Three New State-Based Marketplaces are Up and Running

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We’re a week into Affordable Care Act marketplace open enrollment, and it looks like the three newest state-based marketplaces, Kentucky, Maine, and New Mexico, are off to a solid start. The transition away from the federal marketplace, HealthCare.gov, has taken time, effort, and an up-front investment in the new state-run platforms and other SBM infrastructure. CHIR’s Rachel Swindle takes a look at some of the challenges and opportunities for states running their own marketplaces.

October Research Roundup: What We’re Reading

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In our newest monthly roundup of health policy research, CHIR intern Madison Berry reviews studies evaluating the impact of extending the American Rescue Plan’s subsidy expansion, COVID-19’s effect on health spending, and the importance of continuous marketplace coverage for pregnant people.

Misleading Marketing of Non-ACA Health Plans Continued During COVID-19 Special Enrollment Period

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Millions of Americans are eligible for health insurance plans with low or no premiums and significantly reduced cost-sharing this coming open enrollment, but misleading marketing practices may direct some consumers to alternative plans that lack the Affordable Care Act’s protections. Researchers at CHIR recently replicated a previous secret shopper study to determine if consumers shopping for comprehensive coverage during the COVID-19 special enrollment period were still being directed to these alternative plans.

A Long-term Financing Solution for Mobile Crisis Services

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Policymakers increasingly recognize the need for alternatives to law enforcement-driven responses to behavioral health crises. In a new issue brief for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s State Health & Value Strategies program, CHIR teamed up with experts from Manatt Health to provide recommendations for a hybrid coverage and funding approach for mobile crisis services.

What’s New for 2022 Marketplace Enrollment?

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Open Enrollment is just around the corner. There are new policies for the marketplace in 2022, including an expansion of opportunities to sign up for health coverage during and outside the annual open enrollment period. As a preview to our updated Navigator Resource Guide, CHIR provides a summary of some changes that may affect people enrolling in marketplace plans.

To Avoid Big Coverage Losses, Marketplaces Need to Prepare for the End of the Public Health Emergency

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The resumption of Medicaid eligibility redeterminations at the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency could result in millions of people losing their Medicaid coverage. The state and federal health insurance marketplaces can play a significant role helping many of these individuals transition to subsidized private insurance, but they need to start planning now.

COVID “Long Haulers” Can Carry Additional Burden of Getting Insurers to Cover Care

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COVID-19 survivors may experience new symptoms well after their initial infection. Health systems offer these patients help with managing their conditions, but COVID-19 is a novel disease, and research demonstrating effectiveness of treatments for many post-COVID conditions is sparse. Karen Davenport takes a look at some of insurance implications of the dearth of information on “long COVID.”

State Health Care Purchasers Can Push Hospitals To Comply With Federal Transparency Requirements

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Federal law now requires hospitals to publish the prices they negotiate with private insurers, yet many of them are not complying. In this post for the Health Affairs Blog, CHIR’s Sabrina Corlette and Maanasa Kona and Marilyn Bartlett of the National Academy for State Health Policy discuss ways that state health benefit purchasers, such as state employee plans, can help increase hospital compliance.

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.