Louisiana's Governor pushes ahead on Medicaid expansion, while expansion is blocked by Wyoming's Legislature; Massachusetts plans to submit a 1332 waiver application to preserve its merged markets; and CBO lowers its 2016...more
1/28/2016
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Healthcare.gov ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Medicare ,
Prescription Drugs ,
State Budgets ,
State Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Tax Credits
Minnesota's Task Force recommends maintaining their State-based Marketplace while Oregon considers bringing back theirs; CMS narrows the criteria for special enrollment periods; and President Obama seeks an extension of full...more
Louisiana's Governor signs an executive order on his first day in office to expand Medicaid; Kentucky's Governor opts to replace, rather than repeal, its Medicaid expansion program; and New York and Missouri make it easier...more
HHS announces average premium price increases of 7.5% across HealthCare.gov; Michigan and Illinois launch the country’s first joint cloud-based, real-time Medicaid information management system; and the Marketplace carrier...more
10/28/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Eligibility ,
Enrollment ,
GAO ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare.gov ,
Insurance Industry ,
Medicaid ,
Premiums ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
Tax Credits ,
Waivers
Editor’s note: Born as an afterthought to Medicare five decades ago, Medicaid has evolved from an adjunct to state welfare programs into the nation’s largest health insurer. Medicaid’s 50th birthday is a fitting time to...more
10/27/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Eligibility ,
Enrollment ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Information Technologies ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Medicaid Reform ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
State Medicaid Programs ,
Tax Credits ,
Value-Based Purchasing ,
Waivers
Arizona seeks Medicaid Waiver to implement new coverage restrictions for Medicaid expansion enrollees and delivery system reform; Tennessee’s uninsured rate continues to drop; and Louisiana gubernatorial candidates line up...more
10/21/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Co-Op ,
Co-payments ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
DSRIP ,
Enrollment ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Medicaid Reform ,
OIG ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
Qualified Health Plans ,
State Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Tax Credits ,
Waivers
Colorado’s uninsured rate is down 9 percentage points in four years; Michigan requests increased cost-sharing for its Medicaid expansion population above the federal poverty line; and, HHS’s proposed guidance strengthens...more
9/10/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Comment Period ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Draft Guidance ,
Federal Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
NPRM ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
Qualified Health Plans ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
State Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Tax Credits ,
Transgender ,
Waivers
Reductions in uninsured rates are greatest in states with Medicaid expansions and State-based or State Partnership Marketplaces; Kentucky finds increased use of preventive healthcare following Medicaid expansion; and,...more
8/12/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Insurance Commissioners ,
IRS ,
King v Burwell ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Medicare ,
OIG ,
Open Enrollment ,
Preventive Health Care ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
SCOTUS ,
State Medicaid Programs ,
Tax Credits
CMS offers a special enrollment period for HealthCare.gov enrollees whose incomes were miscalculated due to system error; California Marketplace announces two new insurers; and Connecticut’s budget reduces eligibility levels...more
7/29/2015
/ CCIIO ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
DSRIP ,
Enrollment ,
Fast Track Process ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Healthcare.gov ,
IRS ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Public Health Insurance Marketplace ,
State Budgets ,
Tax Credits ,
Waivers
FEDERAL NEWS:
More than 8 in 10 Federal Marketplace Enrollees Receive Tax Credits -
According to data released by CMS, 7.7 million consumers, or 87 percent of those on the Federally-facilitated Marketplace with...more
This week, the IRS announces relief for some taxpayers who received excess advanced premium tax credits; Indiana and Arkansas make major announcements on Medicaid expansion and Iowa’s Governor announces a shift towards...more
1/28/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Congressional Budget Office ,
Drug Testing ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Healthcare Reform ,
IRS ,
Managed Care Contracts ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Medicare ,
Reimbursements ,
SCOTUS ,
Tax Credits
In this week’s news, many states’ Marketplaces have begun to communicate with current enrollees about how to renew their coverage during the 2015 Open Enrollment Period; meanwhile, the federal government announced the...more