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The federal government shelled out billions of dollars to get health insurance marketplaces going in the 14 states that opted to run their own. Now they must act like true marketplaces and start paying for themselves. Under President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act, state-run health insurance exchanges need to be financially self-sustaining starting in January. Some appear to be on that path, while others have shaky funding models or even none at all. (Niedowski, 11/23)

President Obama's new immigration overhaul could increase Latino enrollment under his signature health law by reducing the threat of deportation and making more Californians comfortable signing up for coverage they already qualify to get. Over time, the initiative may also pave the way for more Californians to become eligible for state-funded Medi-Cal coverage. Friday, state officials were noncommittal about that idea, and said they would have to assess the effect of the president's immigration proposal. (Terhune and Brown, 11/22)

In the first week of open enrollment, 2,659 new customers signed up for private insurance plans and 8,945 people signed up for Medicaid through Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance exchange. The figures include people who had not previously had coverage through Access Health. The exchange did not release the number of people who currently have coverage through the exchange and signed up for 2015 coverage. (Levin Becker, 11/21)

The first week of the second enrollment period for the federal health insurance marketplace established by the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, is nearing an end. Yet despite the endless controversies dogging the program, at least one person believes the legislation is meeting a lot of its goals. "We've improved access," said Dr. Kenneth Davis, CEO of New York's Mount Sinai Health System. "There are more patients than there were ever before." (Kramer, 11/22)

People renewing health insurance bought on the Affordable Care Act exchange are seeing higher rate increases in Charlotte and North Carolina than most places across the country, a flurry of national analyses show. For instance, a Kaiser Family Foundation look at the largest city in each state found that only Anchorage, Alaska, had higher rates and bigger increases than Charlotte. North Carolina’s results vary with studies using different methods, but the state consistently comes out high. Enrollment for 2015 began Nov. 15 and runs through Feb. 15. As national policy analysts began crunching numbers, local customers got a look at their new rates. (Doss Helms, 11/21)

Brooke and Andrew Lee can't imagine being without health insurance. So for the past seven years, that's meant digging deep into the earnings of their video production agency in St. Petersburg. It’s expensive, but Brooke Lee says the alternative is worse. They would love to have company benefits and are curious about a feature of the Affordable Care Act called the Small Business Health Options Program, or SHOP. It offers tax credits for up to half of the premium costs an employer covers. (Shedden, 11/21)