Affordability
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Two States On the Path to the Basic Health Program
Both Minnesota and New York are on the path to setting up a Basic Health Program (BHP) that will provide more affordable coverage for low-income families than they may find on the marketplace. Minnesota passed BHP legislation that was signed into law in May 2013. In New York, BHP was included in the Governor’s budget…
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Handling Premiums with Care in Medicaid, CHIP and the Marketplace
In my former life as a CHIP director, I came to appreciate how tough it is for low-income families to make ends meet. In the hierarchy of needs, I think we all agree that paying the rent and utilities, putting food on the table, and making sure you can show up for work by having…
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One Step Closer to the Basic Health Program
While many of us have our focus on health coverage that begins on January 1, 2014, I am also keeping my eye on a new option for states to provide more affordable coverage to low-income parents and other adults that starts on January 1, 2015. Right before Thanksgiving, we filed comments on the Basic Health…
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Finding Information on 2014 Premiums and Tax Credits
By Joe Touschner As the Administration continues to improve Healthcare.gov, families, consumer assisters, advocates, and others may be looking for other sources of information about what plans will be available through marketplaces in 2014 and what they will cost after taking premium tax credits into account. Fortunately, there are some resources available from HHS and…
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Delaying the Individual Mandate is a Bad Idea
The Urban Institute released a handy explainer this week, detailing why proposals to delay the individual mandate are a bad idea. Proponents of such a delay argue that if the Obama Administration delayed the employer mandate, they should also delay the individual mandate. However, unlike the employer mandate, the individual mandate is like a leg on a three-legged stool.…
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While Premium Growth has Slowed, Annual Employer Survey Shows a Mixed Bag for Lower-Wage Workers
By Martha Heberlein The good news: Premium growth in 2012 was a modest 4% by historical standards, according to the annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust Employer Health Benefits Survey. But there’s much room for progress, especially for lower-income families. Over the last decade, the average premium for family coverage has increased 80%.…
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Response to Sticker Shock: More Expensive Than What?
Whenever I read stories about the sticker shock that may hit some consumers when the Affordable Care Act takes effect, it reminds me that buying insurance can be more mystifying than buying a new car. There have been so many jalopies being sold in “mint condition” in the wild west of the insurance market for…
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Health Reform at Work – Lower Rates in New York
By Christine Monahan, Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms New Yorkers currently or considering purchasing coverage in the individual market woke up to exciting news today: premiums in 2014 are expected to be cut by more than half. And that’s for the most generous coverage on the market. New Yorkers will also be able to purchase…
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Our Initial Take on Today’s Final Medicaid, CHIP, Exchange Rule
I’m holding the fort down at CCF while most of my colleagues get a few well-deserved days off. But unfortunately that means I drew the short straw for a first look at final Medicaid and Exchange regulations released on this hot, humid day wedged between a national holiday and what could be a long weekend.…
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Figuring Out Premium Tax Credits
By Joe Touschner [For more up-to-date information on figuring out premium tax credits, visit Consumer Reports health tax credit tool or state specific brochures. Kaiser Family Foundation has also updated its subsidy calculator.] Insurers have been filing small group and non-group rates in several states recently, leading to claims and counter-claims about whether the ACA…
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Vermont Preliminary Rate Filings Offers First Look at Exchange Pricing
By Christine Monahan, Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms In the midst of much analysis of the impact of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on health insurance premiums, Vermont became the first state to release preliminary rate filings for plans to be sold in their health insurance exchange in 2014. The good news is that people generally haven’t…
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Diving Deep on Two New Rate Studies
By Christine Monahan and Katie Keith, Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms With many of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) most significant reforms expected to go into effect in 2014, policymakers and the media have increasingly turned their attention to the law’s price tag for consumers. Republican lawmakers, for example, sounded the alarm about…
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New Options for Young Invincibles
By Christina Postolowski, Young Invincibles The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will provide enormous new benefits to young Americans – in fact, it already has. Last month, Gallup released a poll showing that the uninsured rate for young adults under 26 decreased yet again, a drop of six percent since 2009. The drop is due in…
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Replacing ARKids First with Exchange Coverage Would Put Children – and Arkansas’s Success – at Risk
Like most health policy folks, I have been watching developments in my home state of Arkansas with much interest. Recent media reports have discussed interest among state leaders to use Medicaid to purchase plans on the exchange, also known as the marketplace that will make private insurance available to many uninsured Arkansans starting next year…
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Most Important Issues for Children in the New Proposed Rule on Medicaid, CHIP and Exchanges
By Jocelyn Guyer After an intensive few weeks spent lugging around binders filled with the latest proposed rule on Medicaid and CHIP, we’ve finally done it! Here is our very best shot at a concise(ish) list of the top issues of concern for kids in the proposed rule. Comments are due this Thursday and, if…
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Proposed Rules Shed Light on Individual Mandate Exceptions
By Joe Touschner and Tara Mancini As highlighted in the Supreme Court case, we all know that the Affordable Care Act includes a tax on those who choose not to maintain health insurance coverage starting next year. New rules from the federal government spell out just who will face that tax—and more importantly, who won’t.…
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Premiums for Employer-Sponsored Coverage Increase Modestly, but Lower-Income Workers Pay More
By Martha Heberlein The annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust survey of employer health benefits was released today and found that the average premium for family based coverage rose to $15,745, or just 4% compared to 2011 (premiums for individual plans rose 3%). Although moderate, this growth has far out-paced workers wages, which…
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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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Blended Match Rate Proposal Raises Red Flags
By Jocelyn Guyer Last week just as Representative Cantor was making his dramatic exit from deficit reduction talks with Vice President Biden, rumors started to emerge that the idea of adopting a “blended matching rate” for Medicaid and CHIP was gaining currency. The Obama Administration first put forth the idea in a deficit reduction proposal…
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Senate Approves Bill to Change ACA’s 1099 Reporting Requirements
The Senate passed H.R. 4 today to remove the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced 1099 reporting requirements. President Obama has not yet indicated whether or not he will sign the bill into law. The White House supports the bill’s goal of eliminating the enhanced reporting requirements for businesses but has expressed concerns about the offset that was included…