healthcare.gov

Healthcare.gov Rolls out Two Operational Changes Related to Verifying Special Enrollment Periods and Immigration Status

Posted August 25, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

While Congress shifts away from talking about how to replace the Affordable Care Act to stabilizing the individual market, enrollment in ACA marketplaces continues. Recently, the administration made two operational changes affecting federally facilitated marketplaces and states using healthcare.gov: phase 2 of pre-verifying special enrollment eligibility and a process to electronically resolve data matching issues related to immigration status. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn summarizes the changes.

Relaxing the ACA’s Regulations: Stakeholders Respond to HHS’ Request for Information, Part 2 – State Departments of Insurance

Posted August 10, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

In Part 2 of this three-part series, we look at how state departments of insurance responded to the administration’s request for information on reducing the regulatory burdens of the Affordable Care Act. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn summarizes the major themes from state responses.

Relaxing the Affordable Care Act’s Guaranteed Issue Protection: Issues for Consumers and State Options

Posted June 2, 2017 by CHIR Faculty

As we’ve been blogging about, the Trump administration finalized a Market Stabilization rule that makes numerous changes in how marketplaces and insurers are operating. One of the biggest changes affecting consumers is the Trump administration’s new interpretation of guaranteed issue or availability; but states have a range of options regarding this policy under the rule. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn and JoAnn Volk break it down for us.

Simple Choice Plans Debut on Healthcare.Gov

Posted November 1, 2016 by CHIR Faculty

Simple Choice plans, standardized benefit designs with fixed cost-sharing amounts and pre-deductible services, are new this year on Healthcare.gov. These types of plans can help consumers make “apples-to-apples” comparisons, but the the availability of such plans depends on insurer participation and local markets. Emily Curran and others here at CHIR take a look at the availability of Simple Choice plans on Healthcare.gov and find it’s a mixed bag.

A Roadmap For Getting Enrollment Right for Immigrant Families

Posted February 26, 2016 by CHIR Faculty

The Affordable Care Act brought the promise of affordable coverage to many lawfully present immigrants but many continue to face challenges when applying through healthcare.gov. Our colleague Sonya Schwartz of Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families shares the top takeaways from her recently published report, which provides a roadmap that the marketplaces can use to to smooth the path to enrollment for immigrant families.

Enroll Before Jan. 15 for Feb. 1 Coverage and Other Open Enrollment Reminders

Posted January 14, 2016 by CHIR Faculty

With open enrollment set to close in two week, enroll now before or on January 15 to get coverage by February 1. As the clock ticks towards the end of January and the close of open enrollment, CHIR’s Sandy Ahn provides some reminders and references the Navigator Guide, your resource on eligibility, enrollment, and health insurance coverage.

Open Enrollment Begins, Kinks in the Cost Calculator Tool on Healthcare.gov and Other OE News

Posted November 3, 2015 by CHIR Faculty

Open Enrollment 3 (OE3) is now underway and by all accounts, things are going smoothly. There are a few minor kinks with the out-of-pocket cost calculator, which officials have fixed or are working on fixing now. CHIR highlights two consumer facing tools that healthcare.gov is pilot testing and should be available to all users before the end of open enrollment.

The Experiences of State-Run Insurance Marketplaces That Use HealthCare.gov

Posted September 28, 2015 by Justin Giovannelli

Whether their exchange is state-based or federally facilitated, many state policymakers are seeking ways to realize the advantages of a state-run marketplace model while minimizing, so far as possible, the financial and operational burdens of building or maintaining one. In a new issue brief for The Commonwealth Fund, CHIR researchers explore the experiences of four states that established their own exchanges but have operated them with support from the federal HealthCare.gov eligibility and enrollment platform.

More than 400,000 Lose Marketplace Coverage: Let’s Fix This and Keep People Covered

Posted September 11, 2015 by CHIR Faculty

This week federal officials released an updated marketplace enrollment report. While close to 10 million were enrolled in coverage as of June 2015, 400,000 people lost coverage because of citizenship data matching problems. In this blog post our colleague at Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families, Sonya Schwartz, notes that many who lost coverage are likely eligible but fell victim to marketplace system problems. She shares insights on how they could be fixed.

Celebrate or Condemn Enrollment Success? Affordable Care Act Critics Can’t Decide

Posted May 21, 2015 by CHIR Faculty

Health care policy debates can often be confusing but the rapidly shifting positions in the latest tempest on Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act are harder to follow than a ping-pong ball. Our colleague at Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families, Adam Searing, attempts to make sense of all the contradictions.