Affordable Care Act Archives - Page 9 of 180

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Finally, a Fix for the ‘Family Glitch’

President Joe Biden welcomed former President Barack Obama back to the White House this week to announce a new policy for the Affordable Care Act that would make subsidies available to more families with unaffordable employer coverage. Meanwhile, Congress struggled to find a compromise for continued federal funding of covid-19 vaccines, testing, and treatments. Tami Luhby of CNN, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

April 7, 2022

$11M for North Carolina Work-Based Rehab Raises Concerns

As overdoses surge and opioid settlement dollars flow, funding to North Carolina rehab foreshadows national discussion about the best approaches to treatment.

By Aneri Pattani and Taylor Knopf, NC Health News

April 6, 2022

Podcast

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The ACA Turns 12

Although its fate was in doubt more than a few times, the Affordable Care Act turned 12 this week. Year 13 could be pivotal in determining how many Americans receive ACA health insurance, and at what price. Meanwhile, three leading credit bureaus agreed to stop using most medical debt to measure U.S. consumers’ creditworthiness. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

March 24, 2022

A woman is seen lying down in an operating room, a tear in her eye. A doula holds a hand to her cheek.

Want Vulnerable Californians to Have Healthier Pregnancies? Doulas Say the State Must Pay Up.

California was supposed to start paying doulas this year to help Medicaid enrollees have healthy pregnancies. But the benefit has been delayed because doulas feel lowballed by the state’s proposed reimbursement rate, which is below what most other states pay.

By Rachel Bluth

March 15, 2022

Young care assistant helps an elderly gent put on his jumper

Biden Pledges Better Nursing Home Care, but He Likely Won’t Fast-Track It

CMS chief Chiquita Brooks-LaSure says the agency reserves its power to quickly institute new regulations for “absolute emergencies.” On staffing, nursing home residents might need to wait years to see any real change.

By Rachana Pradhan and Harris Meyer

March 3, 2022

Health Care Paradox: Medicare Penalizes Dozens of Hospitals It Also Gives Five Stars

Among the 764 hospitals hit with a 1% reduction in Medicare payments this year for having high numbers of patient infections and avoidable complications are more than three dozen that Medicare also ranks as among the best in the country.

By Jordan Rau

Feb. 8, 2022

Medium shot of a elderly male patient in a wheelchair looking out a window at night

Medicare Patients Win the Right to Appeal Gap in Nursing Home Coverage

If federal officials accept a court’s decision, some patients will get a chance to seek refunds for their nursing home and other expenses.

By Susan Jaffe

Jan. 28, 2022

Podcast

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Record ACA Enrollment Puts Pressure on Congress

Temporary subsidies helped boost enrollment under the Affordable Care Act to a record 14.5 million, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. But unless Democrats in Congress extend those subsidies, many of those new enrollees will be in for a rude surprise just ahead of midterm elections. Meanwhile, the need to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer further crowds an already tight legislative schedule. Joanne Kenen of Politico and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Diana Greene Foster, author of “The Turnaway Study: Ten Years, a Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having — Or Being Denied — An Abortion.”

Jan. 27, 2022

Podcast

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Roe v. Wade’s (Possibly Last) Anniversary

Jan. 22 marks the 49th — and very likely last — anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark abortion decision, Roe v. Wade. The court’s conservative supermajority seems poised to overturn later this year the ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. Also this week, the Biden administration turns 1, with much of its domestic and health agenda yet unrealized. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of the 19th, and Kimberly Leonard of Insider join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, about what a post-Roe world might look like.

Jan. 20, 2022

Wildfires and Omicron Prompt a Special Health Insurance Enrollment Period in Colorado

Disasters have previously prompted special enrollment periods in California, Maine, and the South. Now, Colorado is extending the state insurance marketplace sign-up period by two months.

By Markian Hawryluk

Jan. 20, 2022

HHS Proposal for Marketplace Plans Carries a Hefty Dose of Consumer Caution

The Department of Health and Human Services issued preliminary rules regarding health insurance marketplaces that aim to deter fraudulent sign-ups for coverage. Experts say the agency’s action indicates a problem exists.

By Julie Appleby

Jan. 19, 2022

South Dakota Voters to Decide Medicaid Expansion

Despite state Republican leaders’ rigid opposition to expanding the health program designed for low-income residents, advocates successfully gathered enough signatures to get the measure on the fall ballot.

By Phil Galewitz

Jan. 6, 2022

Record Number of Americans Sign Up for ACA Health Insurance

Nearly 14 million Americans have enrolled in Affordable Care Act marketplace health plans for next year — a record since the health law’s coverage expansion took effect in 2014. A boost in subsidies marketing and assistance in navigating the process increased the rolls of the insured.

By Phil Galewitz and Andy Miller

Dec. 23, 2021

Podcast

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Manchin Blows Up Biden’s ‘Build Back Better’

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) dealt a blow to congressional efforts to pass President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda bill, forcing Democrats to regroup starting in 2022. Meanwhile, the omicron covid variant spreads rapidly in the U.S., threatening the stability of the nation’s health care system. Joanne Kenen of Politico and the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more, plus a look back at the year in health policy. Also this week, Rovner interviews Ceci Connolly, president and CEO of the Alliance of Community Health Plans.

Dec. 22, 2021

Asking Never Hurts

Covered California’s Insurance Deals Range From ‘No-Brainer’ to Sticker Shock

Families of four with incomes of less than about $40,000 a year can pay no premiums and have low deductibles. For some others, health insurance in 2022 will cost more than in 2021 — in some cases, significantly more.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Dec. 21, 2021

A Rural Georgia Community Reels After Its Hospital Closes

A record number of hospitals closed in rural America last year. For the residents of Cuthbert, Georgia, the loss has meant many problems, including delayed care for emergencies that can turn deadly.

By Andy Miller

Dec. 10, 2021

A Title Fight Pits Physician Assistants Against Doctors

Physician assistants are pushing to be renamed “physician associates,” complaining their title is belittling and doesn’t convey what they do. “We don’t assist,” they insist. Doctors’ groups fear there’s more than just a name in play.

By Jordan Rau

Dec. 3, 2021

Medicare’s Open Enrollment Is Open Season for Scammers

Medicare officials say complaints are rising from seniors lured into private plans with misleading information or enrolled without their consent. In response, officials have threatened to penalize the private companies selling Medicare Advantage and drug plans if they or agents working on their behalf mislead consumers.

By Susan Jaffe

Nov. 11, 2021

As Overdose Deaths Soar, DEA-Wary Pharmacies Shy From Dispensing Addiction Medication

A West Virginia pharmacy cleared a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation. But it shut down anyway, highlighting how the agency’s policies reduce the availability of buprenorphine, an important tool for recovery from opioid addiction.

By Aneri Pattani

Nov. 9, 2021