Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Obamacare Enrollment Is Trending Up, With Almost 50M Onboard Since 2014
Nearly 50 million Americans have been covered by health insurance plans through the Affordable Care Act鈥檚 marketplaces since they opened a decade ago, according to tax data analyzed by the Treasury Department and published on Tuesday. Federal officials said that the findings represent roughly one in seven U.S. residents, a broad swath of the population that underscores the vast, and seemingly irreversible, reach of the 2010 law. (Weiland, 9/10)
Many provisions of the Affordable Care Act are popular and the healthcare reform law has brought the proportion of Americans without healthcare insurance down to an all-time low. As president, Donald Trump backed "repeal and replace" efforts. (Kaplan, 9/9)
麻豆女优 Health News: ACA Enrollment Platforms Suspended Over Alleged Foreign Access To Consumer Data
Suspicions that U.S. consumers鈥 personal information could be accessed from India led regulators to abruptly bar two large private sector enrollment websites from accessing the Affordable Care Act marketplace in August. New details about the suspensions come in legal filings made late Friday stemming from an effort by the two to regain access to the Obamacare marketplace before the upcoming ACA open enrollment period, which starts Nov. 1. (Appleby, 9/10)
Health insurance updates from Florida, Texas, Maryland, Connecticut, Oregon, and California 鈥
Elevance subsidiary Wellpoint is launching new Affordable Care Act plans in Florida, Maryland and Texas, as the health insurer continues investing in an increasingly lucrative business line. (Pifer, 9/9)
The cost of individual health plans sold on and off Connecticut鈥檚 Affordable Care Act Exchange will rise by an average of 5.9% next year, less than insurers聽had requested聽鈥 but an amount still considered 鈥渦naffordable and unsustainable鈥 by the state鈥檚 attorney general when coupled with previous years鈥 increases.聽Small group policies will go up by an average of 7.8%.聽(Carlesso, 9/9)
The price of individual and small business health insurance plans will jump again next year 鈥 and two by double digits that could leave people paying nearly $700 more a year for their monthly premiums. After seeking public comment, officials with the state Division of Financial Regulation said Thursday they approved an average 8% rate hike for individual plans sold on the federal marketplace 鈥 just 1% lower than what the companies requested earlier this year. The division also approved an average 12% rise for small company plans, which basically was what the companies had requested, according to figures published Thursday. (Terry, 9/6)
Proposition 35 asks California voters to make permanent a tax on health insurance providers, also known as managed care organizations. The measure also sets rules around how the state uses the money collected from that tax. California has expanded those who are eligible for Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program. Healthcare providers have complained the state reimburses doctors, nurse practitioners and others too little for providing services to Medi-Cal patients. The measure requires the state to use the money collected from the tax to be used only to reimburse those Medi-Cal providers for primary, specialty and emergency care plus family planning, mental health and prescription drugs. (Zavala, 9/9)