May 4th 2024
This week, the Center on Health Equity and Access highlights a variety of gaps that exist in health care, spanning women's health, the rising rate of metabolic disease, and policy for LGBTQ+ and immigrant populations. The consensus among featured experts points to comprehensive care models.
New Study Details Step-by-Step Process For Improving Population Health
July 3rd 2015In addition to increasing insurance coverage, the Affordable Care Act also aims to improve population health and lower healthcare costs. However, not much attention has been paid to the quality of care the newly insured are receiving.
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Why the King v. Burwell Ruling Is Good News for Millions of Americans
July 1st 2015The health coverage of millions of Americans in 34 states was pending upon the Supreme Court decision on the King v Burwell case. Luckily, common sense prevailed and the Supreme Court based its ruling on the original motivation behind the creation of the exchanges rather than on the plain language used in the provision.
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CMS Continues Implementation of ACA's Premium Stabilization Programs
July 1st 2015CMS has begun to implement risk adjustment and reinsurance programs, 2 premium stabilization programs of the Affordable Care Act. The report highlighted the estimated reinsurance payments issuer in addition to summary level information on the programs, which helps to keep premiums affordable as well as various coverage options available to consumers.
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Medicare Advantage Enrollment Climbs, but So Do Financial Burdens
July 1st 2015Despite concerns that Medicare Advantage payment reductions included in the Affordable Care Act would lead to a decline in enrollment, the number and share of beneficiaries enrolling in Medicare Advantage has only continue to climb since the health reform law was enacted.
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Low Premium Plans Increase Marketplace Price Competition
June 30th 2015In an effort to better examine and understand the implementation and effects of the Affordable Care Act, researchers from the Urban Institute found that nongroup health insurance premiums in insurance marketplaces were lower than expected.
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Police Untrained to Handle People Suffering From Mental Health Issues
June 30th 2015Police officers in the United States are woefully untrained to approach individuals with behavioral health issues, according to a new analysis from Washington Post. In the first 6 months of 2015, police have shot and killed 123 people in the throes of mental or emotional crisis.
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Avik Roy Speculates on the 2016 Presidential Election and the ACA
June 29th 2015Although GOP presidential hopefuls are all campaigning on promises to repeal and replace President Obama's Affordable Care Act (ACA), the last real chance to repeal may have been the 2012 election, according to Avik Roy, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
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GOP Presidential Hopefuls Still Eye 2016 Election as Chance to Repeal Obamacare
June 29th 2015Shortly after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the government in King v. Burwell, President Barack Obama triumphantly claimed that "Affordable Care Act is here to stay." However, the truth is that GOP presidential hopefuls have no intention of letting the law stand.
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The Country's Sharply Divided Reactions to King v. Burwell Ruling on Subsidies
June 26th 2015With the Supreme Court ruling in King v. Burwell keeping subsidies available to consumers on the federally facilitated marketplace, healthcare associations, insurers, health plans, and other stakeholders have been voicing their support and relief at the 6-3 ruling.
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Despite Subsidies Upheld in Marketplaces, Some Americans Continue to Prefer Staying Uninsured
June 25th 2015The Supreme Court may have kept subsidies available to all Americans regardless of whether their state has set up its own exchange, but some people still refuse to purchase coverage, and they're perfectly happy remaining uninsured.
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SCOTUS Upholds ACA Subsidies on HealthCare.gov in King v. Burwell
June 25th 2015In a triumphant win for President Obama's Affordable Care Act and millions of Americans, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against the plaintiffs in the case King v. Burwell and upheld the availability of subsidies for individuals on the federally facilitated marketplace.
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40% of Physician Networks Could Be Considered Narrow
June 24th 2015A new study summarizing network size by physician, not just hospital participation, determined that 41% of networks on the marketplaces can be considered small or x-small and contain just 25% or less of office-based physicians in the area.
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CBO Largely Uncertain of the Full Economic Effects of Repealing the ACA
June 23rd 2015There have been numerous attempts to repeal part or all of the Affordable Care Act since it became law, and the Congressional Budget Office admits its estimates on the effect of repealing the law are all subject to "substantial uncertainty."
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Despite Increase in Patients Under ACA, PCPs Report No Change in Quality of Care Provided
June 22nd 2015During the first year of health coverage expansion under the Affordable Care Act, many primary care providers said the number of patients they saw increased, but reported no compromise in quality of care provided, according to a study from the Kaiser Family Foundation and The Commonwealth Fund.
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This Week in Managed Care: June 20, 2015
June 20th 2015This week 3 states received approval to set up their own state exchanges in the even the Supreme Court removes subsidies in the federally facilitated marketplace, and the deadline passed for stakeholders to respond to CMS' proposed rules for mental health parity in Medicaid managed care.
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Home healthcare transition from hospitals for diabetic Medicare home healthcare beneficiaries can be improved by identifying risk factors for 30-day readmissions due to ambulatory care—sensitive conditions.
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Thomas P. Miller Expects a Flurry of Activity if SCOTUS Rules for Plaintiffs in King v. Burwell
June 19th 2015Although there will be changes in the marketplace if the Supreme Court decision makes residents in states using HealthCare.gov ineligible for subsidies, it won't be anything that is irreversible, according to Thomas P. Miller, JD, resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
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Missouri Mental Health Advocate Not Optimistic About Medicaid Managed Care
June 19th 2015The discussion about managed care comes as lawmakers continue to ignore pleas to expand Medicaid to 191,000 uninsured residents in Missouri. A White House report released earlier this month made a case for expansion but was largely ignored by expansion opponents.
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Use of Lumpectomy Among Early-Breast Cancer Patients on the Rise
June 18th 2015Despite the increased use of breast-conserving therapy among women with early-stage breast cancer, many women continue to undergo mastectomy, according to a study from researchers at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston published in JAMA Surgery.
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Republicans Consider Extending Subsidies, Dismantling Other Parts of ACA
June 18th 2015While Republicans continue to look at dismantling President Obama's Affordable Care Act, they are also working on plans to extend subsidies temporarily to the millions of Americans who may lose the financial assistance should the Supreme Court rule in favor of the plaintiffs in King v. Burwell.
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Timothy S. Jost Outlines King v. Burwell Arguments and Effects of the Decision
June 17th 2015One point of concern among Justices Anthony Kennedy and Sonia Sotomayor during the oral arguments of King v. Burwell was the issue of unconstitutional coercion, and Timothy S. Jost, professor of law at Washington and Lee University School of Law, explains the main issue.
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Fiscal Year 2016 Funding Bill Seeks to Defund the ACA, Patient-Centered Outcomes Research
June 17th 2015In its proposed fiscal year 2016 funding bill, the House Appropriations Committee is looking to defund the Affordable Care Act, block additional funding for patient-centered outcomes research, and terminate the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
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