Health Care Reform News

Arizona Expands Medicaid
Becker’s Hospital Review
June 14, 2013
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/racs-/-icd-9-/-icd-10/arizona-expands-medicaid.html
With majority approval from the Arizona legislature, Gov. Jan Brewer (R) won her hard-fought battle to expand Medicaid in her state under a provision of President Barack Obama's health law she has adamantly condemned, according to a report by the Washington Post and the Associated Press.
The expansion will make another 300,000 low-income Arizonans eligible for Medicaid by raising the income cap and allowing some previously excluded populations to enroll, including childless adults. The program already covers about 1.3 million people.
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Study details patients' financial burden from unexpected out-of-network costs
Modern Healthcare
June 14, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130614/NEWS/306149968/study-details-patients-financial-burden-from-unexpected-out-of
Patients shoulder a significant financial impact when they unwittingly go out of network for care—which can happen during inpatient stays when they discover that not every member of their medical team takes their insurance. As the CMS releases more data about what hospitals charge for common procedures—and hospital retort that the charges are only list prices—a new study attempts to answer the question of what patients actually pay.
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Lessons From Early Medicaid Expansions Under The Affordable Care Act
Health Affairs
June 14, 2013
http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2013/06/14/lessons-from-early-medicaid-expansions-under-the-affordable-care-act/
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will dramatically expand Medicaid in a number of states starting in January 2014. In this month’s issue of Health Affairs, new research from DeLeire and colleagues on Wisconsin’s 2009 BadgerCare expansion and from Price and Eibner on predicted cost and coverage impacts of the Medicaid expansion provides insights on the implications of state decision-making about whether to expand the program. Since 2010, six states have already expanded Medicaid to cover some or all of the low-income adults targeted for coverage under health reform. To provide additional information on the impacts of such expansions, we undertook an in-depth exploration of the experiences of these states – California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Washington – through qualitative interviews with 11 high-ranking Medicaid officials across all six states. In analyzing these interviews, we identified several key policy lessons that help elucidate the opportunities and challenges of expanding Medicaid under the ACA. Below are some of our preliminary findings.
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Insurers preparing to market to consumers as coverage expansion nears
Modern Healthcare
June 14, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130614/NEWS/306149947/insurers-preparing-to-market-to-consumers-as-coverage-expansion-nears
With the coverage expansion provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act just a few months away, insurers long accustomed to dealing only with major employers and their brokers are devising new strategies for marketing to individual consumers. “We in healthcare should all hum a few bars from 'The King and I' with the song 'Getting to Know You,'” says Dr. Jan Berger, chief medical officer at Burlington, Mass.-based Silverlink Communications, which works with health plans to get members to engage more in their own health.
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Arizona lawmakers pass Medicaid expansion
Reuters
June 13, 2013
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/14/us-usa-arizona-medicaid-idUSBRE95D01S20130614
A divided Arizona Senate passed a key piece of President Barack Obama's Medicaid expansion agenda on Thursday, handing Republican Governor Jan Brewer a policy victory over fierce opposition from conservatives in her party. By an 18-11 vote, the Senate approved the bill with the backing of a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers that will add hundreds of thousands of the state's poorest residents to the Medicaid healthcare rolls, but was opposed by conservative Republicans.
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Physician Pay Will Soon Depend on Outcomes
Health Leaders Media
June 13, 2013
http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/content/QUA-293231/Physician-Pay-Will-Soon-Depend-on-Outcomes##
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is seeking feedback from doctors as it builds a model for reimbursing physicians based on actual outcomes rather than process measures. The e-mail to physicians earlier this month wasn't unexpected. It comes around this time each year when the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services invites doctors to tell Uncle Sam how they should be paid.
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After Patent Ruling, Availability of Gene Tests Could Broaden
The New York Times
June 13, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/14/business/after-dna-patent-ruling-availability-of-genetic-tests-could-broaden.html?hp
Almost immediately after the Supreme Court ruled that human genes could not be patented, several laboratories announced they, too, would begin offering genetic testing for breast cancer risk, making it likely that that test and others could become more affordable and more widely available. The ruling in effect ends a nearly two-decade monopoly by Myriad Genetics, the company at the center of the case.
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Revamp ACO rules to improve chronic care, Wyden urges
Modern Healthcare
June 13, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130613/NEWS/306139968/revamp-aco-rules-to-improve-care-for-chronic-conditions-wyden-urges
A leading proponent of Medicare reform on Capitol Hill says Congress should change the accountable care program to make sure ACOs are improving care for the sickest patients. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), speaking at the National Accountable Care Organization Summit in Washington on Thursday morning, outlined four strategies to improve Medicare by targeting seniors who have chronic conditions. He noted that about 70% of Medicare patients have two or more chronic health conditions and account for more than 90% of Medicare spending—or roughly $500 billion each year.
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Arizona governor wins Medicaid expansion victory
LifeHealthPro
June 13, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/06/13/arizona-governor-wins-medicaid-expansion-victory
The Arizona House passed an $8.8 billion state budget that includes Medicaid expansion early Thursday and puts Gov. Jan Brewer one Senate vote away from a huge political victory as she embraces a signature part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
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Arizona Gov. Brewer secures Medicaid expansion after months-long fight with Legislature
The Washington Post
June 13, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/republican-arizona-gov-brewer-says-medicaid-expansion-tiny-part-of-federal-health-care-law/2013/06/13/cba9a224-d488-11e2-b3a2-3bf5eb37b9d0_story.html
Ending a six-month legislative session, Arizona lawmakers endorsed a key element of President Barack Obama’s health care law in a huge political victory for Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, after a lengthy fight over Medicaid expansion that divided the state’s Republican leadership. The expansion that will extend health care to 300,000 more low-income Arizonans came after months of stalled negotiations, tense debates and political maneuvering as Brewer pushed the Medicaid proposal through a hostile Legislature.
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Employers with 50 or more full-time workers required to offer ‘affordable’ coverage
The Washington Post
June 13, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/employers-with-50-or-more-full-time-workers-required-to-offer-affordable-coverage/2013/06/13/ad4bef26-d44c-11e2-b3a2-3bf5eb37b9d0_story.html
Requirements that medium-sized and large employers offer insurance coverage or face fines are one of the most complicated parts of President Barack Obama’s health care law. While most of the estimated 160 million Americans with job-based coverage will not see not see major changes when the law takes full effect next year, the so-called employer mandate will be important to millions of workers, particularly in low-wage industries.
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Affordability glitch: low-wage workers in some big firms could get left out in health overhaul
The Washington Post
June 13, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/affordability-glitch-low-wage-workers-in-some-big-firms-could-get-left-out-in-health-overhaul/2013/06/13/e43b5fcc-d43c-11e2-b3a2-3bf5eb37b9d0_story.html
It’s called the Affordable Care Act, but President Barack Obama’s health care law may turn out to be unaffordable for many low-wage workers, including employees at big chain restaurants, retail stores and hotels. That might seem strange since the law requires medium-sized and large employers to offer “affordable” coverage or face fines.
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Arizona Expands Medicaid in Win for Gov. Brewer
The Wall Street Journal
June 13, 2013
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/06/13/arizona-expands-medicaid-in-win-for-gov-brewer/?KEYWORDS=medicaid
Arizona legislators voted to extend the state’s Medicaid program to include all adults earning a little more than the poverty level Thursday, giving a hard-fought victory to GOP Gov. Jan Brewer who had spent months campaigning for the move. Ms. Brewer had held rallies across the state since January to persuade Republican legislators to go along with her decision to adopt a key part of the federal health-care law, the growth of the Medicaid health program to include millions more low-income adults, after the Supreme Court decision a year ago effectively allowed states to choose whether to participate.
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How Mississippi could end up killing Medicaid
The Washington Post
June 13, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/06/13/how-mississippi-could-end-up-killing-medicaid/
The fight over expanding Medicaid has gotten ugly, and the latest state to grab the spotlight is Mississippi, where a standoff in the legislature is pushing the state toward a cliff. Without a last-minute agreement, Medicaid may cease altogether there on July 1. Most people think it won’t come to that, but given the unpredictable nature of the fight over Obamacare, advocates and hospitals there are growing understandably concerned. Some 700,000 people are on the Medicaid rolls in Mississippi, and the program represents about 16 percent of the state’s hospital revenue.
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Regulator wants to bar Anthem from small-business health exchange
Los Angeles Times
June 13, 2013
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-insurance-exchange-fight-20130614,0,2240958.story
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones wants industry giant Anthem Blue Cross barred from the state's new health exchange for small businesses because he says the company imposes excessive rate hikes. Jones said the state's largest for-profit health insurer should be denied access to the state-run market where thousands of small employers will purchase health coverage for their workers. Covered California, the state agency implementing the federal healthcare law, said it would consider the commissioner's request alongside many other factors in deciding which insurers to pick.
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Lack of Local Revenue Limits Federal Money for Health Projects
The New York Times
June 13, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/14/us/lack-of-local-revenue-limits-federal-money-for-health-projects.html?emc=tnt&tntemail0=y&_r=0
Texas received federal approval in May to begin 1,100 experimental projects that could transform the way health care is delivered to the state’s poor and uninsured. But there is a catch: to receive billions of dollars in federal financing, health care providers across 20 Texas regions must start the projects using local financing and meet some performance benchmarks. This presents a particular challenge for the poorest regions, which have higher rates of people who are uninsured or receiving Medicaid benefits, yet have been unable to put up enough local money to draw a representative share of the available federal dollars.
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Democratic Congressman: 'Not Fair' To Subject Congress To Obamacare Just Like Everyone Else
Forbes
June 13, 2013
http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2013/06/13/democrat-not-fair-to-subject-congress-to-obamacare-just-like-everyone-else/
When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) was being debated, proponents were accused of saddling Americans with inferior and expensive health care while keeping generous coverage for themselves at taxpayer expense. To rebut that allegation and build confidence in the bill, a provision was added mandating that members of Congress – and their staff members – get there coverage through the new exchange system the bill set up. Now that the time to sign up for exchange coverage is nearing, a Democratic member, Rep. John Larson (D., Conn.), is saying that “this is simply not fair” – as key staff members head for the exits to avoid Obamacare.
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Small-business exchanges draw few insurers
Politico
June 13, 2013
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/obamacare-insurers-small-biz-exchanges-92667.html?hp=l9
Obamacare’s new insurance marketplaces for small businesses, which have already stumbled before getting out of the gate, are facing another pressing question just months before millions can sign up for benefits: What happens if insurers don’t show up to sell? Early looks at insurance offerings on the Obamacare exchanges show that insurers aren’t exactly signing up in droves to sell on the new Small Business Health Option Program exchanges. In some states, just one insurer has signed up for the SHOP exchanges, which are supposed to foster competition and make it easier for small businesses to purchase coverage. The SHOP exchanges exist alongside the exchanges for individuals, which have gotten more attention in preparation for the health law’s rollout.
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Oregon's home health care industry faces major federal cuts; access cited
The Oregonian
June 13, 2013
http://www.oregonlive.com/health/index.ssf/2013/06/oregons_home_health_industry_f.html
Home health care providers in Oregon and their allies say their industry is in a bind. The state's rural home health providers don’t make as much as they should from serving Medicare patients, and the state’s providers overall are slated for an even bigger hit next year, according to the industry’s advocates and allies in Congress.
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Obamacare? We were just leaving …
Politico
June 13, 2013
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/obamacare-lawmakers-health-insurance-92691.html?hp=f2
Dozens of lawmakers and aides are so afraid that their health insurance premiums will skyrocket next year thanks to Obamacare that they are thinking about retiring early or just quitting.
The fear: Government-subsidized premiums will disappear at the end of the year under a provision in the health care law that nudges aides and lawmakers onto the government health care exchanges, which could make their benefits exorbitantly expensive.
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Health care law's employer requirements
Boston Globe
June 13, 2013
http://www.boston.com/business/healthcare/2013/06/13/health-care-law-employer-requirements/HVbSxwXAS6lSNSxdR64WcL/story.html
Requirements that medium-sized and large employers offer insurance coverage or face fines are one of the most complicated parts of President Barack Obama’s health care law. While most of the estimated 160 million Americans with job-based coverage will not see not see major changes when the law takes full effect next year, the so-called employer mandate will be important to millions of workers, particularly in low-wage industries.
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Navigating Health Care Policy
The Huffington Post
June 13, 2013
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-daroff/navigating-healthcare-pol_b_3435215.html
Sandy Teplitzky is a lawyer in Baltimore who represents health care providers every day. Last week, his Jewish activism took him to Washington, D.C., as co-chair of a summit organized by The Jewish Federations of North America that focused on the critical changes in the delivery of healthcare and the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The health care industry is evolving due to many factors, including changing demographics, technology, and the sweeping ACA. The summit meeting provided a critical opportunity to discuss how these changes will affect the delivery and sustainability of health care services and how the transformational law will affect virtually every Jewish communal health care provider and the people that they serve.
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Analysis: ObamaCare will bring flood of retail health clinics
The Hill
June 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/304955-obamacare-to-double-retail-health-clinics-analysis-predicts
ObamaCare's flood of newly insured patients will lead to a sharp increase in retail health clinics across the country, according to a new analysis. Global consulting firm Accenture predicted that the number of walk-in medical facilities located in retail stores will rise to nearly 3,000 by 2015. The clinics are expected to account for 10 percent of non-primary care outpatient visits within three years.
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Hatch, Rubio Offer Immigration Amendments
The Wall Street Journal
June 12, 2013
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/06/12/hatch-rubio-offer-immigration-amendments/
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio joined forces with Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch Wednesday to offer a handful of immigration amendments on taxes and benefits that could irritate colleagues on both sides of the aisle. In a series of four amendments, the two Republican senators require illegal immigrants to pay back taxes, curb immigrants’ ability to access health-care tax credits and subsidies and limit immigrants’ access to Social Security retirement benefits.
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Surgeon general to step down
Politico
June 12, 2013
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/surgeon-general-to-step-down-92698.html?hp=l13
Surgeon General Regina Benjamin has announced that she plans to step down from her post, which she has held since 2009. Deputy Surgeon General Boris Lushniak will serve as acting surgeon general while the search takes place to fill the post, said Dori Salcido, spokeswoman for Health and Human Services.
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CMS reverses position on coverage for tumor scans
Modern Healthcare
June 12, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130612/NEWS/306129965/cms-reverses-position-on-coverage-for-tumor-scans
Physicians, patients and medical imaging companies talked the CMS out of virtually ending Medicare payment for post-treatment positron emission tomography scans for solid tumors. The agency reversed its March proposal to end payment for such post-treatment scans for prostate cancer and limit coverage to one scan for other cancers. Instead, Medicare will cover three scans ordered to help guide subsequent anti-tumor treatment. The CMS will allow local Medicare Administrative Contractors, or MACs, to determine coverage for additional scans.
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New budget talks, same stalemate: GOP sees the long term, Democrats see today
The Washington Post
June 12, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/new-budget-talks-same-stalemate-gop-sees-the-long-term-democrats-see-today/2013/06/12/01af6846-d370-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_story.html
How big is the nation’s borrowing problem? Is it the $6.3 trillion in fresh debt projected over the next decade? Or is it the more than $70 trillion that Republicans say the nation will rack up over the next 30 years? Under Option 1, the national debt is high but stable as a share of the nation’s overall economy. Under Option 2, the debt is exploding to levels unseen in U.S. history.
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Lawmaker says lung transplant fight reveals 'brave new world' of federal control
The Hill
June 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/305025-lawmaker-says-lung-transplant-fight-reveals-brave-new-world-of-federal-control
Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) said on Wednesday that a 10-year-old-girl's fight with the federal government to gain access to a healthy lung is an early look at the control the government will have under ObamaCare. McClintock was reacting to the refusal of Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to change federal rules that say people age 12 and older can get on the adult waiting list for a lung transplant. That rule stopped 10-year-old Sarah Murnaghan of Pennsylvania from getting on that list, even though she was diagnosed with end-stage cystic fibrosis and desperately needed a transplant to live.
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Arizona Senate poised to approve budget with Medicaid expansion sought by Gov. Jan Brewer
The Washington Post
June 12, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/arizona-lawmakers-begin-debate-on-budget-medicaid-plan-that-has-divided-state-gop-leaders/2013/06/12/51bb6e40-d3be-11e2-b3a2-3bf5eb37b9d0_story.html
The Arizona Senate is poised to pass an $8.8 billion state budget Thursday that includes the Medicaid expansion sought by Republican Gov. Jan Brewer as she embraces a signature part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul law over the opposition of most GOP legislators. The Arizona House passed the proposals early Thursday after working through the night, putting Brewer one vote away from a huge political victory that will expand health care to 300,000 more low-income Arizonans. Conservatives proposed more than 50 amendments and debated for more than 12 hours in an attempt to block the inevitable, but they didn’t have the votes to stop the Medicaid expansion or the budget deal.
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Health care was rationed before 'Obamacare' reform, too
The Tennessean
June 12, 2013
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20130613/OPINION02/306130010/Health-care-rationed-before-Obamacare-reform-too?nclick_check=1
One of the sillier rumors circulating about health-care reform is that it will involve “rationing.” Of course, it will. Health care is rationed today, it was rationed yesterday, and it will be rationed tomorrow. Those who are willing and able to pay the price generated by the market mechanism are the ones who get them. The others are “rationed” out of the market.
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In Arizona, An Unlikely Ally For Medicaid Expansion
NPR
June 12, 2013
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/06/12/191047956/in-arizona-an-unlikely-ally-for-medicaid-expansion
The Arizona Legislature is debating whether to extend Medicaid to about 300,000 people in the state. The expansion is a requirement to get federal funding under the Affordable Care Act. The big surprise is who has been leading the charge: Republican Gov. Jan Brewer. She's one of President Obama's staunchest critics and has confounded conservatives in her own party by supporting the expansion.
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Kaiser's Obamacare rates surprise analysts
Los Angeles Times
June 12, 2013
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-kaiser-health-rates-20130613,0,7939146.story
In California's new state-run health insurance market, Kaiser Permanente will cost you. The healthcare giant has the highest rates in Southern California and some other areas of the state, surpassing rivals such as Anthem Blue Cross and other smaller competitors. The relatively high premiums from such a strong supporter of the federal healthcare law surprised industry analysts, and it has sparked considerable debate about the company's motives.
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Baltimore holds town meeting on Affordable Care Act
Politico
June 12, 2013
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/town-meeting-obamacare-92604.html?hp=l8
All those polls on just how little Americans understand about the health law sprung to life an hour north of Washington one evening this week, as Baltimore County held one of the first public forums to try to explain the new health care options and how to sign up for them.
About 100 people, most middle-age adults to seniors, attended the session at a temple here Monday. Their questions provided a glimpse of the public’s perceptions of Obamacare enrollment and underscored the challenge facing the law’s backers: Before people can sign up, they have to understand it.
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Michigan House panel approves Medicaid expansion
Detroit Free Press
June 12, 2013
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130612/NEWS06/306120101/Michigan-House-panel-approves-Medicaid-expansion
A plan to expand Medicaid health coverage to 470,000 low-income Michiganders passed its first hurdle Wednesday when the House Michigan Competitiveness committee voted 9-5 to approve the bill. The federal government would pay 100% of the costs of the expansion through 2017, and then the amount would decline to 90% by 2020.
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GOP: Schools cutting workers' hours to avoid ObamaCare penalty
The Hill
June 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/305073-gop-schools-cutting-workers-hours-to-avoid-obamacare-penalty
A group of House Republicans criticized the Obama administration Wednesday over news that schools are cutting their employees' hours to avoid providing health insurance. Republican lawmakers from Indiana said several school districts in the state have cut the weekly hours of employees, including cafeteria workers, bus drivers and teachers' aides.
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Obamacare navigator contract with Planned Parenthood delayed
Arkansas Times
June 12, 2013
http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2013/06/12/obamacare-navigator-contract-with-planned-parenthood-delayed
Let the grandstanding begin. We mentioned a while back that the navigators and guides that will be hired in Arkansas as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would likely be a political lightning rod for Republicans. Andy Davis reports this morning that the Arkansas Insurance Department's contract with Planned Parenthood to provide outreach workers has been delayed. AID is mum on why (no other contracts were delayed or denied) and Rep. John Burris and Sen. David Sanders chime in with ready-made thumbs-down comments for Planned Parenthood.
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Healthcare's overlooked cost factor
Health Leaders Media
June 12, 2013
http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/content/HEP-293156/Healthcares-overlooked-cost-factor
When the Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Corporation merged its two hospitals with the neighboring Highland Park Hospital just north of Chicago 13 years ago, the deal was presented as an opportunity to increase efficiency and improve the quality of patient care. But when the Federal Trade Commission finally decided to look at the deal, it encountered an entirely different objective: to gain market power. Mark Neaman, Evanston's chief executive, had told his board that the deal would "increase our leverage, limited as it might be," the investigation found, and "help our negotiating posture" with managed care organizations.
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Mental health care key to ending mass shootings
The Hill, by Rep. Ron Barber
June 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/opinion/op-ed/305227-mental-health-care-key-to-ending-mass-shootings
As a survivor of the mass shooting in Tucson, Ariz., two-and-a-half years ago, I am determined that no one else should have to endure such grief and loss. So this week, as we observe the six-month anniversary of the senseless and tragic murders at Sandy Hook Elementary School, I am determined to lead a bipartisan effort to get more done in Washington.
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PPACA exchanges: The early days
LifeHealthPro
June 12, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/06/12/ppaca-exchanges-the-early-days?t=employee-benefits
It will be a tough task implementing the online health insurance marketplaces that are required of each state under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), and there will no doubt be consumer horror stories about trying to navigate them, insurance company executives warned Tuesday.
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GOP lawmakers raise questions about IRS, patient data
Modern Healthcare
June 12, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130612/NEWS/306129954/gop-lawmakers-raise-questions-about-irs-patient-data
Four Republican House members are asking pointed questions about the security of patients' healthcare data based on allegations in a lawsuit in which an anonymous company claims that a raiding party of IRS agents confiscated protected health-information files on about 10 million Americans. Both the company and the IRS agents are identified only as “John Doe” in the lawsuit (PDF), which was filed in March in San Diego Superior Court. Robert Barnes, the lawyer for the plaintiff, declined to name his client and said in an e-mail that he was not aware that members of an Energy and Commerce subcommittee had taken an interest in the suit.
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Reform Update: New fuel for managed-care debate
Modern Healthcare
June 12, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130612/NEWS/306129967/reform-update-new-fuel-for-managed-care-debate
Managed care rapidly gained and quickly lost favor more than a decade ago, but even as it lost ground, it never fully lost a hold in the market. Now, it's an increasingly popular option among seniors enrolled in Medicare, and some managed-care tenets—care coordination led by primary care and capitation—have re-emerged under new models endorsed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Nonetheless, the debate continues over whether patients benefit when insurers, doctors and hospitals have more financial incentives to closely manage care. The sickest patients could lose if they are shunned by health plans or providers looking to avoid the higher costs of their care. But incentives may also provide financing for care coordination to prevent or better manage chronic diseases and their costs.
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Blue Cross launches health care site
Idaho Press-Tribune
June 12, 2013
http://www.idahopress.com/members/blue-cross-launches-health-care-site/article_caa6637e-d30e-11e2-9d27-0019bb2963f4.html
Blue Cross of Idaho has launched a website called GetCoveredIdaho.com to help guide Idahoans through the upcoming Idaho Health Insurance Exchange, part of the Affordable Care Act. The website is meant to offer clear answers on requirements and reforms of the bill, and a tool to calculate subsidy eligibility and other information to help prepare individuals for the Oct. 1 open enrollment period.
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Feds OK Hawaii exchange plans
LifeHealthPro
June 12, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/06/12/feds-ok-hawaii-exchange-plans
The federal government is approving technical designs for a new online health insurance marketplace Hawaii is setting up under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Gov. Neil Abercrombie's office says the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services both approved the plans on Monday.
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Crunch Time For States Still On Fence About Medicaid Expansion
Kaiser Health News
June 12, 2013
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Daily-Reports/2013/June/12/states-and-health-law-implementation-news.aspx
As states' legislative sessions draw to a close, some lawmakers are pressing for action. Meanwhile, media outlets track updates in Michigan, New Hampshire, Mississippi, Colorado, Ohio and Alabama.
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Health care providers speak up for immigrants
USA Today
June 12, 2013
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/06/12/health-care-providers-speak-up-for-immigrants/2414143/
In the past 20 years, interpreters like Miranda have grown in value in the Nashville area, especially in the health care community. To meet the language needs of the influx of immigrants into the area, health care providers have had to ratchet up their interpretation services. Lori Catanzaro, senior lecturer in Spanish at Vanderbilt University, sees the need for bilingual health care. In the fall she'll start teaching a weekly Spanish class for health care professionals.
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Health Care Consolidation and Competition After PPACA
The Heritage Foundation
June 11, 2013
http://www.heritage.org/research/testimony/2013/06/health-care-consolidation-and-competition-after-ppaca
Testimony before Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property: Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify on the subject of "Health Care Consolidation and Competition after PPACA." My name is Edmund F. Haislmaier. I am Senior Research Fellow in Health Policy at The Heritage Foundation. The views I express in this testimony are my own, and should not be construed as representing any official position of The Heritage Foundation.
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Pa. Democrats Push For Vote On Medicaid Expansion
CBS Philly
June 11, 2013
http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2013/06/11/pa-democrats-push-for-vote-on-medicaid-expansion/
Democrats in the Pennsylvania legislature are pulling out all the stops in an effort to force a vote on expansion of Medicaid as part of the new federal health care law – something that Governor Corbett has so far resisted.
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Reform Update: Medicaid expansion could occur in red states in coming weeks
Modern Healthcare
June 11, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130611/NEWS/306119965/reform-update-medicaid-expansion-could-occur-in-red-states-in-coming
The coming weeks are shaping up to be a big deal for states still on the fence regarding Medicaid expansion. Democrats in Pennsylvania are trying to force a vote in that state's Legislature, Philadelphia's CBS affiliate reported today. Democrats in the Keystone State recently failed in an effort to get a Medicaid expansion included in a budget bill that could be voted on today. In addition, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett is said to be in negotiations with the Obama administration on how the state might satisfy the Medicaid provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
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Colorado Offers Exchange ‘Assister’ Money To Many Groups
Kaiser Health News
June 11, 2013
http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2013/06/colorado-offers-exchange-assister-money-to-many-groups/
Obamacare in Colorado is getting down to the details, in dollars and cents. One of the 16 states that is setting up its own online insurance marketplace, Colorado on Monday named 58 organizations it’s selected to form its “assistance network” to help residents sign up for health coverage on the exchange. But no organization is getting all the money it applied for, and it’s unclear how many will accept the grants they’ve been offered. That may mean gaps in reaching all corners of the state, or specifically targeted populations, such as refugees, rural Latinos, or the disabled.
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Health Care’s Overlooked Cost Factor
The New York Times
June 11, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/12/business/examinations-of-health-costs-overlook-mergers.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
When the Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Corporation merged its two hospitals with the neighboring Highland Park Hospital just north of Chicago 13 years ago, the deal was presented as an opportunity to increase efficiency and improve the quality of patient care. But when the Federal Trade Commission finally decided to look at the deal, it encountered an entirely different objective: to gain market power.
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Room for Savings Found in Medicare
The Wall Street Journal
June 11, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324904004578537704212823178.html?KEYWORDS=medicare
The federal government's Medicare program could have saved nearly $1 billion in 2011 if it had paid the lowest rate negotiated by private insurers for lab tests, federal investigators said in a report to be released Tuesday. A review of rates on 20 of the most common lab tests showed Medicare paid $910 million more than it would have if it had paid the rates of some state Medicaid plans and private insurers, according to the report by the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General.
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Federal Rule Allows Higher Out-Of-Pocket Spending For One Year
Kaiser Health News
June 11, 2013
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Features/Insuring-Your-Health/2013/061113-Michelle-Andrews-out-of-pocket-costs.aspx
Starting next year, the Affordable Care Act sets maximum limits on how much consumers can be required to pay out-of-pocket annually for their medical care. But some people with high drug costs may find the limits don't protect them yet. That's because the federal government is giving some health plans extra time to comply with the rules.
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Health Care Exchanges May Not Provide Many Options
Public Radio East
June 11, 2013
http://publicradioeast.org/post/health-care-exchanges-may-not-provide-many-options
You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. It's not exactly a buyer's market for people who purchase their own health insurance. Prices can be high and options severely limited. A key piece of the Affordable Care Act is supposed to change that. New health exchanges will allow people to comparison shop for insurance, maybe even get a subsidy to help pay for it. But as New Hampshire Public Radio's Todd Bookman reports, some people may still be left with few choices.
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Obamacare ‘rate shock’ hits Ohio with 88 percent insurance hikes
The Washington Times
June 11, 2013
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jun/11/obamacare-rate-shock-hits-ohio-88-percent-insuranc/
The Ohio Department of Insurance predicts premiums in 2014 will rise by 88 percent, a direct result of President Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The average cost of insurance premiums will stand about $420, “representing an increase of 88 percent” compared to 2013, the department reported, Forbes said.
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CountryFocus: Healthcare, Regulatory and Reimbursement Landscape – US
The Wall Street Journal
June 11, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130611-908292.html
GlobalData, the industry analysis specialist, has released its new report, "CountryFocus: Healthcare, Regulatory and Reimbursement Landscape - US". The report is an essential source of information and analysis on the healthcare, regulatory and reimbursement landscape of US. The report identifies the key trends in the healthcare market of US. The report also provides insights on the demographic, regulatory, reimbursement landscape and healthcare infrastructure of US. Most importantly, the report provides valuable insights on the trends and segmentation of the pharmaceutical and medical devices market. This report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, secondary research and in-house analysis by GlobalData's team of industry experts.
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U.S. Drops Bid to Limit Sales of Morning-After Pill
The New York Times
June 10, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/11/us/in-reversal-obama-to-end-effort-to-restrict-morning-after-pill.html?hp
The Obama administration has decided to stop trying to block over-the-counter availability of the best-known morning-after contraceptive pill for all women and girls, a move fraught with political repercussions for President Obama.
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Doctors brace for pain as 10% cut to Medi-Cal rates looms
Los Angeles Times
June 10, 2013
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-health-cuts-20130611,0,260922.story
In a office decorated with Chinese art and diagrams of body parts, Dr. George Ma cares for more than 4,000 patients. Nearly three-quarters are covered by Medi-Cal, the state's public insurance program for low-income Californians, and Ma said he receives $10 a month to treat most of them.
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HHS Touts a ‘Huge Year in Data Liberation’ With ‘Health Datapalooza IV’
The Weekly Standard
June 10, 2013
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/hhs-touts-huge-year-data-liberation-health-datapalooza-iv_734157.html
As the IRS scandal grows, the Department of Health and Human Services today published a blog post titled "Health Datapalooza IV Tops Off a Huge Year in Data Liberation": Health Datapalooza IV wrapped up last week with over 1900 attendees and 80 companies, this was the biggest ‘palooza’ yet. Kicked off by Secretary Sebelius for the second year in a row, this year’s event was a tremendous display of health data in action...
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Hospitals Work on Patients' Most-Frequent Complaint: Noise
The Wall Street Journal
June 10, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324634304578537350035525538.html?KEYWORDS=medicare
First it's the beeping of a heart monitor. A nurse comes in to take a patient's temperature. There's conversation during the shift change, overhead pagers, a visitor's cellphone conversation and the din of a TV talk show. An aide pushes a cart of rattling dishes. An alarm goes off when IV medication is finished. All these sounds make up the steady assault of beeps and bustle during a typical night in a hospital bed. More hospitals are getting creative about lowering the noise level, masking intrusive sound and distracting patients from the cacophony.
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Insider Probe Hits Congress
The Wall Street Journal
June 10, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324904004578537780079103690.html?KEYWORDS=medicare
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has shifted the focus of a broadening insider-trading investigation to Congress, seeking information to determine whether one of Sen. Charles Grassley's aides may have been involved in sharing information about an important government decision with Wall Street this spring, said a person familiar with the matter. It is rare for federal law-enforcement officials to involve congressional aides in investigations, mainly because the Constitution extends legal protection to legislative-branch employees for their official duties. Making matters more unusual, the Iowa senator is the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees the Justice Department.
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Obama administration drops fight to keep age restrictions on Plan B sales
The Washington Post
June 10, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/obama-administration-drops-fight-to-keep-age-restrictions-on-plan-b-sales/2013/06/10/a296406e-d22a-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_story.html?hpid=z2
The Obama administration on Monday abandoned its fight to keep age restrictions on sales of a widely used morning-after contraceptive pill, a stark legal reversal that ended years of court battles but did little to extinguish political passions on both sides of the issue. In a letter Monday to U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman in New York, who has called the age restrictions “politically motivated” and “scientifically unjustified,” the administration said it would drop its appeal in the case and abide by Korman’s order to make Plan B One-Step contraceptive pills available to women and girls of any age without a prescription.
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Eastern Kentucky Healthcare Coalition Adds UK HealthCare, St. Mary’s Medical Center
Becker’s Hospital Review
June 10, 2013
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-transactions-and-valuation/eastern-kentucky-healthcare-coalition-adds-uk-healthcare-st-marys-medical-center.html
Lexington, Ky.-based UK HealthCare and Huntington, W.Va.-based St. Mary's Medical Center have joined the Eastern Kentucky Healthcare Coalition, an integrated provider network formed last August that already includes three other hospitals, according to a report by the Floyd County Times. All five hospitals in the coalition — which also includes Highlands Regional Medical Center in Prestonsburg, Ky., Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital in Russell, Ky., and St. Claire Regional Medical Center in Morehead, Ky. — will remain independent with no transfer of ownership related to the coalition. Together, the five host 1,783 beds, more than 14,400 employees and 1,780 physicians, according to the report.
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Healthcare cost top concern for manufacturers
The Hill
June 10, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/economy/304485-healthcare-cost-top-concern-for-manufacturers
Healthcare costs are the top concern for manufacturers in expanding their businesses, a new report showed Monday. The National Association of Manufacturers' (NAM) second-quarter survey said that 82.2 percent of manufacturers identified rising healthcare and insurance costs as their top challenge, an increase from 74 percent in the previous survey, according to the IndustryWeek Survey of Manufacturers.
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No sticker shock from early peek at D.C.'s insurance exchanges
The Examiner
June 10, 2013
http://washingtonexaminer.com/no-sticker-shock-from-early-peek-at-d.c.s-insurance-exchanges/article/2531558
When District officials scrambled to put in place health insurance exchanges mandated by President Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, they faced a number of potential pitfalls -- including the possibility that monthly costs would skyrocket. As insurers have begun unveiling their plans, the huge cost increases that some prognosticators had foreseen have not come to pass.
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Data mandated for dual eligibles outlined as states move to managed care
McKight’s Long-Term Care News & Assisted Living
June 10, 2013
http://www.mcknights.com/data-mandated-for-dual-eligibles-outlined-as-states-move-to-managed-care/article/296868/
Dual eligible managed care plans involved in an upcoming Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services demonstration project will need to submit data in a variety of areas, the agency explained in a draft statement last week. The plans will have requirements pertaining to assessment, care coordination, organizational structure and other areas. One report called for in the “Utilization” section, for example, is on the total number of discharges from a nursing facility, including death, during a report period.
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California exchange seeks head hunter
LifeHealthPro
June 10, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/06/10/california-exchange-seeks-head-hunter
The California Health Benefit Exchange board has decided it needs help with hiring top executives for the state's new Covered California health insurance exchange program. The board has posted a request for proposals (RFPs) from executive services providers. The board released the RFP today and wants to get proposals by June 21.
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TeamHealth to Grow Under PPACA
Becker’s Hospital Review
June 10, 2013
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/racs-/-icd-9-/-icd-10/teamhealth-to-grow-under-ppaca.html
In a Journal Sentinel report, Brandon Nelson, chief investment officer at Timpani Capital Management in Milwaukee, discussed Knoxville, Tenn.-based TeamHealth's potential growth in the coming year under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. According to Mr. Nelson, around 70 percent of the company's revenue comes from emergency room staffing. Approximately 22 percent of the patients seen by TeamHealth's emergency physicians are uninsured, and the company receives an average payment of $35 from them per visit. Under the PPACA, Mr. Nelson expects that $35 average payment to increase as more people get insured.
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Health-Care Jobs Move Home
The Wall Street Journal
June 10, 2013
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2013/06/10/health-care-jobs-move-home/
Throughout the ups and downs of the recovery, the health-care sector has remained a jobs engine, notching 11,000 of the 175,000 positions added in May. The Labor Department’s tallies for the health-care sector reflect a trend toward more outpatient care, with hospitals shedding almost 6,000 jobs last month while doctors’ offices and ambulatory care centers added workers.
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Sen. Lee: Gang of Eight’s bill is ‘an immigration ObamaCare’
The Hill
June 10, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/304437-sen-lee-gang-of-eights-bill-is-an-immigration-obamacare
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) called the Gang of Eight’s comprehensive immigration reform bill “an immigration version of ObamaCare.” “However well-intentioned, the Gang of Eight bill is just an immigration version of ObamaCare,” Lee said Sunday. “The Gang of Eight bill is not immigration reform. It is big government dysfunction. It is an immigration ObamaCare. All advocates of true immigration reform — on the left and the right — should oppose it.”
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Mich. doctors wary of bill to expand nurse practitioners' role
Modern Healthcare
June 10, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130610/INFO/306109991/mich-doctors-wary-of-bill-to-expand-nurse-practitioners-role
Battle lines appear to have been drawn between nurse practitioners and physicians over legislation that would expand and clarify the scope of practice for advanced practice registered nurses by amending Michigan's Public Health Code 368. Nurse practitioners, who number about 4,700 in Michigan, say giving them more independence, especially in rural areas, and additional rights to prescribe medication can help alleviate expected shortages of primary care providers.
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Health care law concerns Ohio churches group
AP
June 10, 2013
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Health-care-law-concerns-Ohio-churches-group-4591338.php
An Ohio organization of Protestant and Catholic churches has expressed concern about religious liberty protections under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. The Ohio Council of Churches, representing 18 Christian denominations, says in a statement that more is needed to broaden the religious exemption in the new federal law's current mandate and to add safeguards for "religious liberty and the rights of conscience."
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Health Care Exchanges May Not Provide Many Options
NPR
June 10, 2013
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=190453551
It's not exactly a buyer's market for those Americans who purchase their own health insurance: prices can be high, and options severely limited. The new health exchanges — a key piece of President Obama's health overhaul — are supposed to change that, allowing people to go to a website to comparison shop for insurance, and maybe even get a subsidy to pay for it. But some people may still be left with few choices.
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US transplant network resists lung rule changes
Boston Globe
June 10, 2013
http://www.boston.com/business/healthcare/2013/06/10/transplant-group-considers-lung-rule-changes/B8Ik2ZaRjrfMKVQyqNEuJI/story.html
The national organization that manages organ transplants on Monday resisted making emergency rule changes for children under 12 who are waiting on lungs but created a special appeal and review system to hear such cases. The executive committee of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network held a teleconference to consider children who seek to qualify for adult lungs, and many members voiced serious ethical and medical concerns about a recent federal judge’s ruling that questioned the existing system.
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50 Vetoes: How States Can Stop the Obama Health Care Law
Townhall
June 9, 2013
http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/michaelfcannon/2013/06/09/50-vetoes-how-states-can-stop-the-obama-health-care-law-n1616064
Despite surviving a number of threats, President Obama’s health care law remains harmful, unstable, and unpopular. It also remains vulnerable to repeal, largely because Congress and the Supreme Court have granted each state the power to veto major provisions of the law before they take effect in 2014. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) itself empowers states to block the employer mandate, to exempt many of their low- and middle-income taxpayers from the individual mandate, and to reduce federal deficit spending, simply by not establishing a health insurance “exchange.” Supporters of the law do not care for this feature, yet they adopted it because they had no choice. The bill would not have become law without it.
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IN-DEPTH: Medicaid expansion may aggravate M.D. shortage
Cincinnati.com
June 9, 2013
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20130609/NEWS/306090048/IN-DEPTH-Medicaid-expansion-may-aggravate-M-D-shortage?gcheck=1&nclick_check=1
In Cincinnati, the demand for a visit with an affordable doctor is so high that new patients are waiting up to seven months to get an appointment at one of the city’s five health centers. Just last week, health centers in the East End and Mount Auburn were temporarily closed for the summer by Neighborhood Health Care, after the nonprofit couldn’t find enough full-time doctors to carry the patient load.
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Medicaid expansion may overload doctors in NKY
Cincinnati.com
June 9, 2013
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20130609/NEWS/306090047/Medicaid-expansion-may-overload-doctors-NKY
On the surface, Northern Kentucky would appear to have plenty of doctors and dentists for the population, even with the expansion of Medicaid set to begin soon. But area medical professionals and experts warn of a shortage of physicians who accept Medicaid now, especially primary-care doctors.
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Health reform watches its wait: Doctors improve efficiencies to prep for surge in patients
Crain’s Detroit Business
June 9, 2013
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20130609/NEWS/306099997/health-reform-watches-its-wait-doctors-improve-efficiencies-to-prep
Jean Malouin, M.D., and Jack Billi, M.D., practice efficiency experts for the University of Michigan Health System, say Michigan is off to a good start in improving productivity as the number of newly insured patients rises under impending health care law changes. State and federal officials predict that up to 1.1 million uninsured patients in Michigan could be seeking physicians and other primary care providers over the next several years after the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act kicks in Jan. 1.
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Health Care Competition?
The New York Times
June 9, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/10/opinion/health-care-competition.html
A May 31 news article reported that the Obama administration is chanting the mantra “competition in health care.” Before it beats the drums too loudly, the country would do well to look at the record of competition in health care. We have had competition in varied forms for more than 40 years. The results include runaway costs, a struggle to hold overhead to one of five premium dollars, a nightmare of rules and regulations, and complex insurance forms that only a skilled expert can understand. Competition has also spurred every provider to have the best and latest in equipment. Once in place, these heavy, fixed-cost devices must be used. Competition is the spur that drives unnecessary tests and procedures.
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Carrier competition on the Arkansas Health Insurance Marketplace
Arkansas Times
June 9, 2013
http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2013/06/09/will-carrier-competition-on-the-arkansas-marketplace-put-a-dent-in-blue-cross-domination
The Washington Post's Sarah Kliff rounds up the dozen states that have released public information about the carriers that will sell on the Obamacare exchanges, including the Health Insurance Marketplace (HIM) in Arkansas. (New Hampshire, not included on Kliff's infograph above, currently is set to have just one carrier.) Some of these numbers may change; Arkansas may yet get one or two additional federal multi-state carriers, and most states have not yet approved plans from the carriers. Arkansas lands near the bottom of the list, but given its size and the lack of competition in the state today, five carriers has generally been seen as a success. A question we've been looking at: Does it represent "enough" to make a strong, competitive market? I asked Martin Gaynor, Professor of Economics and Health Policy at Carnegie Mellon, and he responded via Twitter that "we don't know for certain...because this has never been done before [and] because there's not a lot of evidence." The evidence that does exist, Gaynor wrote, suggests that premium prices fall with more firms entering the market; the biggest impact comes from going from one firm to two; and the competitive benefits continue with additional firms, potentially up to 11, although with diminishing returns.
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Health data event draws companies promising cost savings
The Washington Post
June 9, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/on-it/health-data-event-draws-companies-promising-cost-savings/2013/06/07/d1271832-cc8e-11e2-8f6b-67f40e176f03_story.html
As technology companies apply data analytics to virtually everything from Web traffic to movie recommendations, many are seeing health care as the next frontier. Companies from established contractors to start-ups are pitching data analysis as a critical way to improve the way doctors, patients, insurers and government bodies manage health care.
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Hundreds in government had advance word of Medicare action at heart of trading-spike probe
The Washington Post
June 9, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/hundreds-in-government-had-advance-word-of-medicare-action-at-heart-of-trading-spike-probe/2013/06/09/044944d0-cec7-11e2-8845-d970ccb04497_story.html
Hundreds of federal employees were given advance word of a Medicare decision worth billions of dollars to private insurers in the weeks before the official announcement, a period when trading in the shares of those firms spiked. The surge of trading in Humana’s and other private health insurers’ stock before the April 1 announcement already has prompted the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate whether Wall Street investors had advance access to inside information about the then-confidential Medicare funding plan.
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The rush of fresh ideas encompasses a range of solutions, but the marketing is often the same: They all purport to address the rising cost of health care. Sen. Rob Portman's positions on recent key issues
The Plain Dealer
June 8, 2013
http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2013/06/portman_issues.html
Sen. Rob Portman's positions on significant issues bolster his conservative credentials, except on the issue of same sex marriage, which he supports. Health insurance penalties: Portman introduced a bill in January to repeal provisions of the Affordable care Act that will impose fines on employers for failing to provide health insurance. The bill, which would wipe out other provisions of the healthcare bill, was referred to committee. Medical malpractice: Portman introduced a bill in January to limit noneconomic damages in federal medical malpractice lawsuits, narrow the time frame for filing such a suit and restrict attorney fees, with fines for frivolous suits. It was referred to committee.
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Prepare for Big Piece of Health Law
The Wall Street Journal
June 8, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323728204578513163855924612.html
The biggest part of the health-care law—online exchanges that offer insurance to individuals—kicks in next year. And beginning this October, states will start selling those health-care plans, which adhere to a new set of standards, though online marketplaces. But there already are many ways that you can start investigating options ahead of the rollout. This summer is prime time to educate yourself about your options, say health-insurance experts.
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Obama: Health law is working despite GOP critics' ‘fearmongering’
The Hill
June 7, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/304177-obama-health-law-is-working-despite-critics-fear-mongering
President Obama touted his signature healthcare law Friday, dismissing Republican “fearmongering” and arguing that the law is working. “Since everybody’s been saying how it’s not going to happen, I think it’s important for us to recognize and acknowledge this is working the way it’s supposed to,” Obama said in a brief speech in San Jose, Calif.
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Obama Pitches Health Law
The Wall Street Journal
June 7, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323844804578531540357769124.html?KEYWORDS=health+reform
President Barack Obama trumpeted the benefits of the Affordable Care Act on Friday, saying early indications suggest consumers soon will find additional choices and more affordable premiums when they purchase health insurance. "Competition and choice are pushing down costs in the individual market, just like the law was designed to do," the he said.
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Ohio officials say premiums will rise under ObamaCare
The Hill
June 7, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/304137-ohio-officials-say-premiums-will-rise-under-obamacare
Insurance regulators in Ohio said they expect the cost of insurance premiums to rise by nearly 90 percent for policies available under President Obama's healthcare law. Ohio projected a stiff rate hike shortly before Obama was set to tout lower-than-expected premiums in California. State-by-state rate filings offer a still-emerging picture of how the healthcare law will affect premiums, and whether critics' dire warnings of "rate shock" will materialize.
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Obama’s Remarks on Health Care and Surveillance
The New York Times
June 7, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/08/us/obamas-remarks-on-health-care-and-surveillance.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
he following is a transcript of President Obama’s remarks about the health care overhaul and response to a question about electronic surveillance in San Jose, Calif., as provided by the White House: MR. OBAMA: Good morning, everybody. It is wonderful to see all of you, and I want to thank everybody who is here. I think there's only one problem, and that is that my remarks are not sitting here. People! (Laughter.) By Friday afternoon, things get a little challenged.
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CMS: Healthcare reform powers fraud prevention
Fierce Healthcare
June 7, 2013
http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/cms-healthcare-reform-powers-fraud-prevention/2013-06-07
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, the Obama administration has recouped more than $14.9 billion in healthcare fraud recoveries, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced yesterday. Moreover, CMS has thrown 14,663 crooked providers and suppliers out of Medicare over the past two years, compared to only 6,307 revocations two years before healthcare reform screening and review requirements took effect.
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D.C. offers a peek at the health insurance prices proposed for new exchange
The Washington Post
June 7, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-offers-a-peek-at-the-health-insurance-prices-proposed-for-new-exchange/2013/06/07/c431f914-bc0b-11e2-9b09-1638acc3942e_story.html
In the first glimpse of what District residents and small business owners can expect to pay for health-care coverage under Obamacare, officials on Friday released a snapshot of the proposed plans from four major insurance companies. The nearly 300 insurance plans require approval from the D.C. Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking before going on sale through a city-created exchange, but officials say a preliminary look reveals a large range of options at prices consistent with current rates.
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D.C. taxpayers on the hook for $43 million in unpaid health bills
The Washington Post
June 7, 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/colbert-king-dc-taxpayers-on-the-hook-for-unpaid-health-bills/2013/06/07/07bb5952-cf79-11e2-8845-d970ccb04497_story.html
Former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr.? Guilty. Former council chairman Kwame Brown? Guilty. Now a forthcoming guilty plea from former council member Michael Brown. The D.C. Hall of Shame keeps growing. Who’s next? Jeffrey E. Thompson, the alleged financier of a “shadow campaign” that benefited Mayor Vincent C. Gray in the 2010 Democratic primary, warrants attention from more than a federal grand jury and U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen. Taxpayers in the District should keep tabs.
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CMS crackdown doubles Medicare removals
McKnight’s Long-Term care & Assisted Living
June 7, 2013
http://www.mcknights.com/cms-crackdown-doubles-medicare-removals/article/296715/
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has removed 14,663 healthcare providers and suppliers from the Medicare program in the last two years, the agency announced Thursday. The figure more than doubles the number of removals from the prior two-year period. The statistics do not break down removals by provider type, but they support long-term care stakeholders who have noted increased enforcement actions.
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CMS Revokes 14,000 Medicare Provider Licenses Since ACA
Senior Housing News
June 7, 2013
http://seniorhousingnews.com/2013/06/07/cms-revokes-14000-medicare-provider-licenses-since-aca/
The number of Medicare license revocations has more than doubled in the last two years under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) compared to preceding years, according to data released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Since March 2011, CMS has revoked 14,663 providers’ and suppliers’ ability to bill in the Medicare program. In the two years before the ACA strengthened provider screening as a way to limit fraud, 6,307 providers had their Medicare licenses revoked.
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Ohio reveals high exchange rates
Life Health Pro
June 7, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/06/07/ohio-reveals-high-exchange-rates
Ohio officials said late Thursday that health insurance costs will increase “significantly” under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The state’s department of insurance estimated the average individual premium will increase from $223 per month to $420 — an average of 88 percent — for policies under President Obama’s health care law.
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Health care thorny issue in immigration debate
Boston Globe
June 7, 2013
http://www.boston.com/business/news/2013/06/07/health-care-thorny-issue-immigration-debate/QeAD7W5TgIt5Z122DeVatK/story.html
Health care coverage for newly legalized immigrants is emerging as a thorny issue in Congress’ drive to remake the nation’s immigration system, posing hard-to-solve problems for Senate negotiators and threatening a bill-writing effort in the House. The question is how much access to taxpayer-subsidized care should be granted to immigrants who were here illegally and are embarking on a path to citizenship. Answering it has pulled the noxious politics around President Barack Obama’s signature health care law into the immigration debate.
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Obamacare 'Navigators' To Oversee Implementation in Resistant States
Reason.com
June 7, 2013
http://reason.com/24-7/2013/06/07/obamacare-navigators-to-oversee-implemen
In those states where there is a significant level of hostility toward ObamaCare, trained “navigators” will be on the ground to ensure the program is successfully implemented, senior administration officials said Thursday during a conference call.
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CMS: More Than 14k Providers Kicked Out of Medicare Since 2011
Becker’s Hospital Review
June 7, 2013
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/legal-regulatory-issues/cms-more-than-14k-providers-kicked-out-of-medicare-since-2011.html
CMS has revoked 14,663 providers' ability to participate in Medicare since March 2011 due to fraud control efforts. The providers were expelled from the program due to felony convictions, not operating at the address CMS had on file or non-compliance with CMS rules. In 2008, two years before the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was passed, the number of healthcare providers kicked out of Medicare stood at only 6,307.
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Obama to spotlight Calif. effort promoting ACA
Modern Healthcare
June 7, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130607/NEWS/306079959/obama-to-spotlight-calif-effort-promoting-aca
President Barack Obama today will promote a California effort to educate Americans about the health reform law and insurance coverage enrollment that the administration hopes will serve as a model for other states. In California on Thursday to attend events for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the president continued his trip in the Golden State and is expected to provide a statement about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose around 9 a.m. Pacific Time Friday. Obama will highlight the work of a public-private partnership among the California Endowment, Cover California (the state's health insurance exchange set to launch next year), and three Spanish-speaking media companies—Impremedia, Telemundo Station Group and Univision—that began efforts this year to educate Californians about the law and help those who don't have insurance to enroll when open enrollment starts Oct. 1.
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14 Michigan health insurers apply to sell policies on federal health insurance exchange
Modern Healthcare
June 7, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130607/INFO/306079991/14-michigan-health-insurers-apply-to-sell-policies-on-federal-health
Fourteen health insurers in Michigan submitted applications to participate in the federal health insurance exchange that will offer individual and small group policies beginning Oct. 1. Individuals and small businesses won't know what the premiums are for the policies until Oct. 1, when open enrollment begins for the exchange, said Kevin Clinton, director of the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services. Coverage will be effective Jan. 1.
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Recession Led To A Decline In Out-Of-Pocket Spending For Children With Special Health Care Needs
Health Affairs
June 2013
http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/32/6/1054.abstract
The 2007–09 recession led to an overall slowing in health care spending growth, but it is unclear whether the slowed spending growth had different impacts on adults and children. Although most children are healthy, forgoing routine health care could have long-term adverse implications for public health. Furthermore, children with special health care needs are at risk of adverse outcomes if they do not receive adequate care. Focusing on privately insured families with children, we investigated how out-of-pocket spending trends changed before and during the recession. Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data from the period 2001–09 revealed that the recession did not affect out-of-pocket spending for most children, but it led to a decline in spending for children with special needs, who had much higher out-of-pocket spending at baseline. Adults had significantly lower out-of-pocket spending during the recession, which suggests that parents may reduce their own medical care in difficult economic times to meet their children’s health care needs.
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Obama cites California to tout his healthcare law
Los Angeles
June 7, 2013
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-obama-healthcare-20130607,0,5283232.story
President Obama on Friday morning held up California as an example of how his healthcare law will help consumers, citing the state’s progress getting health insurers to offer better plans at affordable prices. “A lot of opponents of the Affordable Care Act … had all kinds of sky-is-falling, doom-and-gloom predictions that not only would the law fail, but what we would also see is costs would skyrocket,” the president told reporters at a stop in Silicon Valley. “It turns out that what we are seeing in the states that have committed themselves to implementing this law correctly, we’re seeing some good news.”
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Obama pitches new health care law in California
San Francisco Chronicle
June 7, 2013
http://www.sfgate.com/news/texas/article/Obama-pitches-new-health-care-law-in-California-4585882.php
President Barack Obama on Friday encouraged the uninsured or those paying high prices for health insurance to sign up for coverage under his health care law and urged opponents to stop wasting time continuing to fighting its implementation. Obama used a trip to California to highlight how the state is implementing the Affordable Care Act and rebut continuing criticism over his signature legislative achievement. He touted an effort in the state to recruit Hispanics in particular to the health care exchanges that are being created to help millions of now-uninsured consumers afford coverage.

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