This week House Democrats released legislation that aims to improve the Affordable Care Act by adjusting key issues in the law and adding incentives to expand Medicaid in states that did not elect to do so.
This legislation comes before the June 25th vote and expected opening briefs in the Supreme Court case California v. Texas,...National News
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration firmly held its position on overturning the ACA in the case California et al v. Texas et al currently under decision by the United States Supreme Court.
The month of May brought new support to the defendants’ case on several fronts: Wisconsin has joined the defense of the...Arizona News
While the Supreme Court of the United States decides the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Arizona Legislature considers a bill allowing protections for Arizonans with preexisting medical conditions. The bill is being advertised as a fail-safe, on the chance that the Trump administration wins its lawsuit against the...CMS Rules
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final payment notice for 2021 last week as the Trump administration finalized a string of regulatory changes to Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace. The agency's rule outlines ACA plan regulations that impact qualified health plans (QHP) for the 2021 coverage...National News
As the Affordable Care Act turns 10 years old, the country looks back on its successes and controversies -- and looks forward to its uncertain future.
One thing most can agree on: it has transformed healthcare in America.
Matt Eyles, the CEO of the lobbying group America’s Health Insurance Plans, spoke with FierceHealthcare...National News
Last Friday, a panel of three judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit questioned Congressional intent in the creation of short-term health insurance plans on the marketplace while trying to determine the legality of the 2018 expansion of short term plans under the Trump Administration.
In Arizona,...National News
Officials in the Trump administration are weighing the possibility of opening a special enrollment period to expand coverage to uninsured persons during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The unemployment rate has spiked due to the coronavirus, leaving anywhere between 500,000 and 5 million people suddenly without insurance. Arizona currently has...National News
On January 21, the Supreme Court denied a motion to expedite a case requesting a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act. The lawsuit, titled both California v. Texas and House of Representatives v. Texas, is an effort by the Texas plaintiffs to argue that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in its entirety should be repealed due to a provision...Arizona News
Religious organizations can already opt-out of providing birth control coverage without a copay to employees, as mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but the Trump administration wants to expand the exemption to a wider audience of businesses and organizations.
President Trump campaigned on employers' ability to withhold...National News
If the US Supreme Court agrees to hear the case during its current session, it could make its decision before the 2020 presidential election.
We’re asking the Supreme Court to swiftly resolve this repeal lawsuit for the sake of saving lives and ending uncertainty in our healthcare system.
The pressure follows the ruling by the...National News
In a 2-1 decision by a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans, the court concluded that requiring Americans to have health insurance was unconstitutional, but the panel did not take up other provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and instead returned the case to the federal district judge in...National News
On Sunday The Washington Post reported on the issue of senior mobility in hospitals and the ways in which this contributes to the cycles of readmission for disabled senior care.
The Post tells a sort of a woman named Dorothy Twigg who was admitted to a hospital shortly following a fall and was subsequently confined to a hospital bed...National News
The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights (OCR) under the Trump Administration is attempting to rewrite a 2016 Obama ruling that bans discrimination against transgender patients. The proposed rule announced on May 24 would make it easier for medical providers to deny care or coverage to transgender people for...National News
In a surprise move, the DOJ has changed its stance on Texas v Azar and is "not urging any portion of the district court's judgement be reversed" but, in Dec. 2018 the agency told the court that while it agreed the individual mandate was not valid it would defend other parts of the Affordable Care Act, just not community rating and...Arizona News
In the midst of a suit brought on by 12 Democratic attorney generals against the Trump administration, the President last week bragged about his new health plans and said they are already generating "record business."
Available to the public Sept. 1, the association health plans take a jab at the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which...Arizona News
A federal appellate court ruled last week that the federal government does not have to pay health insurers billions of dollars owed.
These payments were built into the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as a way to offer insurers protection from gains or losses on an exchange that was uncharted territory for insurers, according to Fierce...National News
On Tuesday, U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) released a new rule focused on making healthcare more attainable for small businesses. The rule allows small businesses and those self-employed to shop for joint health insurance depending on location or industry.
This final rule regulating association health plans is supported by Trump...National News
The uninsured rate and uncompensated care are expected to climb, impacting insurance rates for Americans and disproportional share hospitals (DSH). The Republican tax-reform bill clears penalties related to the individual and employer mandates. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) gets a promise from congressional leaders that bills...National News
CMS and Mark Farrah Associates looked at the impact of the different programs the ACA put in place to mitigate adverse selection and stabilize premiums.
Risk corridors, reinsurance and risk adjustment were the "Three R's" of the ACA. Only the risk adjustment program is permanent. It deters insurers from manipulating risk selection...National News
Insurance industry lists changes that can support the markets.
Since attempts to stabilize the individual market through legislation are at an impasse, major insurance companies, including Centene, Cigna and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, say there are things that can be done by HHS administratively to bolster the...
