The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services published an annual set of proposed rules for the Affordable Care Act marketplaces on October 27. Called the “Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters,” the rules set out expectations for insurers and the states that regulate them. In her latest post for CHIR, Katie Keith highlights key areas in which this administration would give states new autonomy and authority.
Enrolling in marketplace health insurance is already a tall order for many consumers because of the time and effort involved to sign up. This year is gearing up to be even more challenging. CHIR’s Olivia Hoppe details why this Open Enrollment will be her toughest yet as a Certified Application Counselor.
Marketplace enrollment is upon us. November 1 marks the start to the fifth open enrollment season. To help marketplace Navigators and others assisting consumers with marketplace eligibility and enrollment, we at CHIR have updated and improved our Navigator Resource Guide. The Guide houses over 300 frequently asked questions (FAQs) and answers about all things marketplace coverage-related, as well as information about employer-sponsored coverage. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn highlights some of the changes.
In the wake of a White House decision to end reimbursements to insurers for cost-sharing reduction (CSR) plans, a bipartisan agreement has emerged in Congress to restore them. However, negotiators are coming under pressure to make additional changes that would increase the number of uninsured and roll back protections for people with pre-existing conditions. CHIR’s Dania Palanker takes a look at what’s at stake and why it’s not worth compromising key Affordable Care Act protections in exchange for CSR payments.
It’s been a bumpy year for state insurance and marketplace officials, thanks to considerable uncertainty over the future of the ACA. CHIR’s Emily Curran highlights recent action suggesting that some states may be poised to reassert their authority over their insurance markets, as they work to maintain the ACA’s coverage gains and keep their markets stable.
On the heels of multiple failed attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, President Trump attempts to do what Congress could not: roll back the ACA’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions. In an opinion piece for U.S. News & World Report, CHIR’s Sabrina Corlette breaks down the potential impact of the President’s recent executive order.
President Trump signed a “very major” executive order related to health care that is “going to cover a lot of territory.” The executive order takes steps to roll back a consumer protection related to short-term health plans. In their latest post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, CHIR’s Dania Palanker, Kevin Lucia, and Emily Curran assess the proposed regulatory changes and their impact on consumers and insurance markets.
The Trump administration recently released regulations allowing employers, colleges, and universities to eliminate birth-control coverage from their health-benefit plans because of religious or moral objections. CHIR expert Dania Palanker explains how these new rules will allow employers and schools to discriminate against women while undermining the importance of women’s health.
In the third of a multi-part blog series on state options in the wake of federal actions to roll back or relax Affordable Care Act regulation, Dania Palanker reviews potential changes to the essential health benefit standard and the implications for consumers. She discusses what state legislatures and insurance regulators can do to ensure consumers continue to access affordable health care services.
In the wake of devastating natural disasters, consumers living in hurricane or wildfire affected areas may have questions about their marketplace health insurance. As marketplace open enrollment for 2018 coverage begins in less than a month, CHIR experts have put together answers to questions that consumers may be asking particularly around how these natural disasters affect their ability to sign up for or re-enroll into marketplace coverage.
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.
