Author's posts
Why Health Insurance Premiums in Iowa Are So High
In a post on To the Point, Georgetown University’s Sabrina Corlette and Kevin Lucia trace the policy and business decisions that led to high premiums in Iowa’s health insurance marketplace. The state’s recent decision to exempt health plans offered by …
A New Medicare Benefit Covering Home- and Community-Based Services
About one of five Medicare beneficiaries has serious physical or cognitive limitations that require personal care services and supports, like bathing and meal prep, on a long-term basis. Only low-income beneficiaries eligible for Medicaid, however, can…
Transforming Care: Physician-Led Efforts to Promote Value
The latest issue of Transforming Care looks at physicians’ proposals for addressing a key shortcoming of the nation’s fee-for-service system: lack of payment for many of the high-value services physicians provide, like responding to patients’ queries o…
After Stewart v. Azar, What’s Next for Medicaid Work Requirements?
Now that a U.S. district court judge has overturned U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar’s approval of Kentucky’s Medicaid waiver, which features beneficiary work requirements, what happens next? In a To the Point post, George Washingt…
Check Out Our Interactive Map Tracking Trends in Medicaid
This November, voters in Nebraska, Utah, and Idaho will vote on whether to expand Medicaid. Use our interactive map to explore which states have already expanded Medicaid, and which have proposed, approved, or blocked proposals to add work requirements…
What Shape Will Health Reform Take in 2020?
In the first of a series on health reform in the 2020 election, health policy expert Jeanne Lambrew, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation and veteran of two presidential administrations, describes the likely health care landscape leading up to 202…
Administration Stops Risk Adjustment Payments to Health Insurers
“Any action to stop disbursements under the risk adjustment program will significantly increase 2019 premiums for millions of individuals and small-business owners, and could result in far fewer health plan choices. It will undermine Americans’ access …
CMS to Test Medicare Advantage as Alternative Payment Model Under MACRA
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) wants to launch an experiment that allows doctors in Medicare Advantage plans to qualify as participating in an alternative pay model. To comply with MACRA (Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization A…
Subsidies Drive Consumer Decisions on ACA Coverage
As premiums spiked in 2017, the market where people buy their own health insurance saw a significant decline in enrollment among those who don’t qualify for federal subsidies. That is the conclusion of a new federal report that finds the number of unsu…
Maine Governor Says Hospital Tax Could Cover Medicaid Expansion
Maine’s Republican governor is publicly laying out a proposed tax hike on hospitals to pay for voter-approved Medicaid expansion. Gov. Paul LePage’s office says Medicaid expansion will offset a tax hike by decreasing charity care and bad debt. Maine’s …
