Although I typically focus my articles on issues that directly impact the Colorado health insurance market, I recently read an article in the Jackson, MS Clarion Ledger and felt compelled to address some of the issues it presents. The article was written in late April, after the open enrollment extension for 2014 had ended. It’s… Read more about ACA articles that lack details are often more spin than reality
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Ways the ACA Could Be Improved Edition of the Health Wonk Review
In Colorado, the snow is melting and the flowers are blooming. The health wonks around the blog world have given us an excellent collection of articles this week, many with suggestions of ways the ACA could be improved. Our favorite part of hosting the HWR is reading all of the different perspectives that the writers… Read more about Ways the ACA Could Be Improved Edition of the Health Wonk Review
Short term health insurance is your best option if you missed open enrollment
Short term health insurance plans don’t have an open enrollment period Short term health insurance plans may be the best option if you missed open enrollment and you don’t have a qualifying event. Get short term health insurance quotes Qualifying events include marriage, divorce, birth, adoption, moving to a new area where different plans are… Read more about Short term health insurance is your best option if you missed open enrollment
ACA here to stay, workplace safety, and a decrease in inpatient care
Billy Wynne hosted the most recent edition of the Health Wonk Review, and it’s excellent. Billy’s website, Healthcare Lighthouse, is an excellent resource that I found thanks to this HWR – check it out if you haven’t already. Some of my favorite articles in this edition come from Wendell Potter, Julie Ferguson and Brad Flansbaum…. Read more about ACA here to stay, workplace safety, and a decrease in inpatient care
Colorado making great progress covering the uninsured and underinsured
Last November, the 2013 Colorado Health Access Survey was released with a variety of updated data, including the number of Colorado residents who were uninsured in 2013: about 741,000. That was down from 829,000 two years earlier, but is still 14% of our state population. And it doesn’t include the people who are considered underinsured… Read more about Colorado making great progress covering the uninsured and underinsured
Connect for Health Colorado Updates On The End Of Open Enrollment for Health Insurance in 2014
Back in October, six months probably seemed like plenty of time to have open enrollment for health insurance in 2014. And for all the procrastinators out there – you know who you are! – there was always tomorrow. But we’re now down to just one week remaining in open enrollment. The good news is that… Read more about Connect for Health Colorado Updates On The End Of Open Enrollment for Health Insurance in 2014
Health Wonk Review at Wright on Health
Brad Wright hosted the most recent Health Wonk Review at his excellent blog, Wright on Health, and it’s a must-read. Or in some cases, a must-watch. Check out healthpolicy.tv, a resource submitted to the HWR by Jared Rhoads. Plenty of good stuff on there, with viewpoints from a variety of political perspectives. And also don’t… Read more about Health Wonk Review at Wright on Health
Wouldn’t it be more efficient to spread ACA open enrollment across the whole year?
As we head into the final few weeks of open enrollment, there’s likely to be a surge of applications both on an off the exchange. And that means an uptick in phone calls to carriers and brokers, ID cards and policies being mailed out, premium payments being processed… all of the things that go along… Read more about Wouldn’t it be more efficient to spread ACA open enrollment across the whole year?
All The Risk That’s Fit To Print
Bob Wilson did a great job with this week’s Cavalcade of Risk, hosted at his Worker’s Compensation site. Lots of great stuff in this edition, so be sure to check it out. I particularly liked David Williams’ post about CVS and tobacco sales. I was happy to see the news recently that CVS was ditching… Read more about All The Risk That’s Fit To Print
Connect for Health Colorado Exceeding Enrollment Targets
By February 17, Connect for Health Colorado had enrolled 79,779 people in private health insurance plans, and another 128,219 in Medicaid. Prior to the start of open enrollment, CMS published monthly enrollment targets for each state – based on those numbers, Colorado’s target for the end of February was 73,600 people enrolled in private plans…. Read more about Connect for Health Colorado Exceeding Enrollment Targets
If You Read One Thing Today, Pick an Article That Debunks An ACA “Horror Story”. Here Are Two…
David Harlow’s “In like a lion” edition of the Health Wonk Review is full of great articles – be sure to head over and check it out. My favorites in this edition include posts from Joe Paduda, Wendell Potter and Maggie Mahar. Joe gives us a great summary update of what’s going on with Obamacare…. Read more about If You Read One Thing Today, Pick an Article That Debunks An ACA “Horror Story”. Here Are Two…
Understanding Drug Formularies On New Individual Health Insurance Plans In Colorado
Colorado residents only: Compare how each health insurance company covers your medication with our exclusive Colorado prescription drug formulary transparency tool. Opponents of the ACA have raised the issue of drug formularies as a negative aspect of the new ACA-compliant plans, complaining that the new plans won’t cover all of the medications people need. Just like many of their… Read more about Understanding Drug Formularies On New Individual Health Insurance Plans In Colorado
Valentine’s Day HWR – Something for Everyone
Steve Anderson hosted the “Be Mine” edition of the Health Wonk Review this week, just in time for Valentine’s Day. He put a lot of love into it, so make sure you check it out! My picks for most interesting reads in this HWR are Joe Paduda’s post about the newly-proposed GOP alternative to the… Read more about Valentine’s Day HWR – Something for Everyone
Connect for Health Colorado Enrollment Update And Upcoming Deadlines
Between December 29 and January 31, Connect for Health Colorado enrolled 19,502 people in private qualified health plans. When HHS released their December report last month, Colorado’s total enrollment in QHPs was just over 50,000 people. That number had climbed to nearly 70,000 people by the end of January. Total enrollment at the end of… Read more about Connect for Health Colorado Enrollment Update And Upcoming Deadlines
It’s Not Just About Supply And Demand For Labor – The ACA Makes Life Better, Increases Choices
Last week, the CBO released a report that sent the internet into paroxysms of spin. Initially – and much to the delight of ACA opponents – numerous media outlets reported that the CBO was predicting a loss of more than 2 million jobs over the next decade as a result of the ACA. Then they… Read more about It’s Not Just About Supply And Demand For Labor – The ACA Makes Life Better, Increases Choices
Future Healthcare Expenses Will Not Necessarily Mirror Past Expenses
I recently wrote an article responding to the Americans for Prosperity video about Emilie Lamb that has been making its way around the internet. I spoke with Emilie and took a good look at the plan she used to have, comparing it with her new Platinum plan. To sum it up, her old plan was… Read more about Future Healthcare Expenses Will Not Necessarily Mirror Past Expenses
The ACA getting the job done, and a great Health Wonk Review
Brad Wright hosted the latest Health Wonk Review over at Wright on Health, and it’s full of great stuff. First, congratulations to Brad on the recent expansion of his blog team! His site has always been stellar, and now it’s growing from two writers to four, with expanded topics and coverage of healthcare issues. And… Read more about The ACA getting the job done, and a great Health Wonk Review
What to look for when comparing Connect for Health Colorado plans
Many of the health insurance regulations in the ACA have made it easier to compare apples to apples in the individual health insurance market. There are no more “junk” plans with low benefit maximums or major holes in the coverage. All policies cover maternity (although that has been the case in Colorado since 2011). Preventive care is covered before the deductible with no copays or coinsurance. All policies must cover the essential health benefits with no annual or lifetime maximums (there can still be limits on the number of visits for some treatments). And all policies must have out-of-pocket maximums of no more than $6350 ($12,700 family) in 2014.
Other than Catastrophic plans, which are available for people under 30 and those who have a hardship exemption from the exchange, which includes people who had a 2013 policy that was terminated in December, all policies available in Connect for Health Colorado (and off-exchange too) fall into one of four categories: bronze, silver, gold or platinum (virtually all of them are bronze, silver or gold though). Also, Catastrophic plans aren’t significantly less expensive in Colorado. The designation is based on the actuarial value of each policy. Bronze plans cover roughly 60% of costs; silver, 70%; gold, 80%; and platinum, 90%. After the maximum out-of-pocket is met, all policies cover 100% of covered costs (with some rare exceptions, such as policies that put an annual limit on the number of covered visits for services like home healthcare and skilled nursing).
But comparing apples to apples still takes quite a bit of reading. Within each metal level, there’s a wide variety of different plans available from the many different carriers offering policies in the exchange (Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Colorado HealthOP, Elevate by Denver Health, Humana, Kaiser Permanente, Rocky Mountain Health Plans, United Health). Networks vary considerably, but so do the plan designs
Our Glass Is Half Full And We Like It That Way
David Williams hosted a great Health Wonk Review this week, and it was interesting to see how he divided the articles into optimistic and pessimistic viewpoints, with one section for “glass half full” articles, and another for the “glass half empty” ones. It’s a reminder that there are always different ways of looking at the… Read more about Our Glass Is Half Full And We Like It That Way
Carrier Contact Information And Updates For People Who Need To Pay January’s Premium
Today, January 10th, is the payment deadline for most Connect for Health Colorado policies with January 1 effective dates. A few carriers have pushed the deadline out a little bit: Updated Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield is moving the payment deadline to 1/31 for 1/1 effective dates. Delta Dental: January 15. Premier Access Dental… Read more about Carrier Contact Information And Updates For People Who Need To Pay January’s Premium
Do Not Assume Your Provider Network Will Be The Same As It Was Last Year
A description of PPO, HMO, EPO and a search tools for all carriers is available here. EDIT 2/18/14: Connect for Health Colorado updates the provider directory once per month. It is possible therefore that the list may not be up-to-date at all times. If you have questions, you can call your carrier directly, or contact… Read more about Do Not Assume Your Provider Network Will Be The Same As It Was Last Year
Kicking Off 2014 With A Great Risk Round Up
Michael Stack from Workers’ Comp Resource Center hosted the first Cavalcade of Risk for 2014, full of lots of good risk-related articles. If you’re looking for a really interesting read, I recommend David Williams’ post about medical child abuse and a case that has pitted Boston’s Children’s hospital against a patient’s parents. David links to… Read more about Kicking Off 2014 With A Great Risk Round Up
Updates For Colorado Residents Enrolling In Exchange Plans After December 23
Connect for Health Colorado is one of only five exchanges that extended the enrollment deadline for a January 1 effective date out beyond Christmas Eve. If you’re in Colorado, you have until the end of the day today (December 27) to enroll in a plan and get a January 1 start date. If you enroll… Read more about Updates For Colorado Residents Enrolling In Exchange Plans After December 23
Dear Santa: Can you help me pick my favorite entry in a stellar HWR?
Julie Ferguson hosted one of the best ever Health Wonk Reviews yesterday at Workers’ Comp Insider. Definitely something for everyone – and lots of holiday cheer – in this “Dear Santa” edition. I had so many favorites that I couldn’t narrow it down to just one or two, so here are my votes for the… Read more about Dear Santa: Can you help me pick my favorite entry in a stellar HWR?
What Is An Essential Health Benefit (EHB)?
Essential Health Benefits (EHBs) are one of the most important aspects of the ACA’s transformation of the individual health insurance market (they also apply in the small group market, but group policies have historically been more benefit-rich than plans sold in the individual market). In the past, insurers were given tremendous leeway in plan design;… Read more about What Is An Essential Health Benefit (EHB)?