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Affordability

  • Highest Court in the Land Upholds the Affordable Care Act (Twice)!

    Joan Alker

    Just like most of you, I took a deep breath when I saw the Supreme Court decision in King v Burwell announced today. Here at CCF, we all high-fived but now I’m lamenting the fact that we had to waste all of this time and energy worrying about what would happen if the opponents of…

  • Waiting on King… what’s at stake?

    Elisabeth Wright Burak

    It feels like déjà vu. The health policy world is waiting on pins and needles to see what the Supreme Court has to say about the viability of the Affordable Care Act. On possible decision days, all browsers are pointed to SCOTUSblog.com. But this time we are waiting for a decision in King v. Burwell…

  • Healthcare.gov Fixes System Glitch in Counting Social Security Income for Certain Tax Dependents

    Tricia Brooks

    Earlier this week, Health Affairs ran a lengthy blog I wrote about how Healthcare.gov incorrectly counts Social Security income for tax dependents who are not required to file taxes. Policy experts and enrollment assisters had suspected the system glitch existed for some time before CMS confirmed the error in early March. Thankfully, the problem is…

  • Confused about What Happens at Tax Time? FAQs on Penalties, Exemptions, Reconciliation, and SEPs:

    Tricia Brooks

    By  Tricia Brooks, Sandy Ahn, Sabrina Corlette, and JoAnn Volk As part of our Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded work in providing technical assistance to consumer assisters in five states, we are getting a lot of questions about issues related to tax time and health coverage. Here are some of the common questions and answers.…

  • Why Should Pregnancy Trigger an SEP? The Risks and Impact of going without Prenatal Care

    CCFadmin

    As OE2 comes to a close, we are thinking more and more about the particulars when it comes to Special Enrollment Periods (SEP) and who may qualify in the upcoming months. SEPs provide an opportunity for individuals to enroll in health insurance after a major life-changing events such as getting married, moving, losing a job,…

  • Getting MAGI Right: Changes to Income Counting Rules in Medicaid and CHIP

    Tricia Brooks

    Last week, we released a primer on the basics of MAGI – how rules for counting household size and income to determine eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP have been aligned with Marketplace subsidies. The move to MAGI has brought about a number of changes in Medicaid and CHIP, but to further complicate things, there are…

  • Getting MAGI Right: When Does Social Security Income Count?

    Tricia Brooks

    UPDATED VERSION HERE Last week, we released a primer on the basics of MAGI – how rules for counting household size and income to determine eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP have been aligned with Marketplace subsidies. The move to MAGI has brought about a number of changes in Medicaid and CHIP, but to further complicate…

  • Getting MAGI Right: An Assisters Worksheet for Determining Household Size in Medicaid and CHIP

    Tricia Brooks

    Last week, we released a primer on the basics of MAGI – how rules for counting household size and income to determine eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP have been aligned with Marketplace subsidies. The move to MAGI has brought about a number of changes, but to further complicate things, there are some differences that apply…

  • Getting MAGI Right: Exceptions for Who Counts in the Household for Medicaid and CHIP

    Tricia Brooks

    Last week, we released a primer on the basics of MAGI – how rules for counting household size and income to determine eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP have been aligned with Marketplace subsidies. The move to MAGI has brought about a number of changes in Medicaid and CHIP, but to further complicate things, there are…

  • Getting MAGI Right: Differences in Medicaid and CHIP Add Complexity

    Tricia Brooks

    Next to the fact that millions of people are gaining health insurance, one of my favorite aspects of the ACA is its transformation of Medicaid – moving Medicaid into a modern era by harnessing technology and tapping trusted sources of electronic data to determine eligibility in real time. Launching a new high-performing eligibility system is…

  • Getting MAGI Right: A Primer on Differences that Apply to Medicaid and CHIP

    CCFadmin

    Although Medicaid, CHIP, and tax subsidies in the marketplaces share a common method for determining eligibility – known as MAGI – there are several exceptions that apply only to specific circumstances in Medicaid and CHIP. These exceptions, along with significant changes in Medicaid/CHIP eligibility, pre- and post-ACA, add complexity to the implementation of MAGI, both…

  • CCF to MACPAC: CHIP Should Continue While Policymakers Work to Improve Marketplace Coverage for Kids

    CCFadmin

    By Sean Miskell As the expiration of funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) approaches and policy makers consider its role in the new health coverage landscape, it’s a good time to take stock of CHIP coverage and whether or not comparable and affordable coverage is available to families through the new health insurance…

  • How Do Minimum Essential Coverage and Minimum Value Tests Impact Consumers with Employer-Offered Coverage

    Guest

    By JoAnn Volk and Sandy Ahn, Center on Health Insurance Reforms Open enrollment in the Health Insurance Marketplaces overlaps this year with many employer plan open enrollment periods, which has prompted some employees to ask questions about how their offer of employer coverage may affect their eligibility for premium tax credits for a marketplace plan.…

  • A Step Forward For Lawfully Present Immigrants Living in Poverty

    Sonya Schwartz

    It’s no secret that during last year’s open enrollment many applicants for health coverage in immigrant families faced major barriers to enrolling in marketplace coverage. One big problem was that lawfully present immigrants with income under 100 percent FPL—who are ineligible for Medicaid based on their immigration status but are eligible for premium tax credits…

  • The Family Glitch Persists, Affordability Measure Increases to 9.56% in OE2

    Tricia Brooks

    Everyone agrees it’s not fair to families and is an unintended consequence of how the Affordable Care Act is being implemented. But somehow our country’s leaders just cannot reach a consensus on fixing the family glitch. Families caught up in the glitch cannot qualify for premium tax credits to reduce the cost of a marketplace…

  • Kaiser Study: Employer Coverage Remains Steady, But Long Term Trends Highlight Need To Strengthen All Forms Of Coverage

    CCFadmin

    By Sean Miskell Despite concerns that the Affordable Care Act’s reforms would undermine employer –sponsored health insurance, a recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that employer coverage remains steady and premiums have increased only modestly. While this is welcome news, long-term trends that show decreasing employer coverage – and increasing costs for those…

  • Do Nothing to Renew or Get an Updated Eligibility Determination? CMS Puts out Final Marketplace Renewal Rules

    Tricia Brooks

    CMS has adopted the proposed rules for QHP renewal and redetermination of premium tax credits published with very few changes. As I wrote in this blog, the good news is that the final rules provide an opportunity for consumers to be automatically re-enrolled in the same or a similar plan without taking action. The downside…

  • “Peace of Mind”: professional dancers, the ACA, and affordable coverage

    CCFadmin

    Professional dancers push their bodies for years to meet the physical demands of their work, which makes access to health insurance a high priority for these performing artists. A recent Kaiser Health News article examined the issue of health insurance affordability and access through the lens of a ballet dancer, highlighting the peace of mind…

  • MACPAC: Extend CHIP, Address Affordability and Adequacy of Children’s Coverage

    Elisabeth Wright Burak

    Those of us in the child health world know an important topic for the coming year is the future of CHIP and whether funding will be extended beyond September 2015. We at CCF are convinced it is necessary for CHIP to remain strong and stable alongside Medicaid for the foreseeable future to maintain our nation’s…

  • Bill to Address Family Glitch Introduced in the Senate

    CCFadmin

    By Joe Touschner The family glitch is well known to many Say Ahhh! readers:  Children and spouses of workers are barred from subsidies to purchase health insurance if employer coverage for the worker is deemed affordable and is offered—at any price—to the family. CCF, along with other organizations, encouraged the Treasury Department back in 2011…