2012
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Going for the Gold: Using All Tools Available to Help Consumers Connect to Coverage
Just as millions of people are crowding the streets of London for the 2012 summer games, millions of people are expected to access new coverage opportunities when Exchanges open for business next year. Preparing for the influx of people who will gain new coverage options requires the same kind of careful planning and preparation as…
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How States Transition to New Medicaid Income Standards Could Impact Coverage for Kids and Families
By Martha Heberlein The ACA established a new Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) standard that will be used to determine income eligibility in Medicaid, CHIP, and for premium tax credits. Under this new approach, states are required to convert their existing Medicaid and CHIP eligibility standards to account for the elimination of income disregards and…
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More Interesting Tidbits from the CBO ACA Score
By Martha Heberlein Our blog post from last week gave the high-level numbers of CBO’s updated score on the ACA, but we wanted to pass along a few more nuggets. If a state fails to extend Medicaid to low-income uninsured adults, it will increase the cost of covering Exchange participants. In states that elect to…
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GAO to IRS: Consider the Family Penalty
By Joe Touschner Say Ahhh! readers have heard all about the family penalty—the proposed rule that spouses and children won’t be able to access premium tax credits if employer-sponsored single coverage is affordable for a worker—even if the cost of family coverage would be out of reach. (Note that some also refer to this problem…
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How Much Do Kids Count? This Year We Get a Closer Look
By Tara Mancini Members of Congress, as well as state and local politicians seem to agree that we must invest in kids. They often contend that it is our duty to build the next generation. Yet, what exactly we mean by “investing in our future” is a sore point of contention – at best, and…
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More Uninsured Likely Following the Supreme Court Decision
By Martha Heberlein I’m not quite sure what it says about me, but I was eagerly checking the Congressional Budget Office’s website yesterday at 2pm awaiting the updated score of the ACA following the Supreme Court ruling. While they’re only estimates, CBO is the official arbiter in DC and their assessments carry a whole lot…
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CMS Shines Light on the Secret Lives of Medicaid Waivers
Just as Yelp has saved us from many a bad meal, the new Medicaid “Idea Factory” has the potential to protect us from bad health policy decisions. The idea behind the “Idea Factory” is to infuse more transparency into the process and elicit greater public input into important health policy decisions. In my view, nowhere…
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Foster Care Children and the Affordable Care Act – New Report from CCF and Community Catalyst
In a new analysis, Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families and Community Catalyst, take a look at key provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that hold the promise of improving the health and well-being of the nation’s foster care children and youth. According to government statistics, there were more than 400,000 children and youth…
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Welcome to the New and Improved CCF Website and Blog
By Jocelyn Guyer As my mom always reminded me, it not what’s on the outside but what’s on the inside that really counts. Last week CCF unveiled a new look but rest assured we haven’t changed on the inside. You’ll still find insightful analysis and practical research on current health policy issues and how they…
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Governor Walker Misstates Impact of ACA and Its Effect on Medicaid
By Jon Peacock, Wisconsin Council on Children and Families In a recent Washington Post op-ed, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker attacked the federal health care reform law, but made one general point I concur with. He recommended looking at the practical impact of the Affordable Care Act in the states, and I wholeheartedly endorse that suggestion.…
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All Hands on Deck: Helping Consumers Navigate Coverage in 2013
In 2014, millions of Americans will gain access to more affordable health coverage when Exchanges officially open for business and states take advantage of the historic opportunity to provide coverage to more low-income people through Medicaid. Paving the way to these sources of coverage will be a transformation of the eligibility and enrollment process through…
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Countdown to 2014: Designing Navigator Programs to Meet the Needs of Consumers
Exchanges are required to establish a navigator program that provides grants to community or consumer-focused nonprofits and other organizations to conduct outreach and help consumers and small employers connect to health coverage. States have broad flexibility in designing their programs as long as minimum federal guidelines are met. While similar to existing models of consumer assistance in Medicaid and Medicare, navigator…
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Medicaid expansion spurs debate in Florida
Miami Herald July 21, 2012 By Richard Martin and Angie Drobnic Holan Medicaid is about to take a starring role in the national health care debate. Today, only certain people qualify for the health insurance program for the very poor: the elderly, the disabled, pregnant women and children. Under its proposed expansion, any poor American…
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2012 Annual Conference
Charting the Way: Progress and Priorities for Child and Family Coverage July 17-19, 2012 Conference Materials Agenda Participant List Session Slides Children’s Benefits in 2014 Know the Ropes: Exchange Development Issues for Kids and Families Navigator Session Pediatric Oral Services as Part of the Essential Health Benefits Texas Well and Healthy Waiver Session Slides Wrap…
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Fresh Insights into Strategies and Messages for Enrollment in Medicaid and the Exchange
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently released new research to help states identify messages that will encourage enrollment in Medicaid in 2014 when minimum eligibility levels are expanded to 133% FPL. The research also explores issues relating to state Exchanges, including attitudes about enrolling and choosing health insurance online. It was conducted in three states:…
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Expanding Coverage for Parents Helps Children: Children’s Groups Have a Key Role in Urging States to Move Forward and Expand Medicaid
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) expanded Medicaid coverage to include parents and low-income adults with incomes up to 133 percent of the poverty line. The Supreme Court’s decision means states can now decide whether or not to implement this expansion. Covering low-income parents is important for children: covering parents means that more eligible children will…
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Bending but Not Breaking
National Journal July 19, 2012 By Margot Sanger-Katz When they thought a big Medicaid expansion was mandatory, governors who opposed the health care law planned to grumble but go along. Now that Chief Justice John Roberts has essentially made the program optional, many are weighing their choices. A few are in the hell-no or hell-yes camps. Several of…
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It’s Decision Time for States – Do you Know Where Your Children Are?
By Catherine Hess, NASHP As the National Academy for State Health Policy’s (NASHP) recent webinars The Future of CHIP and Children’s Coverage and Keeping a Focus on Children in Health Care Reform conveyed, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) includes boosts for children’s coverage but raises myriad questions and issues. The country has achieved tremendous progress in reducing the uninsured…
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IRS Says Tax Credits will be Available to People Applying for Coverage on Federally Facilitated Exchange
By Joe Touschner Several states have committed to operating their own health insurance exchanges, but it seems increasingly likely that others will have an Affordable Insurance Exchange operated by the federal government. A key aspect for making exchanges successful is that those who qualify will be able to access federal tax credits when they buy private…
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HHS Provides Further Clarification on Supreme Court Ruling
By Jocelyn Guyer As we noted yesterday, Secretary Sebelius sent a letter to the nation’s Governors on Wednesday clarifying that the Supreme Court ruling affects only HHS’s ability to enforce the Medicaid expansion for adults to 133% of the FPL, not other provisions such as the maintenance-of-effort requirement. Now, the Acting CMS Director Marilynn Tavenner,…