10 Essential Facts About Medicare’s Financial Outlook February 2, 2017 Issue Brief Medicare, the nation’s federal health insurance program for 57 million people age 65 and over and younger people with disabilities, often plays a major role in federal health policy and budget discussions. Medicare is likely to be back on the federal policy agenda as Congress debates repealing and replacing the ACA, and also if policymakers turn their attention to reducing entitlement spending as part of efforts to reduce the growing federal budget deficit and debt. This issue brief presents 10 facts and figures about Medicare’s financial status today and the outlook for the future.
Insurance Coverage Changes for People with HIV Under the ACA February 14, 2017 Issue Brief This brief provides the first national estimates of changes in insurance coverage among people with HIV since the implementation of the ACA. We find that coverage increased significantly for people with HIV due to the ACA’s Medicaid expansion; indeed, increased Medicaid coverage in expansion states drove a nationwide increase in coverage for people with HIV.
Pulling it Together: 2012: The ACA, and More January 3, 2012 Perspective What is remarkable about 2012 (and the current era in health policy) is how many big health policy issues and marketplace changes will be in play at the same time: HEALTH REFORM: There is the implementation of a historic but fragile health reform law, with a Supreme Court decision pending…
Pulling it Together: The Most Popular Provision in the ACA? November 29, 2011 Perspective In our most recent monthly tracking poll, we asked the American people what elements of the health reform law they like and dislike. Surprisingly, the runaway favorite was a relatively obscure requirement that health plans provide consumers with a short, easy to understand description of their benefits and coverage. Sixty…
Private Insurance Benefits and Cost-Sharing Under the ACA February 28, 2012 Perspective The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released guidance on the two key components that determine the level of protection that private insurance plans will provide to consumers under health reform. The first involves the services that insurance plans must cover, and the second involves how much patients…
How the ACA Changes Pathways to Insurance Coverage for People with HIV September 18, 2012 Perspective There are multiple sources of insurance coverage and care for people with HIV in the United States. These include public programs, such as Medicaid and Medicare, and the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program, as well as private coverage through an employer or in the individual market. Medicaid, the nation’s principal safety-net…
Quick Take: Key Considerations in Evaluating the ACA Medicaid Expansion for States April 18, 2013 Fact Sheet A central goal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) is to significantly reduce the number of uninsured by providing a continuum of affordable coverage options through Medicaid and new Health Insurance Exchanges. Following the June 2012 Supreme Court decision, states face a decision about whether to adopt…
Can We Learn From ACA Implementation and Improve the Law? May 7, 2013 Perspective Senator Baucus made headlines recently when he predicted a “train wreck” for Obamacare. David Brooks predicted “chaos” in a recent column. In a news conference, the President offered a different perspective. “There’ll still be, you know, glitches and bumps…. That’s pretty much true of every government program that’s ever been…
Quality of Care in Community Health Centers and Factors Associated with Performance June 10, 2013 Issue Brief This study examines quality among health centers relative to Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs). Chronic care quality among health centers is high; gaps in women’s preventive care are a concern. Lower-performing health centers have very high uninsured and homeless rates. The expansion of Medicaid and private insurance under the ACA may foster gains in health center quality performance.
Covering The ACA May Be Almost As Hard As Implementing It June 4, 2013 Perspective This Pulling It Together was adapted from a column I published earlier this week in Politico, with a new introduction added. You can read the original Politico column here. The implementation of the ACA is news and the public will demand information about it. Journalists and news organizations have an obligation…