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A Tenth Anniversary Health Wonk Review at Health Business Blog

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Health Business Blog was one of the sites we used to read even before we started our own blog in 2006 – and we’ve been reading it ever since.  It’s turning ten this weekend (where does the time go?!) and to celebrate, David hosted the Health Wonk Review this week.   There are lots of great… Read more about A Tenth Anniversary Health Wonk Review at Health Business Blog

Gaming Obamacare isn’t as easy as it sounds

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Yesterday, The Federalist published an article titled Five Easy Ways To Game Obamacare.  It’s an interesting article, but we thought it might be helpful to add detail about some of the problems with the strategies mentioned. Gaming Obamacare may turn out to be more costly and difficult than you imagine. Buy nine, get three free The idea here is that… Read more about Gaming Obamacare isn’t as easy as it sounds

Create a special enrollment period for those who file taxes after February 15 and owe a penalty

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Open enrollment ended yesterday, but there are widespread extensions in most exchanges through the end of this week or even the end of the month in some states.  Connect for Health Colorado shared a tweet and facebook update Sunday evening, clarifying that for anyone who had begun the enrollment process but didn’t have it finished by… Read more about Create a special enrollment period for those who file taxes after February 15 and owe a penalty

Take heart – there’s plenty of good stuff in this HWR

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Peggy Salvatore hosted the Valentine’s Day edition of the Health Wonk Review, and you don’t want to miss it.  Here are some of my favorites in this week’s HWR: Writing at Health Affairs, Ron Pollack from Families USA demonstrates the ways that the context of the ACA clearly makes subsidies available in every state.  SCOTUS is… Read more about Take heart – there’s plenty of good stuff in this HWR

Out-of-network care, emergencies, and balance billing

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A couple years ago, I wrote a post about balance billing from out-of-network providers in emergency situations.  Then a few days ago, we got an email from a reader who wondered if anything had changed since then, as her husband had been in a car accident and the emergency department physician was out-of-network, despite the ED… Read more about Out-of-network care, emergencies, and balance billing

Cost of Obamacare is 20% less than we thought

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Good news!  The cost of Obamacare is less than we thought.  Yesterday, the CBO released their comprehensive ten-year budget and economic outlook report.  It’s 177 pages, and addresses all aspects of the federal budget and deficit, including Obamacare. Back in 2010, the CBO predicted that the the ACA would cost the federal government $759 billion in… Read more about Cost of Obamacare is 20% less than we thought

Kicking off 2015 with the latest from all the wonks

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Vince Kuraitis hosted the first Health Wonk Review of 2015 – the “shake the winter blahs” edition – at his eCareManagement Blog, and it’s full of great articles.  Some of my favorites in this edition: Roy Poses, writing about the “miracle” Hepatitis C drugs and reminding us – as always – to focus on evidence…. Read more about Kicking off 2015 with the latest from all the wonks

Expanding Medicaid was the right move in the 80s and still is today

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When the ACA was signed into law almost five years ago (time flies!), one of its cornerstones was the expansion of Medicaid in every state, to cover everyone with incomes up to 133% of the poverty level (plus a 5% income disregard, which essentially makes the threshold 138% of poverty).  That was to be implemented… Read more about Expanding Medicaid was the right move in the 80s and still is today

Healthcare spending is 17% of GDP; we should expect it to be a major line item in household budgets

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This USA Today article by Laura Ungar and Jayne O’Donnell is well worth reading.  In a nutshell, it’s all about rising deductibles, and the impact they have on consumers’ ability to pay for health care.  The facts are sobering:  wages have been flat for decades, with the inflation adjusted average hourly wage only increasing by… Read more about Healthcare spending is 17% of GDP; we should expect it to be a major line item in household budgets

Open enrollment should continue into the new year – every year

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The deadline to get a January 1 effective date has passed in Colorado and in most of the rest of the country (in six states you can still enroll and get coverage effective January 1).  And that means that millions of people had their coverage automatically renewed on December 15. In the 37 states that… Read more about Open enrollment should continue into the new year – every year

Connect for Health Colorado glitch shows catastrophic plans to 30-year-olds

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SEE UPDATES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST Yesterday, while running quotes for a client who turned 30 a few months ago, we noticed that Catastrophic plans were showing up for him in the quoting tool on Connect for Health Colorado.  Catastrophic plans are a provision of the ACA, and are an extra level of… Read more about Connect for Health Colorado glitch shows catastrophic plans to 30-year-olds

Make sure to know about cost sharing reduction plan eligibility

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We’re more than two weeks into open enrollment now, and things are humming along – certainly compared with the first couple weeks of open enrollment last year.  In the first two weeks, the exchange has enrolled nearly ten thousand people, including renewals and new enrollees.  But keep in mind that the time frame is shortened… Read more about Make sure to know about cost sharing reduction plan eligibility

The five improvements I’d make to the ACA and its implementation

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It’s open enrollment time again, and happily, this one is certainly off to a better start than last year.  The downside is that there’s only a month between the start of open enrollment and the December 15 enrollment deadline for people who need their new coverage to be effective January 1 (this is the case… Read more about The five improvements I’d make to the ACA and its implementation

The skinny on Colorado health plan cancellations

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Earlier this month, Colorado Insurance Commissioner Marguerite Salazar sent a letter to Colorado’s Senate Minority Leader, detailing the upcoming policy cancellations in Colorado.  For 18,909 plan members, these policy cancellations are the result of a voluntary decision by the carriers.  For another 3,849 for SeeChange small group members, the cancellation is happening because California has… Read more about The skinny on Colorado health plan cancellations

Health Wonk Review – the falling leaves edition

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Welcome to the Falling Leaves edition of the Health Wonk Review!  Grab your pumpkin-flavored whatever and pull up a chair – we’ve got lots of good stuff from the health wonks this week.  The election is coming – don’t forget to vote! – and so is open enrollment, so there’s lots to talk about when… Read more about Health Wonk Review – the falling leaves edition

Colorado’s Senate Candidates Mark Udall and Cory Gardner on Contraceptives

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Mark Udall and Cory Gardner are in a tight senate race right now, and one of the issues that has come up in several ads is contraception.  Here’s what women in Colorado  need to know about the two candidates and how their positions would impact our access to contraceptives: Udall supports the ACA.  One of… Read more about Colorado’s Senate Candidates Mark Udall and Cory Gardner on Contraceptives