A Main Reason New York and Massachusetts Will Sue the Administration Over the Final AHP Rule? Fraud and Abuse

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New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood (D) and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey (D) announced that they will sue the administration over the final association health plan rule released by the Department of Labor on June 19, arguing that it is unlawful, will result in fewer consumer protections, and “invite[s] fraud, mismanagement and deception.” CHIR’s Emily Curran dives into association health plans and their complicated history.

June Research Round Up: What We’re Reading

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State officials, insurers, and consumer advocates and assisters are gearing up for a hectic 2019 enrollment season as federal uncertainty threatens the stability of the individual market. CHIR’s Olivia Hoppe dives into research about how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has affected consumers’ access to insurance coverage and care. She also looks at research on reasons behind this year’s increased premium rates and last year’s surprisingly successful Open Enrollment season. 

What’s in the Association Health Plan Final Rule? Implications for States

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The Trump administration has released new rules to expand the availability of association health plans that are exempt from many of the Affordable Care Act’s consumer protections. In her latest article for State Health & Value Strategies’ Expert Perspectives blog, CHIR’s Sabrina Corlette covers key provisions of the new policy and digs into the implications for states, insurance markets, and the consumers and small businesses that purchase private coverage.

State Efforts to Pass Individual Mandate Requirements Aim to Stabilize Markets and Protect Consumers

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A handful of states are moving forward with plans to implement state-level individual health insurance mandates in light of Congress’s recent elimination of the federal mandate’s financial penalty. In their latest post for The Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, CHIR experts Dania Palanker, Rachel Schwab and Justin Giovannelli analyze new sate individual mandate laws and highlight innovative models that were considered in states.

New Report Documents Barriers for People with Mental Illness, Substance Use Disorders Buying Coverage Before the ACA

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In a report released this week by the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI), Georgetown researchers Dania Palanker, JoAnn Volk and Kevin Lucia document the many ways that individual market plans available before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) fell far short of providing adequate, affordable coverage for people with mental illness and substance use disorders.

Stakeholder Views on the Proposed Short-Term Plan Insurance Rule: Key Takeaways from Our Review of Comment Letters

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In February, the Trump administration published a proposed rule to expand the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance by relaxing federal restrictions put in place by the Obama administration. Federal agencies received over 9,000 comments in response. In a four-part blog series, CHIR dug into comments to evaluate the proposed rule’s potential impact on consumers, major medical insurers, states, and sellers of short-term plans. Here’s what we found.

When Being Uninsured Cuts Life Short: In Memory of My Dad

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George K. Hoppe was the owner of a small architectural firm in Lavallette, New Jersey. He designed beach homes along the shore, funeral homes, retail buildings, and the Ocean County Boy Scouts building in New Jersey. Being uninsured cut his life short. To honor her dad on Father’s Day, CHIR’s Olivia Hoppe tells his story.

Stakeholders Respond to the Proposed Short-term, Limited Duration Insurance Rule. Part IV: Short-Term Insurers and Brokers

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The Departments of Labor, Health & Human Services, and Treasury received over 9,000 comments on their proposed rule to expand the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance. To better understand the public reaction to the proposal, CHIR reviewed comments submitted by health care stakeholders. In the fourth blog in our series, CHIR’s Olivia Hoppe summarizes feedback from brokers and short-term insurers.

Stakeholders Respond to the Proposed Short-term, Limited Duration Insurance Rule. Part III: State Insurance Departments and Marketplaces

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The Departments of Labor, Health & Human Services, and Treasury received over 9,000 comments on their proposed rule to expand the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance. CHIR reviewed comments submitted by stakeholders to better understand how the public is responding to the proposal. In part three of our four-part series, CHIR’s Sabrina Corlette summarizes feedback from state insurance departments and marketplaces.

May Research Round Up: What We’re Reading

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In this month’s research round up, CHIR’s Olivia Hoppe looks into analyses of the success of recent stabilization efforts, the consequences of current federal uncertainty on health insurance coverage, best practices from the federally facilitated marketplace (FFM), third-party payment programs, and why in the world hospital visits cost so much money for the privately insured.

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.