Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
After Year-Long Delay, Small Business Health Exchange Goes Live In Five States
The Obama administration has opened a new health-insurance portal to small businesses in five states after a yearlong delay of the Affordable Care Act鈥檚 online marketplace for small-employer health plans. The exchange, which was shelved last year amid mounting technical problems, quietly went live for the first time over the weekend in Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey and Ohio. Companies in those states that have fewer than 50 full-time workers can start using the site now to buy insurance for workers for 2015. (Radnofsky, 10/27)
Businesses in five states received early access Monday to select features at ObamaCare's online health insurance marketplace for small employers. The soft launch for the SHOP system is an effort by federal health officials to troubleshoot any problems at the exchange before Nov. 15, when it will open to all states that did not elect to build their marketplaces. (Viebeck, 10/27)
