Health Insurance News and Research

RSS

Early rate requests from insurers provide few clues for small businesses attempting to determine costs

The Associated Press reports that, because many steps remain in the rate setting process, the initial rates announced by insurers do not offer "clarity."

3 May 2013

First Edition: May 2, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about a new study detailing how expanded Medicaid access impacts beneficiaries' utilization of health care services and their overall physical health.

2 May 2013

New consumer conundrum: To buy insurance or pay the penalty

Media outlets report on a range of health law implementation issues -- including how medical homes might be helpful in treating the newly insured as well as an analysis of the whether the health law's penalties for not buying insurance have enough bite.

2 May 2013

Obama aims to tamp down fears about health law

During a Tuesday news conference, President Barack Obama acknowledged likely "bumps and glitches" as key provisions of the health law take effect, but said that many elements of the measure are already in place and "working fine."

2 May 2013

Insurers face key health exchange deadline

Modern Healthcare reports that May 1 is the deadline for insurers to apply to offer heatlh plans for sale on state-run exchanges. However, the deadline for participation in states that have opted for federally run exchanges has been extended until Friday.

2 May 2013

At the Florida State House, Medicaid expansion drama continues

News outlets also detail the latest expansion news from Oklahoma, Iowa, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine and Arizona.

2 May 2013

Aetna cuts projections for policies it will sell in new marketplaces

Aetna said it expects to sell fewer health insurance policies than initially projected in the health law's online marketplaces, which are slated to open in October. The insurer also said its 1st-quarter profit slipped 4 percent but raised its 2013 forecast.

2 May 2013

First Edition: April 30, 2013

Today's headlines include reports that the Obama administration has simplified the application for health insurance benefits under the health law.

30 Apr 2013

State highlights: Ore. for-profit hospitals' charity care lags

Top officials at the Mississippi State Department of Health say they're trying to prevent layoffs for 41 employees and 41 contract workers who were part of a program to help women with high-risk pregnancies. Dr. Mary Currier, the state health officer, said Friday that the social workers were told April 15 their jobs could be eliminated July 1 (4/28).

30 Apr 2013

Exchange implementation: News from the White House and the field

Politico reports that the Obama administration is facing challenges as it moves into a critical time implementing the health law. Meanwhile, a contract is awarded for a call center to handle questions about the health exchanges run by the federal government.

30 Apr 2013

Some GOP lawmakers are shifting focus from Medicare to the tax code

House Republican leaders began a series of meetings last week to sell this idea to their rank-and-file members. Also in Capitol Hill news, cancer clinics argue that Congress should have addressed the cuts they took as a result of sequestration before turning to the spending reductions' impact on air travel.

30 Apr 2013

Research roundup: Young women and delays in breast cancer diagnosis

Adolescents and young adults (ages 15-39) make up 5 and 6 percent of all breast cancer cases in the United States and have the lowest five-year survival rates.

30 Apr 2013

Florida House rejects federal Medicaid expansion funds

The Florida House of Representatives passed its own limited health care bill that relies on state money to expand coverage to the state's neediest residents. Also in the news, reports from Ohio, Montana, Texas, Nebraska and Arizona on the status of state decision-making regarding the expansion.

30 Apr 2013

Colombian antenatal HIV testing rates reveal health insurance paradox

The introduction of subsidized health insurance for poor people in Colombia resulted in decreased access to HIV tests in antenatal care, research shows.

29 Apr 2013

SLU study reveals that access to dermatologists limited for Medicaid-insured children with eczema

A recent Saint Louis University study revealed that Medicaid-insured children with eczema, an inflammatory skin condition that affects 20 percent children in the United States, do not have easy access to dermatologists.

29 Apr 2013

Viewpoints: David Brooks sees growing concerns about health law implementation; Congress should stick to requirement to join the exchanges

It was always going to be difficult to implement Obamacare, but even fervent supporters of the law admit that things are going worse than expected. Implementation got off to a bad start because the Obama administration didn't want to release unpopular rules before the election.

29 Apr 2013

Prescription drug 'track and trace' bill splits House lawmakers

House lawmakers are split on how the federal government should better track prescription drugs with one powerful Republican promising a "track and trace" law by August while Democrats press for stronger safeguards in the proposal.

29 Apr 2013

Study: Almost half of working-age adults have inadequate health coverage

The Commonwealth Fund concluded that, while the number of uninsured adults dropped during the past two years, a large number of working-age adults had little or no coverage.

29 Apr 2013

States mull methods to raise health exchange awareness, provide consumer assistance

California has more uninsured people than other states have people. With that in mind, think about this: By Oct. 1, the state has to have its health insurance exchange up and running, ready to offer an estimated five million people some kind of insurance.

29 Apr 2013

Survey shows millions of people struggling to afford health care

Eighty-four million people―nearly half of all working-age U.S. adults―went without health insurance for a time last year or had out-of-pocket costs that were so high relative to their income they were considered underinsured, according to the Commonwealth Fund 2012 Biennial Health Insurance Survey.

29 Apr 2013