coverage

Important Gains under the ACA for Cancer Patients And Their Families

Posted July 28, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

While there may be a respite from the push to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a new report by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, authored by CHIR’s JoAnn Volk and Sandy Ahn, exposes what’s at stake in the debate for cancer patients and their families. The report finds that the ACA improved access to coverage and provides significant financial protections. The report is based on more than a dozen interviews with hospital-based Financial Navigators, who work closely with cancer patients throughout their treatment and provide critical insight into the coverage experience of cancer patients.

Prior to the ACA, Where You Lived Determined How Accessible and Affordable Coverage Would Be

Posted January 26, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

Before the Affordable Care Act, where you lived determined how accessible and affordable coverage would be. In a new primer, we provide a 50-state review of access and affordability requirements before the ACA set a federal floor. This look back shows us the landscape we may return to if the ACA is repealed.

Promising Steps to Strengthen Marketplace Risk Pools Could be in Vain, if Affordable Care Act is Repealed

Posted January 19, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

While critics have been describing the demise of the marketplaces established by the Affordable Care Act, the Obama Administration has been taking steps to strengthen the risk pool and to ensure its long-term sustainability. These promising steps are now at risk under the threat of repeal with nothing to replace approach that Congressional leaders and the new administration seem to be taking. At risk and in jeopardy is the coverage of millions of people. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn takes a look.

READ THE FINE PRINT: A New Provision in BCBS of Mississippi Plan Could Mean Huge Unexpected Costs for Plan Enrollees

Posted March 7, 2014 by CHIR Faculty

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi has included a new provision in its plan description that could mean huge costs for plan participants. The new policy does not cover prescription drugs prescribed by out-of-network providers. How does this policy square with the ACA? And what does it mean for consumers? Elissa Dines discusses.