Category: Implementing the Affordable Care Act

Bridging the Gap: Oregon’s Proposal to Ease Coverage Transitions at the End of Public Health Emergency

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At the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, millions of people will lose Medicaid as states resume eligibility determinations. To help connect these consumers to a new source of affordable coverage, Oregon is considering an option under the ACA to leverage federal funding for health plans that cover lower-income consumers: a Basic Health Program (BHP). CHIR took a look at a recent state task force report recommending a BHP in Oregon to serve as a “bridge program.”

Value for Whom? HHS Office of Civil Rights Seeks Input on the Impact of Payers’ Value Assessments on Health Equity

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As health care costs continue to rise, stakeholders are looking to innovations in provider payments and benefit designs grounded in the known “value” of different health services. But these strategies might fail to reflect the needs, values, and preferences of certain patients. This tension is evident as the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights considers whether value assessment methodologies discriminate against protected groups, such as people with disabilities and older adults.

New and Improved Navigator Resource Guide Answers Common Enrollment Questions and Reflects Policy Changes for 2023

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The tenth open enrollment season for the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace is in full swing. With support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, CHIR has updated and improved our Navigator Resource Guide. Navigators and other enrollment assisters can access over 300 frequently asked questions and answers, state fact sheets, a summary of new federal policies for 2023, and more.

New Georgetown Report Reviews State Efforts to Enforce Mental Health Parity

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The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) aims to remove insurance-related obstacles to mental health and substance use disorder treatment, but inadequate compliance has raised questions about health plan enrollees’ ability to access critical behavioral health services. In a new issue brief, CHIR experts look at current barriers to effective state enforcement and identify opportunities to improve MHPAEA compliance.

September Research Roundup: What We’re Reading

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It’s officially fall, and along with the new season came an autumnal bounty of new health policy research. This month, we reviewed studies on the connection between medical debt and social determinants of health, private equity acquisition of physician practices, and controlling health care costs through state surprise billing laws.

What’s New for 2023 Marketplace Enrollment?

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The annual open enrollment period for Marketplace coverage is right around the corner, running from November 1 through January 15 in most states. There are many new policies impacting the Marketplace in 2023, including an extension of enhanced financial assistance through the Inflation Reduction Act; a federal fix to the “family glitch” that will create more affordable coverage opportunities for families; and tools to make shopping for a Marketplace plan more consumer-friendly. CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker summarizes these and other recent policy changes that consumers may encounter this year.

Hospital And Insurer Price Transparency Rules Now In Effect But Compliance Is Still Far Away

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Hospitals and health insurers are now required to publicly post their prices for health care services. However, as Maanasa Kona and Sabrina Corlette observe in their latest Health Affairs Forefront blog, the new disclosure requirements have not – yet – translated into data that can be used to identify the drivers of health care cost growth. Their piece identifies options for federal and state regulators to improve compliance and ultimately help support informed health care purchasing and policy decisions.

Federal Court Decision Threatens the ACA’s Preventive Services Benefit: State Options to Mitigate Harm to Consumers

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A federal judge in Texas has ruled that Affordable Care Act requirements that insurers cover and waive cost-sharing for preventive services is unconstitutional. While the case is likely to be appealed, states can act now to preserve residents’ access to affordable and often life-saving preventive care. In a new Expert Perspective for the State Health & Value Strategies project, Sabrina Corlette and Justin Giovannelli outline how.

August Research Roundup: What We’re Reading

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For the August edition of our monthly research roundup, CHIR said farewell to summer by reviewing the latest health policy research. This month, we summarize studies on how the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) will impact health coverage, global efforts to achieve universal health coverage, and the effects of eliminating nominal marketplace premiums.

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.