Preparing for the Biggest Coverage Event Since the ACA: The Role of States as Medicaid Continuous Coverage Comes to an End

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CHIR and our colleagues at the Center for Children and Families (CCF) have published two new resources examining state-level preparations for the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the redetermination of the Medicaid eligibility of close to 85 million people. CHIR and the Urban Institute published a review of how state-based Marketplaces and Medicaid agencies are working together to ease coverage transitions, and CCF and KFF released their 20th 50-state survey of Medicaid agencies, with a particular focus on their post-PHE planning efforts.

Massachusetts Data on Health Care Sharing Ministries Reveal Finances That Put Consumers at Risk

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Health Care Sharing Ministries (HCSM) continue to be marketed widely, often as an alternative to the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace plans, even though HCSMs don’t follow the same rules and typically don’t provide the same protections. There is a dearth of data on HCSM operations and finances, but a Massachusetts rule has offered a glimpse behind the curtain. In a new post for the Commonwealth Fund, JoAnn Volk, Justin Giovannelli, and Christina Goe dig into new data on HCSMs.

Stakeholder Perspectives on CMS’s 2023 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters: State Insurance Departments and Marketplaces

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After the Biden administration issued the proposed 2023 “Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters,” several hundred stakeholders provided feedback on the new set of rules governing the ACA’s marketplaces and health insurance standards. To better understand the impact of the proposed rules, CHIR reviewed a sample of stakeholder comments. For the third blog in our series, Rachel Schwab summarizes comments submitted by state departments of insurance and state-based marketplaces.

February Research Roundup: What We’re Reading

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In honor of Black History Month, for the February edition of CHIR’s monthly research roundup we reviewed new health policy research centering the experiences of Black people in the U.S. health care system, including structural racism in health care policy, the impact of state Affordable Care Act (ACA) implementation on racial and ethnic minority populations, and trends in coverage, care access, and health outcomes among Black Americans.

Stakeholder Perspectives on CMS’s 2023 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters: Consumer Advocates

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In the recently released 2023 “Notice of Benefit & Payment Parameters,” the Biden administration is proposing significant changes to the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. In the first of a three-part series, CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker and JoAnn Volk reviewed public comments from multiple consumer advocacy organizations about the impact of the new policies on marketplace beneficiaries. Reviews of comments from insurers and state marketplaces and insurance departments will follow.

New Data Show Medical Debt Disproportionately Affects the Most Vulnerable Populations

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Unpaid medical bills are among the largest contributors to personal debt in the United States. Evidence indicates that medical debt disproportionately affects people of color and individuals with lower incomes. CHIR’s Maanasa Kona reviews new data from the Census Bureau and state court records that demonstrate the disparate impact of medical debt on vulnerable populations, and explores what policymakers can do to protect consumers from aggressive debt collection.

PrEP Coverage Obstacles Highlight Challenges Implementing the ACA Preventive Services Requirement

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The ACA requires coverage of recommended preventive services without cost-sharing for consumers enrolled in most private health plans. But even with these protections in place, some insurers improperly impose cost sharing for preventive services. Recently, this problem hit consumers who use pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a medication that can prevent contraction of HIV.

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.