Melanie MacEachern, Author at The Hertel Report

Melanie MacEachern

Freelance writer with skills and knowledge in healthcare policy, reproductive justice and art history. Skilled administrative assistant. Graduated from University of Michigan.

Author's Posts

National News

Medicare Advantage Provider Directory Rocky Rollout - Warnings as Plans for National Provider Directory Continue

The rollout of the Medicare Advantage provider directory is not going especially well, and has now caught the attention of Congress. Regardless, the Trump administration has explored offering contracts for the provider directory to companies like...

Arizona News

Marketplace Open Enrollment Begins, Premiums Spike

The 2026 Open Enrollment Period for the ACA marketplace has officially started, with many Americans facing tough choices amid far higher premiums. In 2025, 25 million Americans received health coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace, but high premiums are expected to run a significant number of prior enrollees off...

Arizona News

U.S., Canada Stand to Lose Measles Elimination Status

Measles cases in a community along the Utah-Arizona border have ballooned in recent weeks; the outbreak in the community of Colorado City is now up to 138 cases with 93 cases on the Arizona side in Mohave County. CBS 8 News Now reports that three people have been hospitalized and four more cases have been confirmed in Navajo County,...

National News

CMS Pursues Claim That Undocumented Immigrants Are Using Medicaid - Asks States to Investigate

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is accusing states of spending billions on healthcare for undocumented immigrants and pursuing policy avenues for remediating that spending. The accused states are pushing back against the federal government's claims. In a social media post last Friday, CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz...

Arizona News

SNAP Benefits Set to Expire, Jeopardizing the Health of Millions of Americans - Arizona AG Joins Suit Against Administration

Nearly one million Arizonans are set to lose food assistance at the end of the week due to the Trump administration's refusal to use the U.S. Department of Agriculture's contingency fund for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). At least 25 states have informed SNAP recipients that they won't receive checks for the...

Arizona News

Medicare Advantage Provider Networks Far More Limited than Traditional Medicare

A new study shows that Medicare Advantage physician networks pale in comparison to traditional Medicare, but the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is pushing ahead with plans to make traditional Medicare look more like Medicare Advantage. Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in both programs report that physician...

White Papers, E books, Reports and more

Learning Collaborative for Medicaid Managed Long-Term Care Services and Supports

The National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) recently ran a learning collaborative for 10 participating states as an opportunity to explore and strengthen policies for improving care in Medicaid Managed Long-Term Care Services and Supports (MLTSS) programs. The program allowed states to collaborate through roundtables, monthly...

National News

Medicaid Work Requirement Rules and Tech Tools Remain Elusive As States Prepare for Changes

States must enforce Medicaid work requirements by January 1, 2027, but the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have yet to issue guidance for compliance for states eager to start planning its implementation. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) cuts nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid spending over a decade in part by adding...

ACA Premium Hikes Will Hurt Arizona Workers, Seniors, Health Systems

The federal government shutdown is now approaching a month as Senate Democrats continue to hold out for negotiations to renew subsidies that would bring down 2026 Affordable Care Act (ACA) plan premiums. Premiums are expected to rise by an average of 30% when the open enrollment period begins this Saturday and according to data from...

Arizona News

Commonwealth Fund: 2025 State Medicare Scorecards

Earlier this month, the Commonwealth Fund published its State Scorecard for Medicare Performance, which evaluates each state's infrastructure, access to hospitals, beneficiary access to non-medical supports, regional variety in plan availability, out-of-pocket costs and other critical access of Medicare delivery. The State Scorecard...

White Papers, E books, Reports and more

Commonwealth Fund State Medicare Scorecard: Arizona Ranks 20th

This week, the Commonwealth Fund published its annual State Medicare Scorecard, in which it tallies the strengths and weaknesses of each state's Medicare healthcare infrastructure and beneficiary experience. The scorecard uses the most recent data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, in addition to vital statistics...

White Papers, E books, Reports and more

Milliman Brief: Six Takeaways from 2026 Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Bids

Actuarial consultant Milliman published a post on its major takeaways for the 2026 Medicare Advantage and prescription drug bids. The brief was written in order to elucidate industry and policy changes to key stakeholders, including life sciences companies, since the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) implemented changes to prescription...

Arizona News

Government Shutdown Update: ACA Premiums Set to Spike

As the government shutdown continues with no clear end in sight, the extension of subsidies to stabilize skyrocketing ACA premiums approaches a November 1 deadline, when the open enrollment period (OEP) for 2026 goes live. Meanwhile, other areas of the industry are suffering as the government remains closed. Enhanced subsidies for...

AMA Launches Center for Digital Health and AI

On Monday, the American Medical Association announced a new Center for Digital Health and AI in a push for standards governing the use of AI in healthcare. The AMA, which refers to AI as "augmented intelligence," said that the center intends to tap the "full potential" of new technologies throughout the lifecycle of technological...

National News

Medicare Advantage Market - More SNPs, Less in-Home Supports & Problem Provider Directories

The Medicare Advantage field is changing as costs of care challenge payor and provider participation, and as provider directories on Medicare Plan Finder prove problematic. Wall Street is reportedly disillusioned with the prospect of market growth since the MA industry eclipsed 50% of the Medicare market share. According to Modern...

Arizona News

Rural Health Transformation Program Offers Limited Support for Overburdened Rural Hospitals

States have until November 5 to submit applications for the Rural Health Transformation Program, a $50 billion fund for rural hospitals to support budgets and underwrite infrastructure costs. But the funding is unlikely to be enough to stave off the looming financial crisis brought on by cuts made in this year's landmark spending bill,...

Arizona Rural Health Association Toolkit for Rural Health Transformation Program

As part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, the federal government has pledged to allocate $10 billion per year for five fiscal years to support rural healthcare services. This week, the Center for Rural Health published informational materials on the upcoming Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). The initiative, which...

National News

STUDY: Tax Exempt Hospitals Provided $150 Billion in Community Benefit in 2022

Last month, the American Hospital Association (AHA) published a report demonstrating that tax-exempt hospitals delivered nearly $150 billion in total benefits to their communities in 2022, representing a 50% increase in community benefit spending over the prior five years. The annual study uses Schedule H tax filings and the Community...

Expiration of Enhanced Premium Tax Credits Set to Reduce National Healthcare Spending, Increase Uncompensated Care

Failure to extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits could cause nearly 5 million Americans to become uninsured, which would in turn reduce total healthcare spending by $32.1 billion, according to a study by the Urban Institute. The ACA enhanced premium tax credits (EPTCs) have bolstered Marketplaces since 2021 and are on track to...

National News

Government Shutdown: Trump Administration Issues CDC, SAHMSA RIFs - Mass Firings Blocked by Federal Judge - Medicare Payments to Physicians Paused

As the government shutdown drags on, President Donald Trump has ordered firings of thousands of furloughed federal employees and threatened to further cut "Democrat programs." Additionally, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it will pause Medicare payments to doctors. Late Wednesday, STAT News reported...

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