Gallup: Texas Uninsured Rate Rises, Sets Record
A new Gallup poll reports that Texas has the highest percentage of people ever recorded without health insurance at 28.8 percent. The poll released comes one year after the U.S. Census Bureau reported...
View ArticleCalifornia Insurance Commissioner: Bar Anthem From Health Exchange
California’s insurance commissioner wants to exclude Anthem Blue Cross from the state’s new health exchange for small businesses, saying it’s made excessive rate hikes. Insurance Commissioner Dave...
View ArticleConfusion Still Major Hurdle in Florida for New Health Care Law
As federal health officials work around the clock to fix technology glitches plaguing the website where U.S. citizens can obtain health insurance under the new federal law, many Floridians still have...
View ArticleNorth Dakota Insurance Dept. Seeks Policy Cancellation Info
The North Dakota Insurance Department wants health insurance companies to disclose the number of people whose policies will be canceled under President Barack Obama’s health care law. Individual health...
View ArticleLouisiana Commissioner: 93K Face Canceled Policies
Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon’s office says nearly 93,000 people in Louisiana won’t be able to keep their current insurance coverage because of the federal health overhaul. Donelon asked insurance...
View ArticleStudy: 544K Ohioans, 127K Iowans Can Get Insurance Subsidy
A new study says about 544,000 Ohioans and 127,000 Iowans will be eligible for tax credits under the federal health care law if they purchase coverage through the new health insurance marketplaces. The...
View ArticleCommentary: Agents Act Now on Healthcare Reform
For agents and brokers, 2013 is a relatively quiet period related to Affordable Care Act requirements. However it should be a busy time for agents and brokers to begin preparing their clients for what...
View ArticleNew ‘Obamacare’ Exchanges Could Miss Enrollment Deadline: GAO
New health insurance exchanges being set up by the federal government in more than 30 states under President Barack Obama’s 2010 healthcare overhaul could miss an Oct. 1 deadline for open enrollment, a...
View ArticleFirm Running R.I. Health Exchange’s Call Center an Affiliate of Health Insurer
The company that was awarded a $24 million contract to operate the Rhode Island health benefits exchange’s customer service center is an affiliate of one selling plans on the exchange, but state...
View ArticleConnecticut Health Exchange Learns Many Unaware of Effort
Organizers of Connecticut’s new health insurance exchange are learning most residents don’t know much about the effort to set up an insurance marketplace, a hallmark of the federal health care overhaul...
View ArticleLittle Advertising in Maine for Health Care Law
Some states are gearing up to help get the word out about the new federal health care law, but Maine officials are taking a more hands-off approach. Maine’s community groups and health centers are...
View ArticleVermont to Offer Voter Registration Through Health Insurance Marketplace
Vermont will become the third state to offer voter registration through its health insurance marketplace later this year. Secretary of State Jim Condos said Monday that he has designated Vermont Health...
View ArticleConnecticut Regulator Advises Consumers: Don’t Be Fooled by Misleading Ads
The Connecticut Insurance Department on Tuesday issued an announcement urging consumers to be aware of unlicensed businesses promoting on television or other media platforms what is purported to be...
View ArticleCEO Says Connecticut Health Exchange in ‘Good Shape’
The CEO of Connecticut’s health insurance exchange says the organization is on track to begin accepting applications when open enrollment begins this fall. Kevin Counihan told reporters on Wednesday...
View ArticleConnecticut’s Health Care Exchange Receives Key Approval
Connecticut’s health insurance exchange has finished testing its connection with the federal data services hub, a final step toward opening the online marketplace next month. The federal Centers for...
View ArticleSome NYC Hospitals Not Taking New Health Plans
New Yorkers buying a health plan on the state’s new insurance exchange should read the fine print if they’re interested in getting care at some of the city’s top hospitals. Not all are participating in...
View ArticleConnecticut to Forgo Obama’s Plan for Canceled Health Insurance Policies
The state of Connecticut will not abide by President Barack Obama’s request that states allow insurance companies to continue offering health plans that don’t meet minimum coverage levels to people who...
View ArticlePennsylvania Residents See Some Upgrades on Health Website
The federal government’s beleaguered health insurance website is better than it was, but still far from flawless, according to Pennsylvanians who are trying to help other residents use it to obtain...
View ArticleAlcoa, Others, Moving Some Retirees to Exchanges for Health Insurance
Alcoa Inc. is sending its white-collar retirees to a private exchange to shop for health insurance as the aluminum maker joins the growing ranks of large companies looking for ways to control benefit...
View ArticleMass. Gov. Takes Issue With Report Pegging ACA Costs at $1B
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick is sharply criticizing a report that puts a price tag of about $1 billion on the implementation of the federal Affordable Care Act in Massachusetts. The Pioneer...
View ArticleAudit: Maryland Misallocated $28.4M for Health Exchange
Maryland misallocated $28.4 million in federal money for its flawed health care exchange and should pay the money back, according to a federal audit released on March 27. The audit marked the first...
View ArticleSupreme Court Rejects Maine’s Obamacare Challenge
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid by Maine to escape one requirement of Obamacare, as the justices prepare to rule on a more far-reaching challenge that might unravel the health-care law. The...
View ArticleN.H. Seeks to Update Insurance Rules for Health Care Provider Networks
The New Hampshire Insurance Department is moving forward with changing its rules for health care provider networks, but some insurance companies aren’t yet sold on a key part of the proposed approach....
View Article17.6 Million Gained Health Insurance Through Law: Report
The U.S. national healthcare reform law has extended health insurance coverage to 17.6 million Americans, according to a new government report on Tuesday, up from its previous estimate of 16.4 million....
View Article2.8M Enroll in New York’s Health Exchange
The New York Health Exchange says more than 2.8 million people have signed up for Medicaid and low-cost insurance through its 2016 open enrollment that ended Jan. 31. According to state health...
View ArticleNew York Health Exchange to Enroll 470K in New Low-Cost Option
New York state’s health exchange expects to enroll more than 470,000 New Yorkers in its new low-cost option for coverage this year. Testifying at an Assembly hearing last week, exchange Executive...
View ArticleMassachusetts Law That Became Model for Affordable Care Act Turns 10
Massachusetts is marking the tenth anniversary of a landmark health care law that later served as a model for the federal Affordable Care Act. Then-Republican Gov. Mitt Romney was joined by Democratic...
View ArticlePittsburgh-Based Highmark Sues Federal Government Over ACA Payments
Pittsburgh-based health insurer Highmark Inc. is suing the federal government saying it’s owed about $223 million under the Affordable Care Act for losses in 2014. Highmark filed the lawsuit in a...
View ArticleNew York Health Insurers Propose Hikes for Individual, Small Group Rates
New York health insurers have proposed premium increases averaging 17.3 percent for next year in the market for individuals and 12 percent for small groups. The New York State Department of Financial...
View ArticleBig High Tech Is Big on Reimagining Health Care
Apple Inc.’s new watch is the latest proof: Big Tech is trying to remake health care in its own image. The device, introduced at a splashy launch event this week, can call for help after a fall. It can...
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