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Medicaid is the United States health program for eligible individuals and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the states and federal government, and is managed by the states.

Doctors may not accept patients who remain uninsured, reports study

The upcoming expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) won't lead physicians to reduce the number of new Medicaid patients they accept, suggests a study in the November issue of Medical Care, published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

17 Oct 2013

Federal exchange: Initial expectations were rosy, but consumer frustration now taking root

The Washington Post reports that visits to healthcare.gov dropped 88 percent between Oct. 1 and Oct. 13. In an interview, President Barack Obama said the glitches consumers have experienced must be addressed.

17 Oct 2013

First Edition: October 16, 2013

Today's headlines including stories detailing how certain health law provisions are factoring in to the continuing congressional budget stalemate.

16 Oct 2013

Data suggest state-run online insurance marketplaces making progress -- 38,000 people have signed up; 100,000 have completed applications

Meanwhile, headlines across the country offer updates on specific state exchanges in California, Florida, Michigan, Oregon, Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota and Colorado.

16 Oct 2013

Viewpoints: 'False hysteria' over health law's part-time criteria; marketplaces 'flunk' initial test; Ben Carson's surprising assessment

The Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, has had a difficult launching, but the more serious challenges for the law relate not to glitch-filled Web sites but rather to its possible long-term effects on the United States economy. The law is not likely to last if it imposes a severe drag on growth and job creation, or involves large costs obscured by the legislative gimmicks used to shape the scoring of the bill by the Congressional Budget Office. Indeed, Casey B. Mulligan has discussed the negative effects of the legislation on the American labor market in a series of posts on Economix, while the policy expert Charles Blahous explains in detail why the "fiscally reckless" legislation will aggravate the already difficult federal and state fiscal situations (Philip Swagel, 10/14).

16 Oct 2013

State highlights: Insurer drop-out to affect 22,000 on N.Y. Medicaid managed care; Texas slow to recover misspent Medicaid funds

Excellus BlueCross BlueShield says it's dropping out of public health insurance programs for the poor and disabled. The insurer has notified doctors and other providers it's withdrawing from the Medicaid managed care and Family Health Plus programs because it expects to lose about $100 million on those programs this year. The move will affect more than 22,000 central New Yorkers (10/15).

16 Oct 2013

Shutdown commentaries: Compromise may take nick out of health law; 'The Party of Gimme'

But the tentative agreement includes two problematic provisions related to health care reform. One would require the Department of Health and Human Services to verify that people receiving subsidies for insurance have incomes low enough to qualify.

16 Oct 2013

Ohio board readies decision on state's Medicaid expansion

A seven-member state committee holds the fate of Ohio's Medicaid expansion in its hands as it prepares to vote on the proposal, and no one is talking about how they plan to vote.

16 Oct 2013

Phase 3 ODYSSEY MONO trial with alirocumab meets primary efficacy endpoint

Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the Phase 3 ODYSSEY MONO trial with alirocumab, an investigational monoclonal antibody targeting PCSK9 (proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9), met its primary efficacy endpoint.

16 Oct 2013

Shutdown commentaries: The man who championed the strategy; 'opening salvo in a generational war;' lack of funding hurts public health efforts

'I really believe we are in a great position right now," says Michael Needham, the 31-year-old president of Heritage Action, the lobbying arm of the nation's largest conservative think tank. By "we" he means the Republican Party and the conservative movement; their "great position" refers to the potential to win the political battle over the government shutdown. Though Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is the public face of the high-risk strategy to "defund" ObamaCare, the masterminds behind it are a new generation of young conservatives, chief among them Mr. Needham. From a tactical view, the strategy has been deployed with precision.

15 Oct 2013

First Edition: October 15, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about how the budget deal taking shape in the Senate would not derail the health law, but would include some tweaks.

15 Oct 2013

Viewpoints: Marketplaces' 'technical foibles' may keep young people from coming back; health law may be ushering in era of narrow networks

The encouraging view is that the overwhelming number of visitors to the site indicates high demand for insurance in the new system. That's critical, because the more people who participate, the better the system works. The danger is that the technical foibles since Oct. 1 will discourage people from coming back, particularly the young and healthy customers the system needs to keep rates reasonable. With some big deadlines approaching, the Obama administration needs to fix the bugs, and fast. People who need insurance from the federal marketplace have until mid-December to buy coverage that begins Jan. 1. If enrollment figures aren't robust by then, the new health-care system will have a problem even bigger than a frustrating Web (10/11).

15 Oct 2013

Medicare open enrollment starts Tuesday

Beneficiaries are encouraged to take a close look at their options during their upcoming enrollment period, which is separate from the sign-up in the health law's marketplaces.

15 Oct 2013

Ohio Gov. needs one more vote to expand Medicaid

After trying unsuccessfully to get Medicaid expansion through the state legislature, Ohio Gov. John Kasich is asking a bipartisan board to expand the program under the federal health law.

15 Oct 2013

State-run marketplaces rebounding from opening snags

Politico Pro examines how the marketplaces operated by states compare to the federally run operation. Other outlets look at some of the individual issues in states.

15 Oct 2013

Teva gets FDA approval for generic version of TOBI in US

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announces today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted approval of the generic equivalent to TOBI (Tobramycin Inhalation Solution USP) in the United States.

15 Oct 2013

First Edition: October 14, 2013

Today's headlines include the latest on the budget negotiations as well as examinations of what's happening with the health law's online insurance marketplaces.

14 Oct 2013

State highlights: Calif. gov. OK's extension of autism treatment coverage; Kansas tries to improve billing, Medicaid flap in N.C.

Gov. Jerry Brown has approved a 2 1/2-year extension of a program that requires insurance coverage for early autism treatment. Since its creation in 2011, the program has helped more than 12,500 Californians, according to Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), the author of the bills creating and extending the program (McGreevy, 10/10).

12 Oct 2013

Unlike the federal exchange, state online insurance marketplaces have had more luck addressing issues

News outlets report on how the exchanges are working and how consumers are responding in Pennsylvania, Florida, Mississippi, Hawaii, Minnesota and California.

12 Oct 2013

Research roundup: Medicare Part D in 2014; barriers to mental health care; scattered patterns of ACOs

Medicare Part D continues to be a marketplace with an array of competing plans offered at a wide range of premiums and benefit designs. In 2014, Medicare beneficiaries will have a choice of 35 stand-alone PDPs, on average, up by four from 2013. ... Beneficiaries receiving Low-Income Subsidies will have access to a modestly higher number of plans for no monthly premium in 2014 compared to 2013 ... Notable trends for 2014 include a growing share of PDPs using preferred pharmacy networks and adopting more formulary cost-sharing tiers.

12 Oct 2013

Medicaid News and Research

Doctors may not accept patients who remain uninsured, reports study

Federal exchange: Initial expectations were rosy, but consumer frustration now taking root

First Edition: October 16, 2013

Data suggest state-run online insurance marketplaces making progress -- 38,000 people have signed up; 100,000 have completed applications

Viewpoints: 'False hysteria' over health law's part-time criteria; marketplaces 'flunk' initial test; Ben Carson's surprising assessment

State highlights: Insurer drop-out to affect 22,000 on N.Y. Medicaid managed care; Texas slow to recover misspent Medicaid funds

Shutdown commentaries: Compromise may take nick out of health law; 'The Party of Gimme'

Ohio board readies decision on state's Medicaid expansion

Phase 3 ODYSSEY MONO trial with alirocumab meets primary efficacy endpoint

Shutdown commentaries: The man who championed the strategy; 'opening salvo in a generational war;' lack of funding hurts public health efforts

First Edition: October 15, 2013

Viewpoints: Marketplaces' 'technical foibles' may keep young people from coming back; health law may be ushering in era of narrow networks

Medicare open enrollment starts Tuesday

Ohio Gov. needs one more vote to expand Medicaid

State-run marketplaces rebounding from opening snags

Teva gets FDA approval for generic version of TOBI in US

First Edition: October 14, 2013

State highlights: Calif. gov. OK's extension of autism treatment coverage; Kansas tries to improve billing, Medicaid flap in N.C.

Unlike the federal exchange, state online insurance marketplaces have had more luck addressing issues

Research roundup: Medicare Part D in 2014; barriers to mental health care; scattered patterns of ACOs

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