Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured

Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured PDF Author: Estelle James
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Old age pensions
Languages : en
Pages : 25

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Book Description
The shift toward social security systems with a tighter link between benefits and contributions will make such systems more fiscally sustainable. But to protect the uninsured and underinsured, such programs should be complemented by better social assistance programs for low-income groups.

Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured

Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured PDF Author: Estelle James
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Old age pensions
Languages : en
Pages : 25

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Book Description
The shift toward social security systems with a tighter link between benefits and contributions will make such systems more fiscally sustainable. But to protect the uninsured and underinsured, such programs should be complemented by better social assistance programs for low-income groups.

Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured - What are the Issues?

Coverage Under Old Age Security Programs and Protection for the Uninsured - What are the Issues? PDF Author: Estelle James
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The shift toward social security systems with a tighter link between benefits and contributions will make such systems more fiscally sustainable. But to protect the uninsured and underinsured, such programs should be complemented by better social assistance programs for low-income groups. Most old people in developing countries are uninsured by formal social security programs. Economic growth is the key to increased coverage, but policy also matters, argues James. Contributory insurance programs may not work for much of the population in developing economies. Moreover, the tradeoffs between higher take-home pay and old-age benefits, between maximizing coverage and minimizing evasion, and between increased coverage and greater competitiveness, must be carefully evaluated before opting for expanded coverage, especially among low-income groups. Keeping the contribution rate low and including some redistribution toward low-income groups in contributory systems may help reduce the number of uninsured, while avoiding costly tradeoffs. Recent years have seen a tighter link between benefits and contributions in contributory systems - most obviously in the shift toward multipillar systems with large defined-contribution components, usually accompanied by a modest redistributive public pillar. This tighter link makes social security systems more fiscally sustainable and may be considered a precondition for financially sound expansion of coverage. At the same time, the number of uninsured or underinsured (who have contributed only small amounts) could increase, as a result of the tighter benefit-contribution link. The uninsured fall into two groups: - Workers who spend much of their lives in agriculture or the informal sector (often self-employed or in small firms), in jobs not covered by contributory programs. Many of these workers are low earners, for whom contributing today for potential old-age benefits may not be welfare-enhancing - and governments do not have the capacity to compel contributions. Social security reforms that make benefits contingent on contributions should include better social assistance programs for these low-income groups. Efficient program design and program costs must also be considered. - Women who, having worked mostly in the household, expect to be supported by the family system, which may fail them in old age. Family support for dependent spouses should be incorporated into the pay-out phase of the defined-contribution pillar, to keep old women out of poverty. This paper - a joint product of Poverty and Human Resources, Development Research Group, and the Human Development Division, World Bank Institute - was presented at the Inter-American Development Bank Conference on Social Protection, February 4-5, 1999.

Care Without Coverage

Care Without Coverage PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309083435
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 213

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Book Description
Many Americans believe that people who lack health insurance somehow get the care they really need. Care Without Coverage examines the real consequences for adults who lack health insurance. The study presents findings in the areas of prevention and screening, cancer, chronic illness, hospital-based care, and general health status. The committee looked at the consequences of being uninsured for people suffering from cancer, diabetes, HIV infection and AIDS, heart and kidney disease, mental illness, traumatic injuries, and heart attacks. It focused on the roughly 30 million-one in seven-working-age Americans without health insurance. This group does not include the population over 65 that is covered by Medicare or the nearly 10 million children who are uninsured in this country. The main findings of the report are that working-age Americans without health insurance are more likely to receive too little medical care and receive it too late; be sicker and die sooner; and receive poorer care when they are in the hospital, even for acute situations like a motor vehicle crash.

Coverage Matters

Coverage Matters PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309076099
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
Roughly 40 million Americans have no health insurance, private or public, and the number has grown steadily over the past 25 years. Who are these children, women, and men, and why do they lack coverage for essential health care services? How does the system of insurance coverage in the U.S. operate, and where does it fail? The first of six Institute of Medicine reports that will examine in detail the consequences of having a large uninsured population, Coverage Matters: Insurance and Health Care, explores the myths and realities of who is uninsured, identifies social, economic, and policy factors that contribute to the situation, and describes the likelihood faced by members of various population groups of being uninsured. It serves as a guide to a broad range of issues related to the lack of insurance coverage in America and provides background data of use to policy makers and health services researchers.

Shielding the Poor

Shielding the Poor PDF Author: Nora Claudia Lustig
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780815720249
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
A Brookings Institution Press and Inter-American Development Bank publication The poor in developing countries are particularly vulnerable to adverse shocks. They have little or no access to public social insurance, are unlikely to save in adequate amounts to rely fully on self-insurance or informal insurance, face restricted access to private market insurance or credit mechanisms, and have little or no political voice to demand the protection of safety net programs. In this book, the authors analyze the best ways to help the poor manage risks such as health shocks, unemployment, sudden drops in income, and old age. Unemployment benefits, employment programs, means-tested social assistance, social investment funds, and micro-finance for consumption-smoothing purposes are the leading options considered. The book provides a careful assessment of issues that governments need to address in the process of designing appropriate safety nets.

Social Protection for Equity and Growth

Social Protection for Equity and Growth PDF Author: Nora Lustig
Publisher: IDB
ISBN: 9781886938700
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
These groups often live near the subsistence level and lack the economic or political power to push for policies that can respond to their needs during times of crisis."--BOOK JACKET.

Health Insurance is a Family Matter

Health Insurance is a Family Matter PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309169054
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
Health Insurance is a Family Matter is the third of a series of six reports on the problems of uninsurance in the United Sates and addresses the impact on the family of not having health insurance. The book demonstrates that having one or more uninsured members in a family can have adverse consequences for everyone in the household and that the financial, physical, and emotional well-being of all members of a family may be adversely affected if any family member lacks coverage. It concludes with the finding that uninsured children have worse access to and use fewer health care services than children with insurance, including important preventive services that can have beneficial long-term effects.

Access to Health Care in America

Access to Health Care in America PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309047420
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
Americans are accustomed to anecdotal evidence of the health care crisis. Yet, personal or local stories do not provide a comprehensive nationwide picture of our access to health care. Now, this book offers the long-awaited health equivalent of national economic indicators. This useful volume defines a set of national objectives and identifies indicatorsâ€"measures of utilization and outcomeâ€"that can "sense" when and where problems occur in accessing specific health care services. Using the indicators, the committee presents significant conclusions about the situation today, examining the relationships between access to care and factors such as income, race, ethnic origin, and location. The committee offers recommendations to federal, state, and local agencies for improving data collection and monitoring. This highly readable and well-organized volume will be essential for policymakers, public health officials, insurance companies, hospitals, physicians and nurses, and interested individuals.

Pensions in the Middle East and North Africa

Pensions in the Middle East and North Africa PDF Author: Edward Whitehouse
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 0821361856
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 286

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Book Description
This is the first comprehensive assessment of pension systems in the Middle East and North Africa. While other regions—Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, in particular—have been actively introducing reforms to their pension systems, Middle East and North African countries have lagged behind. This is explained, in part, by the common belief that, because demographics remain favorable—the countries are young and the labor force is expanding rapidly—financial problems are far in the future; as a result, pension reform does not have to be a priority in the broader policy agenda.However, the authors show that aging is not the only factor behind a financial crisis; the problem is the generosity of the current schemes. Moreover, badly designed benefit formulas and eligibility conditions introduce unnecessary economic distortions and make the systems vulnerable to adverse distributional transfers. The book does not present a general model that could solve the problems of all pension systems in Middle East and North Africa countries. Instead the authors focus on outlining a framework for guiding discussions on pension reform and making objective policy choices.This assessment will be useful for policy makers and government officials involved in pension reform in the Middle East and North Africa region.

The Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act PDF Author: Tamara Thompson
Publisher: Greenhaven Publishing LLC
ISBN: 0737771496
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 130

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Book Description
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was designed to increase health insurance quality and affordability, lower the uninsured rate by expanding insurance coverage, and reduce the costs of healthcare overall. Along with sweeping change came sweeping criticisms and issues. This book explores the pros and cons of the Affordable Care Act, and explains who benefits from the ACA. Readers will learn how the economy is affected by the ACA, and the impact of the ACA rollout.