Health Insurance News and Research

RSS

In states that opt-out of Medicaid expansion, low-income residents won't face insurance mandate

A rule published Wednesday exempts low-income people from the health law's requirement to buy insurance if they live in states that decide against expanding Medicaid. News outlets also report on the latest related developments from Ohio, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Oklahoma and California.

29 Jun 2013

GOP senators press Sebelius to back away from helping nonprofit focused on health coverage enrollment

The group of 28 senators are also seeking more information about the health secretary's efforts to help the nonprofit Enroll America to get more people signed up for coverage available through the health law. Meanwhile, the head of the House Republican Study Committee urged the NBA and the NFL not to promote the health care law.

29 Jun 2013

Appeals court green lights Hobby Lobby's legal challenge to contraceptive coverage rule

A federal appeals court in Denver said Thursday that companies, whether they are for profit or not, have religious rights and that the challenge brought by Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. and its sister company can go forward.

29 Jun 2013

Exchanges look to software and sports teams

News outlets report on enrollment activities, including efforts to recruit sports teams, as well as the testing of software for the new online insurance marketplaces.

28 Jun 2013

First Edition: June 28, 2013

Today's headlines include reports that the high court sent a tentative signal Thursday that it was moving toward hearing a case on the regulation of abortion-inducing drugs.

28 Jun 2013

State highlights: Miss. lawmakers ready for special session on Medicaid; Paid sick time approved in NYC; Oregon cuts premium requests

Mississippi lawmakers return to the Capitol at 10 a.m. Thursday for a special session designed to keep Medicaid alive and funded. Much is at stake: Medicaid is a government health insurance program for the needy, and it covers about 644,000 of the state's nearly 3 million residents (6/27).

28 Jun 2013

High court's DOMA ruling will impact health benefits for gay couples

The decision will affect benefits for federal employees, as well as people eligible for new coverage under the health law, and will likely lead employers in the 12 states that recognize same-sex marriages to review employee-benefit packages to make sure they don't discriminate against gay spouses and comply with the law.

28 Jun 2013

Democrats to Sebelius: Confusion over health law persists

Politico reports that congressional Democrats shared concerns with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius that seniors, among others, remain fearful about the health law's impact on their benefits. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times explores a loophole that could allow insurers to avoid some of the law's provisions for another year and The Associated Press reports the individual mandate exemption has been broadened for Native Americans.

28 Jun 2013

First Edition: June 27, 2013

Today's headlines include reports explaining how yesterday's Supreme Court decision on DOMA impacts federal health benefits and the health law's coverage expansion.

27 Jun 2013

White House takes aim at Latinos, young people with health law outreach efforts

Both populations are key to the success of new online health insurance marketplaces, which will begin enrolling people on Oct. 1 for coverage that takes effect Jan. 1.

27 Jun 2013

Viewpoints: Entitlements driving U.S. toward insolvency; Shalala on being informed; Catholics find contraceptive mandate morally wrong

As currently structured, entitlement programs can't keep up with longer life expectancies and changing demographics. Soon, one-third of Americans will be retired and will spend one-third of their lives in retirement. Meanwhile, the ratio of workers to retirees has dropped precipitously. During this decade and the next, the number of Americans 65 or older will jump 75 percent, while those of working age will nudge up by just 7 percent. Within a decade, the total price for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will reach $3 trillion a year, but we'll have fewer workers paying into the system and supporting those growing costs (R. Bruce Josten, 6/25).

27 Jun 2013

Demystifying the health law's coverage expansion: Where there are benefits, where there is confusion and who still needs help

The Fiscal Times reports on tools to help consumers understand changes that will occur as a result of the health law while HealthyCal reports that legislators in California are attempting to create a mechanism to provide health insurance for those who fall through the overhaul's cracks.

27 Jun 2013

Tavenner outlines specifics on health exchanges, other health law issues

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services chief Marilyn Tavenner discussed health exchanges, among other things, with Georgia Health News. Other news outlets detailed the exchange developments in Minnesota and Colorado.

27 Jun 2013

Study: Despite struggles with poverty, more children getting health insurance

Families in the United States are making gains in education and health, two key factors in their overall well-being, a report released on Monday showed, adding to data that suggests the U.S. economy is slowly rebounding from the 2007-2009 recession. Still, the latest findings on the state of U.S. children and their parents by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found many families continue to struggle ... Most states also saw more children with health insurance, improvements in birth weights, and fewer youth deaths between 2005 and 2011, it said (Heavey, 6/24).

26 Jun 2013

Viewpoints: Exploring the bond between caretaker and patient; Missouri looks beyond expansion to reform Medicaid

This Op-Doc video explores the relationship between an immigrant caretaker and an elderly woman in the last months of her life. Joesy, a Fijian immigrant, works long hours providing live-in care for 95-year-old Haru Tsurumoto in Sonoma County, Calif. Through intimate and quiet scenes, we explore Joesy's complex relationship with Haru. The two respect each other in part because each has experienced being an outsider in the United States - Joesy as an undocumented immigrant who fears she could be sent back to Fiji, and Haru as a Japanese-American who was sent to an internment camp during the Second World War (Theo Rigby and Kate McLean, 6/24).

26 Jun 2013

Sebelius ramps up enrollment push

The Obama administration unveiled a revamped HealthCare.gov website, the centerpiece of its campaign in more than 30 states to enroll people in health coverage, as well as a 24-hour consumer call center. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius aims to enroll 7 million people by late March with help from major sports franchises and moms.

26 Jun 2013

Government to bargain with insurers over exchange plans

Hoping to get consumers the best prices, the Obama administration is negotiating with insurers looking to sell policies in online health insurance marketplaces this fall, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Monday (Galewitz, 6/24).

26 Jun 2013

First Edition: June 25, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about the Obama administraiton's plans for getting the word about the health law's online marketplaces.

25 Jun 2013

State highlights: Calif. eyes health care for immigrants; New scrutiny for N.Y. home health firms; Examining Ore. insurers' choice on smokers

When Congress passed President Obama's health care overhaul, a critical compromise provision was that immigrants living in the United States illegally would not be allowed access to publicly subsidized health insurance.

25 Jun 2013

Research roundup: Examining the health of future Medicaid patients; Rural trauma care issues; Lessons from Medicare Part D

Under the federal health law, states have the option of expanding Medicaid coverage to most-low income populations, potentially adding millions of new enrollees. Researchers analyzed 2007-2010 survey data from a study population of more than 1,000 people, and found that, compared to adults already enrolled in state Medicaid programs, low-income uninsured adults who stand to gain from Medicaid expansion "will differ significantly from current Medicaid enrollees," the authors write.

25 Jun 2013

Health Insurance News and Research

In states that opt-out of Medicaid expansion, low-income residents won't face insurance mandate

GOP senators press Sebelius to back away from helping nonprofit focused on health coverage enrollment

Appeals court green lights Hobby Lobby's legal challenge to contraceptive coverage rule

Exchanges look to software and sports teams

First Edition: June 28, 2013

State highlights: Miss. lawmakers ready for special session on Medicaid; Paid sick time approved in NYC; Oregon cuts premium requests

High court's DOMA ruling will impact health benefits for gay couples

Democrats to Sebelius: Confusion over health law persists

First Edition: June 27, 2013

White House takes aim at Latinos, young people with health law outreach efforts

Viewpoints: Entitlements driving U.S. toward insolvency; Shalala on being informed; Catholics find contraceptive mandate morally wrong

Demystifying the health law's coverage expansion: Where there are benefits, where there is confusion and who still needs help

Tavenner outlines specifics on health exchanges, other health law issues

Study: Despite struggles with poverty, more children getting health insurance

Viewpoints: Exploring the bond between caretaker and patient; Missouri looks beyond expansion to reform Medicaid

Sebelius ramps up enrollment push

Government to bargain with insurers over exchange plans

First Edition: June 25, 2013

State highlights: Calif. eyes health care for immigrants; New scrutiny for N.Y. home health firms; Examining Ore. insurers' choice on smokers

Research roundup: Examining the health of future Medicaid patients; Rural trauma care issues; Lessons from Medicare Part D

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Latest News