 17.

Summer Jobs+ is a call to action for businesses, non-profits, and government to work together to provide pathways to employment for young people in the summer of 2012. It's about helping people find their first jobs.

Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, says her first job taught her about working with people who are under enormous amounts of stress, the importance of paying attention to details and something that virtually every worker deals with each day--showing up to work on time. Check it out:

So far, employers have committed to providing more than 300,000 jobs, mentorships, and other employment opportunities this summer through Summer Jobs+.

You heard about Valerie's first job. Now go find yours.

Ed. note: This was also posted on Treasury Notes and onthe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's blog.

Our military families make many sacrifices for our nation, and not just when a servicemember goes into combat. Military families also face challenges when a servicemember receives orders for a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move to another base, and the family has to decide whether to go along or live apart. Unfortunately, for many military families, this challenge has become more difficult in the wake of the housing market downturn.This is because like other Americans, many military homeowners are currently underwater on their mortgage. Because their home’s value has decreased since they purchased it, these servicemembers may not be able to sell their home at a price that will pay off their mortgage, and they may not be able to rent out their home at a price that will cover their monthly mortgage payments.  These military homeowners also may get a lower housing allowance at their new duty station, and may face additional loss of income while their spouse looks for a new job.Suddenly, military homeowners who have been faithfully paying their mortgage on time face a real risk of falling behind.  

In the last few weeks, Treasury and the Office of Servicemember Affairs at the CFPB have worked together to address this issue. And, as a result, Treasury is making important changes to its Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) that will provide more opportunities for mortgage assistance to military homeowners.