Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/759108
12 12 CEO/STRATEGY Trump, Clinton's Healthcare Plans Would Achieve Opposite Results, Studies Find By Emily Rappleye V oters know Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton's health- care plans are dramatically different, but they may not realize just how distinct they are: A pair of studies con- ducted by Rand Corp., and released by The Commonwealth Fund suggests the candidates' plans would achieve almost opposite outcomes. e reports use a computer microsimulation model to extrapolate the effects of each candidate's healthcare plan on insurance cover- age, deficit and consumer cost burden. e researchers did not map every policy the candidates have put forth, only those with enough detail to model. "These analyses give people the best possible estimates for how healthcare would be affected by each candidate, given the infor- mation made available. It's clear that there are two widely disparate approaches to ensuring Americans' healthcare coverage, access to the care they need, and protection from burdensome healthcare costs," Commonwealth Fund President David Blumenthal, MD, said in a statement. Here is an overview of what each candidate has proposed and a break- down of how their policies would affect U.S. healthcare. 1. Ms. Clinton's proposals Ms. Clinton advocates for maintaining the Affordable Care Act, while making several key modifications to the law. Some of her proposed amendments include providing refundable tax credits to privately insured Americans whose premium and out-of-pocket costs exceed 5 percent of income; lowering the maximum premium contribution on the marketplace to 8.5 percent of income; providing premium tax credits to families covered under employer plans whose plans exceed 8.5 percent of income; and adding a public option to the ACA market- places. Ms. Clinton's plans to continue to expand Medicaid and lower the Medicare age were not included in the analysis. 2. Mr. Trump's proposals On the flip side, Mr. Trump would repeal and replace the ACA if elected in November. In place of the healthcare reform law, he would make premiums on the individual market fully tax deductible; co- vert Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program to block grants; and allow interstate insurance sales. 3. Insurance coverage e analysis of Ms. Clinton's plans indicates an additional 9 million people would gain health insurance coverage in 2018, while the anal- ysis of Mr. Trump's plan indicates 20.2 million Americans would lose health insurance coverage in 2018. 4. Federal deficit Both of the candidate's plans analyzed, when subtotaled, would in- crease federal deficit by more than $100 billion. Ms. Clinton's tax cred- it proposal would increase deficit by $90.4 billion, while reducing the maximum premium contribution to 8.5 percent would increase deficit by an additional $3.5 billion. Fixing the "family glitch" for maximum premium contributions for families on employer plans would add $10 billion to the deficit. Only her proposal to add a public option would lower the deficit, by $700 million. Mr. Trump's plans would increase deficit across the board. Repeal- ing the ACA would add $33.1 billion to the deficit, replacing it with tax-deductible premiums would increase deficit by $41 billion, Medic- aid block grants would add $500 million and interstate insurance sales would add $33.7 billion. 5. Out-of-pocket spending Ms. Clinton's tax credits would help low- and moderate-income Americans, who earn between 139 percent and 250 percent of the federal poverty level, spend 33 percent less out-of-pocket on health- care costs, according to the analysis. Mr. Trump's plan would increase out-of-pocket costs for ACA enrollees anywhere from $300 a year to $2,500 a year. n Carolinas HealthCare CEO Gene Woods Launches National Search for COO By Tamara Rosin C harlotte, N.C.-based Carolinas HealthCare System CEO Gene Woods said the health sys- tem is launching a national search for a COO, a position that has been vacant since Joe Piemont departed in April 2015, according to The Charlotte Observer. Mr. Woods, who joined Carolinas HealthCare in April, said he needs someone to oversee the health system's operations while he focuses on "strategy, culture and growth," according to the report. In a memo to employees Wednesday, Mr. Woods also outlined other organizational changes, including the promotion of Debra Plousha Moore, Carolinas Health- Care chief human resources officer, to the newly cre- ated role of system chief of staff. Ms. Moore will now report directly to Mr. Woods and help him "align tal- ent and structure with our strategic priorities, enhance connections to community and help coordinate board of commissioner activities," he wrote in the memo, ac- cording to the report. Mr. Woods detailed other leadership changes, such as the end-of-the-year retirement of Paul Franz, an ex- ecutive vice president who has served the health sys- tem since 1983. Mr. Franz will be succeeded by Jerry Oliphant, effective Oct. 10. John Knox, chief admin- istrative officer, will also leave the system at the end of the year, and Craig Richardville was named chief information analytics officer. n