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Exchange dynamics will dictate consumers' experiences, costs

Health law advocates frequently say health insurance will cost less as a result of the health law, but news outlets report that a downside could be less choice.

24 Sep 2013

First Edition: September 23, 2013

Kaiser Health News staff writer Mary Agnes Carey reports: "Nearly 50 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare, the federal health insurance program for the elderly and disabled. The 2010 health care law, known as the Affordable Care Act, will make some changes to the program.

23 Sep 2013

White House takes steps to assure consumers about safety of insurance marketplaces

The announcement of anti-fraud measures, part of a coordinated federal effort to protect consumers, came after a House committee warned of "risks of fraud and misinformation" in efforts to enroll millions of people eligible for subsidized insurance in new online marketplaces.

19 Sep 2013

First Edition: September 19, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about future health spending projections from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Actuaries as well as the latest on the upcoming House vote on a stopgap funding measure that would also defund the health law.

19 Sep 2013

Percentage of Americans without health coverage drops for 2nd year

The small decline was credited mainly to somewhat higher enrollments in Medicare and Medicaid, as well as the Children's Health Insurance Program.

19 Sep 2013

Florida battles over Obamacare intensify

Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius made her third trip to Florida in a week to tout the health law, while state officials are taking steps to stymie enrollment in the new online insurance exchanges which open in two weeks.

19 Sep 2013

First Edition: September 18, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about the Census Bureau's latest figures on the nation's uninsured as well as Congressional Budget Office long-term deficit projections and how that news fits into events in the ongoing Capitol Hill budget battles.

18 Sep 2013

Obama administration turns down unions' request on health law

Organized labor had sought to get premium subsidies for workers who get insurance through union benefit plans sponsored by more than one employer, which are common in some industries.

16 Sep 2013

Medicaid expansion continues to make political and policy waves in the Carolinas, Pennsylvania

While South Carolina works on its own "plan b" to pursue instead of the health law's Medicaid expansion, a North Carolina hospital plans to close its doors. Its parent company blames the state's decision against the expansion.

10 Sep 2013

Scientists develop new way to detect threatening nanoparticles in food

Over the last few years, the use of nanomaterials for water treatment, food packaging, pesticides, cosmetics and other industries has increased. For example, farmers have used silver nanoparticles as a pesticide because of their capability to suppress the growth of harmful organisms. However, a growing concern is that these particles could pose a potential health risk to humans and the environment.

23 Aug 2013

Docs prescribe more radiation if they have financial interest in it; Medicare's new e-prescribing ayment spurs use

Doctors who have a financial interest in prescribing radiation treatment do it more, a congressional study says. In the meantime, new Medicare payment incentives drive a rise in e-prescribing.

20 Aug 2013

First Edition: August 19, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about how public perceptions and political opposition continue to swirl around the health law's implementation.

19 Aug 2013

Administration delays health law's limit on some out-of-pocket consumer costs

The New York Times reports that the change was included in a Department of Labor rule issued in February. Also in the news, KHN details the complex choices the overhaul presents for people with disabilities and Bloomberg notes a ruling by a U.S. District Court judge allowing Oklahoma's legal challenge to the law to proceed.

14 Aug 2013

Govt. will continue to pay for Capitol Hill staffer health coverage, but mostly in exchanges

New details from the Obama administration clear a way for the government to continue to pay for the bulk of the costs associated with providing health coverage to Capitol Hill staffers, though they must buy coverage on Obamacare exchanges instead of getting it through the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program. The rules say each congressional office should make the determination, however, about which employees move to exchanges and which can stay on the federal plans.

9 Aug 2013

First Edition: August 8, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about the proposed rule released Wednesday by the Obama administration allowing the government to continue to pay for a significant portion of health insurance for lawmakers and Hill staffers.

8 Aug 2013

Aetna pulls insurance plans from MD.'s health law exchange

In state health insurance marketplace news, Aetna won't sell its plans on Maryland's version of the exchange over concerns premiums wouldn't cover costs. Officials in Colorado, Missouri, California and Oregon also face decisions about their marketplaces and the challenges to enrolling their residents in them.

6 Aug 2013

First Edition: August 5, 2013

Kaiser Health News staff writer Jordan Rau reports: "Medicare will levy $227 million in fines against hospitals in every state but one for the second round of the government's campaign to reduce the number of patients readmitted within a month, according to federal records released Friday" (Rau, 8/2).

5 Aug 2013

Republicans' Obamacare twofer: 40th repeal-type vote, Sen. Collins blasts employer provision

News outlets covered Friday's vote in the House of Representatives to keep the IRS from enforcing parts of the Affordable Care Act and today's weekly GOP address by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.

5 Aug 2013

40th repeal vote unlikely to be charm for House Republicans

The vote in the GOP-controlled House, scheduled for Friday, would prevent the Internal Revenue Service from enforcing any part of the health law. Some news outlets explore why GOP lawmakers continue pushing purely symbolic votes that will go nowhere in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

3 Aug 2013

Deal will keep federal contributions for insurance when Congress moves to exchanges

The Obama administration told Congress on Thursday that it would allow the federal government to continue paying a large share of the cost of health insurance for members of Congress and their aides, averting a problem for many who work on Capitol Hill.

3 Aug 2013