Cool widgets and info from the House Democrats on the Affordable Health Care for America Act – H.R. 3962 – otherwise known as the House’s version of Health Care Reform. According to the House’s projections, the impact of this bill on Vermont would be to:

• Improve employer-based coverage for 381,000 residents.

• Provide credits to help pay for coverage for up to 156,000 households.

• Improve Medicare for 106,000 beneficiaries, including closing the prescription drug donut hole

for 7,600 seniors.

• Allow 21,900 small businesses to obtain affordable health care coverage and provide tax credits

to help reduce health insurance costs for up to 20,800 small businesses.

• Provide coverage for 24,000 uninsured residents.

• Protect up to 600 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs.

• Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and health care providers by $84 million.

Doubtless these projections are optimistic, but its equally doubtless that this bill – imperfect as it is – could have a strong positive impact. Here’s the “how will reform effect me” widget (remember – this is all in the context of the House bill, which is yet to be voted on – and which will have to be reconciled with an ultimate Senate bill. This is still a moving target, but we’re a lot closer to something positive, if far from ideal, than we were):