Early last week the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a decision stating Congress can review and overturn Trump Administration guidance regarding Section 1332 waivers, or innovation waivers, that have loosened Affordable Care Act restrictions and opened gateways for states to overhaul individual exchanges.
An October...Arizona News
Sen. Bernie Sanders took another blow to his controversial single-payer proposal “Medicare-for-All” as presidential candidate front-runner Joe Biden unsurprisingly shows solidarity with Obama by offering an expansion of the Affordable Care Act as a government healthcare solution.
On paper, Biden’s plan is significantly more...Arizona News
A panel of three federal judges for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard 90 minutes of oral arguments on Tuesday defending or refuting a Texas district judges ruling of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as unconstitutional in December. Millions of Americans depending on the ACA for healthcare are at risk of losing coverage if the...Arizona News
The lawsuit calling into question the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) constitutionality brought on by 20 red state attorneys general has made its way back into the limelight after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals asked parties involved in Texas v. United States to address three questions sent out by the office of the clerk last...Arizona News
Scrutiny on healthcare policy is intensifying following recent warnings from House Democrats against Affordable Care Act (ACA) changes, citing an internal memo sent by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma to Health & Human Services Secretary Alex Azar in August.
The memo from Verma...National News
Healthcare-sharing ministries serve as an alternative to traditional health plans where members with common religious beliefs share the cost of care. Currently, more than one million Americans are part of a care ministry.
According to the Wall Street Journal, ministries round up hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and as...Arizona News
The Trump administration finalized a new rule last week, further chipping away at the Obama administration’s healthcare legacy by allowing employers to set aside tax-preferred funds and pay money into employee health reimbursement accounts (HRAs).
Employees can later retrieve that money to purchase healthcare coverage on the...National News
An April report conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlights a lack of transparency in federal review of section 1115 Medicaid waiver proposals. While acknowledging that CMS has made progress toward transparency, the GAO identified areas for improvement and made two specific recommendations. GAO asserts that...National News
It's the second consecutive year the uninsured rate has risen after several years of declines under the Affordable Care Act, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey shows.
Efforts by the Trump administration and Congress to challenge and loosen requirements of the Affordable Care Act probably played a role in some going...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
Net losses shrink as member engagement rises for insurance start-up Oscar Health, according to its year end report released this month. And as telemedicine gains traction in the healthcare space, Oscar is not missing out with a new initiative offering members access to virtual care at anytime and anywhere through its Doctor on Call...National News
Reinsurance and cost sharing reductions (CSRs) are among the top recommendations to stabilize individual markets and lower premiums.
The New Democrat Coalition, a caucus of 101 centrists, wants to work with Republicans to bring down Affordable Care Act (ACA) premiums and reverse the impact of what they consider the Trump...Arizona News
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), statistics on healthcare coverage noted a closure of the gap in the number of people of various races and ethnicity who have health insurance, but a Kaiser Family Foundation brief has highlighted trends indicating that between 2016 and 2017, some groups of color have experienced a stagnation in health...National News
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has granted the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives' petition to intervene in Texas v. Azar, the lawsuit calling into question the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). But the Lousiana-based federal court of appeals denied a request filed by blue states to expedite...Arizona News
A new report coming from the White House argues that the Trump administration's changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) have had a beneficial effect on its marketplace. The Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) report suggests the policy mandate changes actually do not undermine the law. It is an argument against the Democratic claim that...Arizona News
The Trump administration may have met defeat in repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but the steps taken over the last two years to dismantle the legislation prove there are ramifications. The latest Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index, published last week highlighted a 2.8 percentage-point increase since 2016 in the...Arizona News
There may be more health plan choices in individual markets, but narrow networks are squeezing enrollees when it comes to physician choice. An Avalere analysis found that narrow network plans make up almost 75 percent of the exchange market, which means restricted choices when it comes to doctors and hospitals within a health plan's list...Arizona News
A federal judge in Fort Worth, Texas ruled the Affordable Care Act (ACA) unconstitutional on Friday, leaving those enrolled in the ACA uncertain in terms of the law's future. No changes will be made to the 2010 act that is still law as appeals are being filed, the case does have the possibility of reaching the U.S. Supreme...Arizona News
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released four State Empowerment and Relief waiver concepts for states to utilize under the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) section 1332. CMS aims to encourage innovation and reduce burdens with the waivers, an action commended by Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary Alex...Arizona News
Democrats took the House during midterm elections, leaving a divided Congress to take on legislation. Healthcare policies and ideas were big ticket items on the campaign trail and Democrats are eager to implement their plans.
According to a CNN's exit polling, 41 percent of respondents said healthcare was the most important issue...