United Health Plan performed fairly well, just two-tenths of a point behind their competition, Aetna, on the ratings report, with an overall score on a 100 point scale of 82.3. Like the national competition in Gerogia, United Health has NCQA accreditation; this means that they’ve gone through a rigorous screening process to meet 60 separate standards checks and must annually renew and prove that they are meeting increasing tough standards of quality in order to retain this prestigious distinction. Think of the NCQA as the “Good Housekeeping” seal of approval, for insurance plans. For more information on NCQA, an independent not-for-profit group, visit their site—ncqa.org.

United Health Care performed particularly well with regard to treatment options—specifically, for asthma medication and treatment. They have strong support for other treatment needs as well (mental and behavioral health, alcohol and/or drug awareness, and testing for children and adolescents). The balance of their scores were average or above average, in most categories.

One of United Health Care’s biggest initiatives on a national level—especially relevant for Georgians who live in rural areas or who may not have access to every specialty, within their local area, is a new partnership with Cisco to present “Connected Care”. Connected Care takes advantage of technology to offer access to health care providers and resources online, in a one-on-one format, with secure conversations possible between patient and doctor (minus the office visit). There is an accompanying mobile access clinic (again, to increase access in rural communities) and the initiative, just launched, is gaining momentum. Imagine—being at work, and being able to spend  5 minutes one-on-one chatting with your doctor about a problem or question—without taking 90 minutes from your day to drive to the doctor, wait, meet with him/her, drive back…online access means quick answers, less worry, and better communication. And access to specialists in faraway places is that much easier.

If you’re thinking the legislation will tamp down overall health care spending, reconsider. Policy analysts ranging from the neutral Congressional Budget Office to the HMO lobby see no abatement in the growth rate of health care spending. That sector of the economy is growing at a 7.4% annual rate, says actuarial firm Milliman. Medicare’s chief actuary, Richard Foster, thinks that the Senate bill would expand health spending by $234 billion above current projections.

The premium hikes will result from cost shifting, better known as passing the buck. The House and Senate insurance bills aim to cover their costs in part by cutting annual Medicare reimbursements to hospitals, doctors and drug companies by $45 billion. Those providers will likely try to offset the cuts by negotiating higher rates with private HMOs–which then get passed along through higher premiums. That’s exactly what occurred after past Medicare and Medicaid cuts, according to the CBO analysis. Families USA, a nonprofit group advocating expanded federal involvement in health care, says insured families are already absorbing $1,000 a year in costs shifted away from uninsured patients.

Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Indiana, called the move, known as reconciliation, “ill-advised,” while Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Arkansas, issued a news release rejecting the procedure.

“I will not accept any last-minute efforts to force changes to health insurance reform issues through budget reconciliation, and neither will Arkansans,” Lincoln said in the statement.

Both the House and Senate have passed separate health care bills, entirely on support from Democrats.

Democratic leaders were working on merging the two bills, but the nation’s political landscape changed last week when Massachusetts elected Republican Scott Brown to fill the Senate seat held by liberal Democrat Ted Kennedy for almost 47 years until he died in August.

Brown’s victory cost Democrats their 60-seat super-majority in the 100-member Senate necessary to overcome a Republican filibuster. The shift means Republicans can block Democratic initiatives such as health care reform.

Now Democratic leaders are working on a plan for the House to pass the Senate bill, along with a separate package of changes in the Senate plan that reflect compromise between the two chambers.

The package of changes would have to pass both the House and the Senate.

Without the 60-seat super-majority, Senate Democrats now are considering using the reconciliation tool that would require only 51 votes to pass the measure.

However, some Democrats in tough re-election fights worry voters will see that as legislative gimmickry, reinforcing complaints that Democratic control of Washington has been business as usual.

Bayh told CNN that using reconciliation “would destroy the opportunity, if there is one, for any bipartisan cooperation on anything else for the rest of the year.”

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, dismissed opposition to using reconciliation as a way to get health care legislation to the president.

“I think reconciliation has been used effectively by both parties,” Durbin said. “I wouldn’t walk away from it. It’s an option we should keep on the table.”

Senate Democrats still have 59 votes in their caucus, meaning they could lose eight Democratic votes and still have the 51 needed to pass a health care package through reconciliation.

Still, Democratic sources warn that using reconciliation is complicated and fraught with legislative hurdles, raising questions about whether it could happen even if enough congressional Democrats supported the move.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, emerged from a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, late Tuesday and said they are making progress on “some kind of package,” but reiterated that at this time “there are not the votes in the House, not anywhere near, to pass the Senate bill.”

Earlier, Reid told reporters there is now “no rush” on health care.

Obama, who made health care his top domestic priority last year, will address the issue in his State of the Union Address on Wednesday, said White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.

Among the other programs facing cuts is Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) Administration, Arizona’s Medicaid agency. Tara Plese, director of government and media relations for the Arizona Association of Community Health Care Centers, says that means several clinics around the state may have to close for lack of revenue.

“It wouldn’t be in all communities, and it may just be that some of the services that some of these clinics now provide like dentistry or pharmacy, would be the first cut.”

If parents have no other health care option for their children except emergency rooms, Plese says everyone who does have insurance will pick up the tab as costs are passed on through higher prices.

Like community health centers, emergency rooms are required by federal law to treat everyone regardless of ability to pay. But, she says the costs must still be covered somehow.

“With the hospitals, when you get all the uncompensated care coming through your ER, then you are going to have to find some way to make up for that cost, and it’s going to go back on the commercial insurers.”

The public’s health will also suffer if thousands of kids, especially six-to-nine year-olds, are left without coverage, she adds.

“That’s an age where they’re getting another set of immunizations, they’re more prone to being sick because they’re in school, they’re getting sick, other children are getting sick, and it’s a time when they probably visit doctors with more frequency.”

Arizona’s KidsCare program began in 1998, at a time when many employers were either dropping employee health coverage or sharply boosting premiums. State dollars for Kidscare are matched three-to-one by the federal government.

Republicans have agreed to show up at the White House Thursday for a summit on health care, but are heading there with a dim view of the outcome.

“It’s disappointing that Democrats in Washington either aren’t listening, or are completely ignoring what Americans across the country have been saying,” U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a written statement.

“House Republicans welcome any good faith effort to start over on health care reform but the bill President Obama unveiled today is just more of the same government-run insurance, mandates and taxes the American people have overwhelmingly rejected,” added Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind.

The White House, however, insists that the bill is more than just camouflage, but rather represents compromise.

“Senator McCain in the campaign had a proposal to add — to add those dependents on to your parents’ health care up to a certain age to allow for what is a gap in the uninsured based on when someone leaves the dependency of their parents and gets a job that provides health care,” said White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, noting that provision has been included in the president’s proposals.

Gibbs argued that 160 Republican amendments were included in varying pieces of legislation that made its way through the House and Senate.

“Inexplicably, all those ideas weren’t good enough,” he said.

Indeed in its effort to appear bipartisan, the White House included in its health care proposals listed on its Web site a section on Republican initiatives that were included in the legislation passed by Congress and included in the president’s latest plan.

Among them were provisions to allow health insurance premiums to vary based on participation in employer wellness programs, grants to states to evaluate medical liability reform ideas, automatic enrollment by employers in health insurance and ability for employees to opt-out.