Category: obamacare plans

Leader of California’s Muscular Obamacare Exchange to Step Down

Peter Lee helped create Covered California, which has been lauded as a national example among the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces, and he fiercely opposed Republican efforts to repeal the federal health reform law.

Headed Away to School? Here’s What Students With Health Issues Need to Know

College and grad students with chronic health conditions as common as asthma and diabetes may need to clear hurdles to make sure their health needs are covered by insurance if they go to school far from home.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Here Comes Reconciliation

Democrats in Congress reached a tentative agreement to press ahead on a partisan bill that would dramatically expand health benefits for people on Medicare, those who buy their own insurance and individuals who have been shut out of coverage in states that didn’t expand Medicaid. Meanwhile, controversy continues to rage over whether vaccinated Americans will need a booster to protect against covid-19 variants, and who will pay for a new drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN’s Rae Ellen Bichell, who reported and wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode about a mother and daughter who fought an enormous emergency room bill.

Senate Democrats’ Plan Boosts Spending on Medicare, ACA Subsidies, Long-Term Care

The plan from high-wire negotiations would affect five key areas of health, but there will be further tense negotiations among Democratic lawmakers about specifics of the $3.5 trillion in funding. And all Senate Democrats will need to be behind the plan, because Republicans oppose it.

Biden Quietly Transforms Medicaid Safety Net

In a sharp shift from Trump-era policies, President Joe Biden looks at expanding Medicaid eligibility to new mothers, inmates and undocumented immigrants and adding services such as food and housing.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The ACA Lives

In a surprisingly strong 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court turned back the latest constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act, likely heralding the end of GOP efforts to strike the law in its entirety through court action. Meanwhile, Democratic lawmakers are looking for ways to expand health benefits. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, Rovner interviews Andy Slavitt, who recently stepped down from the Biden administration’s covid response team, about his new book on the pandemic.

Supreme Court Declines to Overturn ACA — Again

Justices rule that Republican state officials and individuals did not have standing when they brought a suit arguing that a change in the tax penalty for not having insurance invalidated the historic health care law.

Covered California Says Health Insurance Just Got Too Cheap to Ignore

Californians who passed up health coverage in the past may be pleasantly surprised by the lower prices available thanks to the new federal relief act.

Time to Say Goodbye to Some Insurers’ Waivers for Covid Treatment Fees

Insurers voluntarily set the charges aside earlier in the pandemic — but that means those same health plans can decide to reinstate them.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Health Care as Infrastructure

President Joe Biden’s infrastructure proposal includes items not traditionally considered “infrastructure,” including a $400 billion expansion of home and community-based services for seniors and people with disabilities, and a $50 billion effort to replace water pipes lined with lead. Meanwhile, the politics of covid-19 are turning to how or whether Americans will need to prove they’ve been vaccinated. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, Rovner interviews KFF’s Mollyann Brodie about the KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor.