The Affordable Care Act mandates that health plans in the individual and small-group markets cover essential health benefits (EHB), with states setting the scope through a benchmark plan. A new brief for the Commonwealth Fund by CHIR faculty explores how states have used recent flexibility to expand EHB, address consumer needs, and advance health policy, while highlighting ongoing challenges
The 2021 expansion of federal premium tax credits (PTCs) drove uninsured rates to a record low in 2023, but this critical financial assistance will expire after 2025 unless Congress acts. CHIR faculty Rachel Swindle and Justin Giovannelli talk more about this in their latest issue brief for the Commonwealth Fund.
The 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) is the primary federal law protecting access to behavioral health care for privately insured Americans. In a new issue brief for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR experts interviewed insurance regulators in ten states to identify the tools state regulators are using for MHPAEA oversight and enforcement, as well as the barriers they are facing.
In the United States, immigrants are disproportionately likely to be uninsured. This disparity stems from systemic inequalities such as legal barriers to affordable coverage for noncitizens—especially undocumented immigrants. While state efforts to provide Medicaid-equivalent benefits to some populations of undocumented residents have helped expand access to coverage, many low- and moderate-income undocumented residents remain without affordable health insurance options. In a recent post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, CHIR’s Justin Giovannelli and Rachel Schwab explore recent state actions to fill this gap.
According to recent estimates, almost 100 million people have debt because of medical or dental bills. To mitigate this problem, nineteen states and the District of Columbia require hospitals to provide financial assistance to low-income populations, but the process of applying for financial assistance is often cumbersome and inaccessible. In a recent post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, CHIR’s Maanasa Kona discusses how some states have made the financial assistance application process easier for their residents.
States remain motivated to adopt reforms that improve affordability and expand access to coverage for populations that still lack access to care. State public option–style plans are a key candidate for consideration. In a post for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR experts provide an update on states that have established or are laying groundwork for public option–style plans.
The Affordable Care Act’s Marketplaces have seen record signups for 2024. Marketplaces can pursue innovative and consumer-friendly policies that bolster this crucial source of coverage. In a recent issue brief for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR experts reviewed policy decisions across state-run Marketplaces and the federally facilitated Marketplace.
As another Marketplace Open Enrollment Period begins, millions of Americans will turn to insurance brokers to guide them to affordable and comprehensive health insurance. In a new post for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR’s Jalisa Clark and Christine Monahan look into the underrepresentation of people of color in the broker profession and the clients they serve, including the historical origins of these racial disparities and how the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces are intervening.
The annual Marketplace Open Enrollment Period is just around the corner. Enrolling in health insurance can be a challenge, especially for the millions of Americans with limited English proficiency (LEP). In a new issue brief for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR experts document how the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplaces are facilitating access to health insurance information for LEP individuals, identify persistent gaps in language services, and recommend federal policies to improve language access in the Marketplaces.
Medical debt is one of the leading causes of bankruptcy in the United States. Though federal law provides some protection against medical debt and its downstream consequences, the federal framework has significant gaps. In a new report for the Commonwealth Fund, CHIR’s Maanasa Kona and Vrudhi Raimugia examine how states are filling gaps in federal law.
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.
