Affordable Care Act

Top 3 Policies to Reduce Uninsurance in the ACA Coverage Gap

by Kelsey Waddill

For the millions of Americans who fall in the ACA coverage gap, three policy proposals could improve their chances of finding affordable healthcare coverage, a brief from Kaiser Family Foundation...

Uninsurance May Drop 14% If ACA Subsidy Increases Are Solidified

by Kelsey Waddill

If Congress made permanent the American Rescue Plan’s Affordable Care Act subsidy increases, then uninsurance might drop, marketplace enrollment could rise, and non-group premiums could decline...

Rectifying the ACA Family Glitch Could Drive ACA Premiums Down

by Kelsey Waddill

Approximately 5.1 million individuals are caught in the Affordable Care Act’s “family glitch,” according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) analysis. Under the Affordable...

5 States With Highest SEP Enrollment Rejected Medicaid Expansion

by Kelsey Waddill

CMS has released special enrollment period enrollment levels data, which has seen more than 500,000 new enrollees and will last another four months. “Access to quality, affordable health care is...

New Mothers Experience Uninsurance, Care Disparities Post-ACA

by Kelsey Waddill

Although recent studies have heralded the Affordable Care Act’s ability to provide more generous insurance options for new mothers, Medicaid expansion perinatal and postpartum policies may still...

AHIP Releases A Resource for ACA Special Enrollment Awareness

by Kelsey Waddill

America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) has announced new online resources for the public to help consumers understand their health plan options during the Affordable Care Act special enrollment...

HHS Will Spend $50M on Outreach for Special Enrollment Period

by Kelsey Waddill

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and CMS announced that the Biden Administration would spend $50 million to advertise the special enrollment period. “We’re...

Biden Administration Extends Federal Special Enrollment Period

by Kelsey Waddill

The Biden administration has extended the federal special enrollment period on the Affordable Care Act marketplace until August 15, US Department of Health and Human Services...

How to Compare Impacts of Capped Provider Payment, Public Option

by Kelsey Waddill

While both public option and capped provider payment rates have the potential to produce savings, the solutions differ in how they would impact insurer marketplaces, a recent analysis from the Urban...

Special Enrollment Period Boosts ACA Enrollment by 200k Enrollees

by Kelsey Waddill

The Affordable Care Act’s federal marketplace has gained 200,000 new enrollees since the beginning of the special enrollment period, the Biden administration announced. “These numbers are...

Middle-Income Enrollees Still Face High Costs with ACA Subsidies

by Kelsey Waddill

The Affordable Care Act subsidies for low-income and middle-income individuals reduced out-of-pocket healthcare spending and catastrophic spending for lower-income individuals, but healthcare costs...

Perpetrators of National ACA Enrollment Fraud Case Sentenced

by Kelsey Waddill

Update 3/3/2021: This article has been updated to reflect that Jeffrey Yates was indicted as having participated in the Whites' fraud scheme. A previous version said that he was...

CMS Puts $2.3M Toward Navigator Funding for Special Enrollment

by Kelsey Waddill

CMS will be offering $2.3 million in additional navigator funding for grantees in light of the special enrollment period, the agency announced by email. “President Biden has made clear that...

Rescinding ACA May Worsen Racial Health Disparities, COVID-19

by Hannah Nelson

If the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) protections for pre-existing condition coverage are rescinded, COVID-19 could leave many Americans without health insurance, a disproportionate...

Cost Could Still Be A Deterrent In ACA Special Enrollment Period

by Kelsey Waddill

The special enrollment period on the Affordable Care Act marketplace opened to boost healthcare coverage during the coronavirus pandemic, but familiar barriers—namely, cost—could still...

How Expanding ACA Premium Tax Credits Could Effect ESI Coverage

by Kelsey Waddill

Opponents of expanding the Affordable Care Act’s premium tax credit policy have argued that doing so would have a negative effect on employer-sponsored insurance, but recent research from the...

Payer Orgs Outline Steps Toward Achieving Universal Coverage

by Kelsey Waddill

All Americans should have healthcare coverage and six steps can make universal coverage a reality, according to several significant healthcare organizations and entities including America’s...

Aetna to Re-Enter ACA Individual Health Insurance Marketplace

by Kelsey Waddill

Aetna will be returning to the Affordable Care Act's individual health insurance marketplace, CVS Health announced in its 2020 fourth-quarter earnings results. “As the ACA has evolved...

DOJ Supports the Affordable Care Act in Supreme Court Case

by Kelsey Waddill

The Department of Justice has backed down from its opposition to the Affordable Care Act, a letter from the Department of Justice to the Supreme Court announced. “Following the change in...

Payers Expect Enrollment to Offset Normalized Healthcare Spending

by Kelsey Waddill

As major payers like Centene and Cigna emerge from an atypical year, they are predicting in their fourth quarter 2020 earnings reports that revenues will increase in 2021, despite utilization and...