Tag: Maryland

As Maryland Charts a New Course for Lowering Barriers to Coverage, Feds Could Raise Them

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Maryland is implementing a program that offers a new, easy way to enroll in comprehensive and affordable health insurance. At the same time, the federal government is considering ending auto renewal in the marketplaces, which facilitates millions of enrollments each year. CHIR’s Rachel Schwab takes a look at Maryland’s new program, and how state and federal enrollment policy can impact consumers’ access to coverage.

Accessing Provider Directories and Formularies: CHIR Goes Sleuthing

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We’re counting down again to Open Enrollment 3 and this year, all health plans must make accessing provider directories and formularies, or the list of covered prescription drugs, easy for consumers. This means consumers should be able to find this information on insurer website sites without creating an account or entering a policy number. CHIR’s Sandy Ahn flexes her investigative skills and looks to see how accessible this information really is.

New Report Examines Early Indications of Insurer Participation and Competition in Health Insurance Exchanges

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One of the key goals of the Affordable Care Act is to make health insurance coverage more affordable and consumer-friendly by managing competition among health insurers through the creation of health insurance exchanges. A new report from researchers at the Urban Institute and CHIR released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation explores state actions to encourage or require participation on exchanges, and early indications of the level of competition among health insurers. Kevin Lucia highlights some of the findings from the report.

New Report: States Going Above and Beyond to Create Sustainable Exchanges and Deliver Choice and Value to Consumers

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In a new report for The Commonwealth Fund, Sarah Dash, Kevin Lucia, Katie Keith, and Christine Monahan provide a comprehensive look at the critical design decisions made by 17 states and the District of Columbia that chose to establish a state-based exchange for 2014. Sarah Dash has highlights from the report and discusses what the findings mean for stakeholders.

Oh Where, Oh Where Are The Multi-State Plans?

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More than two months after the deadline for health insurance issuers to submit applications for the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) multi-state plan program, news is finally starting to trickle out about participating insurers and the first batch of states that are expecting to see multi-state plans on their exchanges. Christine Monahan shares the latest developments.

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