Marketplace
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Alphabet Soup: ACOs under ACA
By Joe Touschner We’ve long been familiar with CHIP and FMAP, while health reform has given us PPACA (ACA for short) and CLASS. You’ve probably also heard a lot recently about ACOs–Accountable Care Organizations which may be the concept of the year for many of our friends in the physician, hospital, and insurance communities. (Atul…
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Colorado Takes Step to Eliminate ‘Stair Step’
By Gretchen Hammer, Colorado Coalition for the Medically Underserved Some people say stair stepping is good for your health. Well, that may be true when you are exercising, but it is not true for families with children enrolled in public health insurance programs in Colorado. Currently, a Colorado family can have kids on two different…
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HHS Engages Communities to Address Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
HHS’s National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities (a project of the Office of Minority Health) recently hosted a conference call announcing a new new initiative focused on reducing health disparities in the U.S. The National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equity was developed after engaging communities across the country around the priorities and…
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90/10 Rule is Final: Time to Upgrade to a More Reliable & Efficient Model
Remember driving an older model car that generally got you from point A to point B but not without stalling at a traffic light or having the heater cut out in the dead of winter? That‘s a bit like the old, tired legacy systems currently being used to determine eligibility for Medicaid (and other programs)…
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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…
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A Closer Look at Florida’s Medicaid Program
The Florida legislature is in the midst of a hot and heavy debate about the future of the state’s Medicaid program. One of the key questions being discussed is whether or not to expand the state’s controversial Section 1115 Medicaid waiver across the state and across all populations. The waiver is coming to the end…
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Legislative Attacks on ACA Continue
There was a lot of bark but not much bite this week in Congress surrounding the Affordable Care Act. In a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, HHS Secretary Sebelius once again defended the ACA against attacks from opponents, including one who was concerned that it was “too popular”. Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) reassured the Secretary of…
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Utah and MA health exchanges: Not Opposite Sides of Coin
By Joan Alker and Sabrina Corlette, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute A sad reality of working on health care policy at the moment is the incredible politicization of the debate. This climate has the unfortunate byproduct of obstructing compromise and preventing constructive dialogue about different approaches states may take to implementing the Affordable Care Act. Along…
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NAIC Delays Vote on Removing Broker’s Commissions from MLR
There’s been lots of drama at this year’s first meeting of the NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners) in Austin, TX – way more than any of us consumer representatives to the NAIC expected. The good news, as you may have heard by now, is that the NAIC decided to delay a vote to endorse…
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A Look Back: Why ACA Was Needed From A Young Person’s Perspective
By Aaron Smith, Co-Founder of Young Invincibles As we reach the one-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, it is important to remember why we fought so hard for this historic law in the first place. What was so necessary and urgent about health care reform that it compelled ordinary Americans to take up this grueling…
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On the Anniversary of the ACA: A Family Perspective on What It Means for Kids
By Jocelyn Guyer As communities across the nation celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, CCF marked the event in its traditional style – by issuing an issue brief. It has the facts about how the Affordable Care Act will affect children, but also stories from families whose children have personally been touched…
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For the Coverage of a Child – Coverage for Parents
By Martha Heberlein As we look ahead to full implementation of the Affordable Care Act, coverage for children has reached an all-time high, with 90% having secured coverage. Despite that good news, it still means 7.3 million remain without insurance and 65% of them are already eligible for Medicaid and CHIP but not yet enrolled. While there…
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Early Wins for Children on the One-Year Anniversary of Health Reform: Family Perspectives
March 23, 2011 marked the one-year anniversary of the signing of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). There have been early wins for children and their families, even though many of the major provisions do not go into effect until January 2014. This issue brief highlights families from across the country whose children have personally been…
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MACPAC Report Tops My “Must-Read” List
By Martha Heberlein MACPAC (the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission) issued its first mandated report to Congress on March 15th. For those who may get their acronyms muddled, MACPAC was established through CHIPRA and expanded and funded through the ACA. MACPAC (like its long-running sister commission, MedPAC, (which focuses on Medicare) provides technical assistance, policy…
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Waiving Hello to State Innovation?
By Joe Touschner In a continued push to show that states have flexibility under the Affordable Care Act, the Departments of Health and Human Services and the Treasury this week proposed rules for states to apply for innovation waivers under section 1332 of the ACA. Under current law, states could negotiate a waiver of ACA…
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Commonwealth Survey Underscores Need to Move Forward on ACA and Hold Steady on Medicaid & CHIP
A survey released today by the Commonwealth Fund underscores the need for states to hold steady in their commitment to health insurance programs such as Medicaid and CHIP while families struggle to find solid footing in the aftermath of the recession. It also provides solid evidence that 2014 and full implementation of the Affordable Care…
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Health Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Mandatory Spending in Affordable Care Act
You need to look no further than the uncertainty about FY 2011 funding being hobbled together through a series of short-term continuing resolutions and threats of a government shutdown to understand why mandatory funding is necessary to create a stable funding stream for essential programs that improve the health and well-being of America’s children and…
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New Tools for New Times: Using Cell Phones to Help Families Enroll and Stay Enrolled in Health Insurance
Mobile Technology: Smart Tools to Increase Participation in Health Coverage.
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ACA Can Build Upon CHIPRA Success by Improving Maternity Care
By Amanda Jezek, March of Dimes Health reform has the potential to provide tremendous opportunities to expand health insurance coverage, but what many people do not realize is that the new law also makes significant investments designed to improve the quality of health care — particularly in Medicaid. These provisions are critical in making sure…
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The Massachusetts and Utah Health Insurance Exchanges: Lessons Learned
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires states to set-up health insurance exchanges. Once up and running, exchanges are expected to connect approximately 29 million people to coverage. Their design should help individuals and small businesses shop for and purchase health insurance, access premium and cost-sharing subsidies, and facilitate health plan competition based…