For the latest monthly roundup of health policy research, CHIR’s Rachel Swindle takes a look at studies published in August on the how the uninsured rate has held steady during the COVID-19 pandemic and expiration of cost-sharing waivers for COVID-19 treatment.
Air ambulances are one of the largest sources of surprise medical bills. While the No Surprises Act would protect patients from balance bills from out-of-network air ambulance providers, another federal law – the Airline Deregulation Act – could raise questions about states’ authority to enforce these consumer protections. CHIR’s Madeline O’Brien and Jack Hoadley describe a federal advisory committee’s recommendations to resolve potential conflicts.
The Biden administration has proposed several policy changes designed to boost enrollment in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. In the third post of a 3-part blog series, JoAnn Volk and Nia Gooding review comments submitted by several consumer and patient advocacy groups. Prior posts reviewed comments from health insurers and state marketplace and insurance officials.
In the newly proposed 2022 “Notice of Benefit & Payment Parameters” the Biden Administration is reversing course on a number of policies that impact the ACA marketplaces. In the second of a three-part series, CHIR’s Megan Houston reviewed public comments from insurers about the proposed rule. Reviews of comments from consumer organizations will follow.
The Biden administration is signaling significant changes for the Affordable Care Act marketplaces with its proposed 2022 “Notice of Benefit & Payment Parameters.” In the first of a three-part series, CHIR’s Rachel Schwab and Rachel Swindle reviewed public comments from state insurance departments and marketplaces about the impact of the new policies. Reviews of comments from insurers and consumer organizations will follow.
In the second quarter of 2020 insurers made significant profits in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, insurers are struggling to balance the increased demand from deferred care and the costs associated with COVID-19 as the delta variant surges across the country. CHIR’s Megan Houston reviewed findings from the second quarter earnings reports to see what executives were telling investors about their predictions.
We’re delighted to welcome to the CHIR team our newest colleague, Research Fellow Rachel Swindle, M.P.P.
In a new post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, Katie Keith highlights several Affordable Care Act requirements that have not been fully utilized by insurers — resulting in gaps that exacerbate disparities. The post identifies examples where insurers and regulators could do more to turn commitment on health equity and racial justice into action.
July’s latest health policy research is provided by CHIR’s Nia Gooding in our monthly roundup. She reviews studies on health equity and health plan benefit design, 2022 insurer rate filings, and employer market power in hospital price negotiations.
CHIR researchers have teamed up once again with the Urban Institute to assess how federal policy is affecting the market for small business health insurance. This year, the COVID-19 pandemic was front-of-mind, but so too are coverage options exempt from the Affordable Care Act and newly available incentives to shift employees to the individual market.
The opinions expressed here are solely those of the individual blog post authors and do not represent the views of Georgetown University, the Center on Health Insurance Reforms, any organization that the author is affiliated with, or the opinions of any other author who publishes on this blog.
