Happy New Year! In most states, consumers have until January 15 to sign up for marketplace coverage for 2022. In this weekly installment of FAQs from CHIR’s updated Navigator Resource Guide, we highlight questions about common notices consumers may receive when applying for health insurance, and how they can respond in order to successfully enroll in coverage.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has narrowed racial and ethnic health disparities. But significant gaps persist, driven in no small part by structural racism. In a new piece for Health Affairs Forefront, Jamille Fields Allsbrook and CHIR faculty Katie Keith discuss how the Biden administration can use its existing authority under Section 1557 of the ACA and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to better ensure anti-racist health care and insurance.
Provider networks and prescription drug coverage are important consideration for consumers when choosing a plan. As part of CHIR’s weekly series highlighting FAQs from our updated Navigator Resource Guide, this week we discuss how to make sure your plan provides access to the doctors, prescription drugs, and culturally competent care that you need.
For November’s monthly roundup of new health policy research, CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker reviewed studies about insurer participation in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, how private equity ownership of air ambulances impacts surprise bills, and how pending legislation to fill the Medicaid “coverage gap” could affect hospital finances.
Enrolling in coverage on the marketplace requires comparing different health plans and decide which one best fits their needs for the upcoming year. To avoid unwelcome surprises, it’s crucial that consumers have an accurate understanding of plan options will and will not cover. This week, we highlight FAQs from CHIR’s updated Navigator Resource Guide about marketplace plans’ coverage standards.
This open enrollment, Washington State residents can once again purchase first-in-the-nation public option-style plans. Last year, Washington’s publicly procured plans—touted as a mechanism to improve affordability and competition in the marketplace—were less available and more expensive than proponents had hoped. In 2022, the second year of the program, these plans will offer average rate decreases and are available in a greater number of counties, an encouraging sign for the viability of Washington’s public option.
As part of CHIR’s weekly series highlighting FAQs from our updated Navigator Resource Guide, we highlight questions and answers regarding financial assistance available through the marketplaces.
Last month, the Biden administration published a third rule implementing the No Surprises Act, the comprehensive federal law banning balance bills in emergency and certain non-emergency settings beginning January 1, 2022. The interim final rule (IFR) provides details on the independent dispute resolution process, protections for uninsured patients, and more. In a new Expert Perspective for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s State Health & Value Strategies program, CHIR experts provide a summary of the IFR, identifying implications and considerations for states.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a greater need for mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) services, but many have difficulty obtaining timely, affordable care, including the insured. The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) requires plans and insurers that cover MH/SUD services to cover those services in parity with other medical benefits. CHIR’s JoAnn Volk looks at state and federal enforcement of mental health parity requirements, and what these efforts mean for consumers.
Open Enrollment is underway, and our newly updated Navigator Resource Guide can help Navigators and consumers throughout the entire enrollment process. During Open Enrollment, CHIR will highlight FAQs that are likely top of mind for consumers and those assisting them. This week, CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker focuses on who is eligible for 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.
