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  • White House Office Hours: Preventive Care Benefits for Women

    Posted by Erin Lindsay on August 1, 2012 at 6:04 PM EST

    Note: This live session of Office Hours has concluded. View the full question and answer session below or at Storify.com

    Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 47 million women will have access to eight additional preventive health care services at no out-of-pocket cost. Women in private plans and Medicare already have received potentially life-saving services, such as mammograms, cholesterol screenings, and flu shots at no extra cost.

    Have questions about these new preventive care benefits or the Affordable Care Act? Ask us during Office Hours.

    Tomorrow, Thursday, August 2nd at 5:00 p.m. EDT, we're holding a special session of White House Office Hours on Twitter with White House Health Care Policy Advisors, Carole Johnson & Ellen Montz and Assistant Press Secretary Nick Papas who will answer your questions.

    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

    The law now requires new, non-grandfathered private health plans to offer eight additional screenings and tests for adolescent and adult women at no extra charge. These include:

    • Well-woman visits.
    • Gestational diabetes screenings that help protect women from one of the most serious pregnancy-related diseases.
    • Domestic and interpersonal violence screening and counseling.
    • FDA-approved contraceptive products.
    • Breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling.
    • HPV DNA testing, for women 30 or older.
    • Sexually transmitted infections counseling.
    • HIV screening and counseling.

    To learn more about these new preventive benefits, check out this blog post from Senior Advisor to the President, Valerie Jarrett and for a comprehensive overview of the Affordable Care Act, visit WhiteHouse.gov/HealthReform and HealthCare.gov.

    Then, don’t forget to join us for Office Hours tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. EDT with Carole Johnson, Ellen Montz and Nick Papas.

    Be sure to follow @WhiteHouse for the latest updates and more opportunities to engage.

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  • Getting the Most Out Care of Your Insurance Dollars

    Posted by Matt Compton on August 1, 2012 at 2:59 PM EST

    This summer, Americans across the country are receiving a new set of benefits from the Affordable Care Act. 

    One of the biggest changes has to do with your health care premiums. 
     
    Because of the new health care law, insurance providers are now required to devote at least 80 percent of the premiums you pay to your health care -- not to advertising, or administrative costs, or salaries for their CEOs. 
     
    Providers can make sure they meet that standard by lowering your rates or improving your care, but right now, companies that aren't meeting the standard are actually providing rebates to their customers. Nearly 13 million Americans will receive more than $1 billion from insurance companies this summer. 
     
    Back in 2010, Nancy-Ann DeParle, President Obama's Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, filmed a White Board to help explain the reform and why it matters.
     
     

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  • Getting Women the Care They Need

    Posted by Valerie Jarrett on August 1, 2012 at 1:04 PM EST

    As chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls, I am incredibly proud to highlight an important part of the health care law that gives women more control over their health care. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 47 million women will have access to the preventive services they need. We all know that women and men face unique health risks and benefit from different preventive services. For too long, too many women have gone without these services due to out-of-pocket costs or lack of coverage.

    Under the Affordable Care Act, for the first time ever, women will now have access to life-saving preventive care, such as mammograms and contraception, without paying any more out of their own pockets. 

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  • Giving Women Control Over Their Health Care

    Posted by Kathleen Sebelius on July 31, 2012 at 1:42 PM EST

    Ed. Note: This article is a cross post from Healthcare.gov. On Wednesday, August 1st at 1:30 PM ET, Secretary Sebelius will participate in a live online discussion with WebMD. You can watch the conversation live at www.healthcare.gov/live.

    Women deserve to have control over their health care. Aug. 1, 2012, ushers in a new day for women’s health when, for the first time ever, women will have access to eight new services at no out-of-pocket cost to keep them healthier and to catch potentially serious conditions at an earlier, more treatable stage. This benefit will take effect for millions of adult and adolescent women over the course of the next year—and it’s just one of many benefits of the health care law that let women and their doctors, not insurance companies, make decisions about a woman’s care.  

    When it comes to health, women are often the primary decision-maker for their families and the trusted source in circles of friends. Women often take care of their families first and put off their own health care needs. Too often, they have gone without preventive services, worrying about what even a $20 insurance copay would mean to their families’ budgets and choosing to pay for groceries or rent instead.  

    But now, thanks to the health care law, many women won’t have to make that choice.  

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  • From the Archives: The Medicare Bill of 1965

    Posted by Jeannie Chen on July 30, 2012 at 11:28 AM EST

    On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Social Security Act Amendments, popularly known as the Medicare bill. It established Medicare, a health insurance program for the elderly, and Medicaid, a health insurance program for the poor. 

    Former President Truman participated in the signing ceremony with President Johnson. Harry S. Truman and Bess Truman received Medicare registration cards numbers one and two.  At the time, Mr. Truman was 81 years old, and he described it as a “profound personal experience for me.”

    The National Archives have put together a gallery featuring images and artifacts from the event in Independence, Missouri 47 years ago today.   Check it out:  

    • Medicare card number 488-40-6969A given to Harry S. Truman

      This is the Medicare card believed to have been given to Bess Truman by President Lyndon Johnson.

      1 of 10
    • Medicare card number 488-40-6969B given to Bess W. Truman

      This is the Medicare card believed to have been given to Harry Truman by President Lyndon Johnson.

      2 of 10
    • President Lyndon Johnson hands President Harry S. Truman a pen at the signing of the Medicare Bill at the Harry S. Truman Library, Independence, Missouri

      President Lyndon Johnson hands President Harry S. Truman a pen as Lady Bird Johnson, Vice President Hubert Humphrey, and Bess Truman look on.

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    • President Lyndon Johnson signs the Medicare Bill at the Harry S. Truman Library in Independence, Missouri

      President Lyndon Johnson signs the Medicare Bill. President Harry S. Truman is seated next to him.

      4 of 10
    • Page 1 of remarks by the President at the Signing of the Medicare Bill, Independence, Missouri

      The first page of the press release issuing the remarks President Lyndon Johnson made upon signing the Social Security Amendments of 1965.

      5 of 10
    • Page 2 of remarks by the President at the Signing of the Medicare Bill, Independence, Missouri

      The second page of the press release issuing the remarks President Lyndon Johnson made upon signing the Social Security Amendments of 1965.

      6 of 10
    • Page 3 of remarks by the President at the Signing of the Medicare Bill, Independence, Missouri

      The third page of the press release issuing the remarks President Lyndon Johnson made upon signing the Social Security Amendment of 1965.

      7 of 10
    • President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Daily Diary for July 30, 1965, Page 6

      The entry from President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Daily Diary from when he signed the Social Security Amendments of 1965.

      8 of 10
    • Social Security Act Amendments, “Medicare”, Page 1

      Page 1 of the Social Security Act.

      9 of 10
    • Social Security Act Amendments, “Medicare”, Page 2

      Page 2 of the Social Security Act.

      10 of 10

    Learn more about the Medicare bill: http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=99

     

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  • First Lady Michelle Obama Hosts Let's Move! London

    Posted by Marissa Duswalt on July 27, 2012 at 4:20 PM EST

    Today, First Lady Michelle Obama joined 2,000 American military children and American and British students at Let’s Move! London, an event held to spread the spirit of the Olympic Games in London. The First Lady is leading the U.S. Delegation to the Summer Games and Let’s Move! London was designed to turn the inspiration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games into action by encouraging kids to get moving.

    “That’s what Let's Move is all about. It’s about helping kids like you live happier, healthier lives,” Mrs. Obama told the crowd gathered at the U.S. Ambassador's Residence in London. “And that’s really why we brought you all here today… because we want you to see that there all kinds of ways that you can stay active and have fun doing it. You don't have to be an Olympian. You don't have to join a team. But there are so many ways that you can have fun and keep yourselves moving.”

    Taking her own advice, the First Lady participated in a whirl of activities -- starting with a soccer game alongside David Beckham, Brandi Chastain, players from Manchester United, and Spongebob Squarepants as the goalie. Next up was the NBA Fit station, where Mrs. Obama practiced ladder hurdles with Grant Hill and Dikembe Mutumbo and passed the basketball with young players. Other activities included running a shuttle relay with Carl Lewis, watching a field hockey game with Gabriel Diaz De Leon, competing in a game of tug-o-war with Apolo Ohno, Jeff Sutphen, and Nastia Luikin and then assorted games with Summer Sanders, Bart Conner, and Ian Baranski, before finally joining a doubles match on the tennis courts with Shawn Johnson.

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