In our newest monthly roundup of health policy research, CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker reviews studies on the potential of personalized phone outreach to boost marketplace enrollment, trends in the small-group health insurance market, and the Congressional Budget Office’s latest report comparing how much commercial insurers and Medicare pay for health services.
The Oregon Health Authority recently released its Public Option Implementation Report, stemming from a legislative directive to develop a plan to make a public health insurance option available in the individual (and potentially small group) market. CHIR’s Christine Monahan takes a look at what’s in the new report and what’s next for the Oregon public option initiative.
The Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces and consumer protections significantly improved the experience of purchasing individual health insurance, but consumers still face the difficult task of comparing a potentially overwhelming number of complicated benefit and network designs. A proposal in the Notice of Benefits and Payment Parameters for 2023 may improve this situation. Karen Davenport takes a look at the possible return of standardized plans to the federal marketplace, and what this change might mean for consumers.
Private health plans are now required to cover at-home over-the-counter COVID-19 tests. CHIR’s Megan Houston and Rachel Swindle reviewed the coverage policies of 51 insurers to see how consumers can access this benefit. They found a number of plans with restrictions that go beyond what federal guidelines allow.
Employer-sponsored health insurance costs had their highest annual increase since 2010 last year, and some experts are projecting additional health spending increases in 2022. Research has found that provider prices are the leading cause of high and rising health care spending in the US, and many policy experts have advocated for moving towards value-based, alternative payment models (APMs). CHIR’s Maanasa Kona takes a look how APMs have performed thus far and what the future may hold.
We’re delighted to welcome to the CHIR team our two newest colleagues, Research Fellow Jalisa Clark, M.P.H., and Research Associate Emma Walsh-Alker.
The federal government has taken a series of actions to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid, and the Biden administration has announced its intent to do more in this arena. Stakeholders have aided federal policy efforts by suggesting administrative options for increasing access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance and promoting health equity. In her latest post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, Georgetown’s Katie Keith identifies thirteen high-priority administrative policies to strengthen the ACA and Medicaid and evaluates their current status.
New federal rules require health insurers to cover and waive consumer cost-sharing for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests. State insurance regulators will be on the front lines of enforcing the new coverage mandate. In her latest Expert Perspective for the State Health & Value Strategies project, Sabrina Corlette assesses the new requirements and identifies areas where state insurance departments may need to fill in gaps.
This month, we’re ringing in the new year with new health policy research. In our final roundup of 2021 publications, CHIR’s Emma Walsh-Alker reviewed analyses about the impact of the ACA’s Medicaid expansion on coverage status and access to maternal care, how the Build Back Better Act would change health insurance for low-income individuals and families, and consumer choice in health care.
As of January 15th, the open enrollment period has ended in most states. A record number of consumers signed up for 2022 marketplace coverage. So what comes next for marketplace enrollees? First, give yourself a pat on the back for enrolling in health coverage! Second, consult CHIR’s Navigator Resource Guide for expert answers to FAQs about post-enrollment issues you may face, like unexpected coverage denials and balance bills.
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.
