Affordable Care Act

In this Axios column about the Texas court decision, Drew Altman shows that many provisions of the Affordable Care Act are even more popular than protections for pre-existing conditions, the issue which put Republicans on the defensive and helped Democrats in the midterm elections.

This KFF Factsheet reviews the available methods, use, and insurance coverage of male and female sterilization. It also discusses the potential affect of the ACA on sterilization rates as well as the growing presence of religious providers and its affect on the provision of sterilization services.

We have data on the number and share of uninsured in each state who have access to free bronze plans.

This analysis looks at how many of the remaining uninsured are eligible for premium subsidies that are large enough to cover the entire cost of a bronze plan, which is the minimum level of coverage available on the Marketplaces. It estimates 27% of uninsured individuals who could shop on the ACA Marketplace, or 4.2 million people nationwide, are eligible to purchase a bronze plan with $0 premiums after subsidies in 2019.

On October 22, 2018, the Trump administration released new guidance on Section 1332 waivers established by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The new guidance may encourage states to use 1332 waiver authority to make broader changes to insurance coverage for their residents, including to promote the sale of, and apply subsidies to, ACA non-compliant policies. On November 29, 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a discussion paper outlining a set of waiver concepts designed to provide states with a roadmap for developing waiver applications that use the flexibility granted under the new guidance. This issue brief describes the new guidance, highlighting key changes from the 2015 guidance, describes how state waiver activity may change, particularly in light of the waiver concepts put forward by CMS, and discusses possible implications of the changes.

KFF analysis of Healthcare.gov data from marketplace plans on the federal insurance exchanges shows that despite the changes to the Affordable Care Act in recent years, deductibles for those with low incomes have remained relatively stable since 2017.

In an Axios column, Drew Altman analyzes the political pros and cons of Medicare for All and Medicare buy-in plans for Democrats, and how they may handle it in Congress and the presidential campaign.

Karen Pollitz answers three questions on the Trump administration’s recent changes to the ACA Section 1332 state innovation waiver guidelines and the implications for consumers and state marketplaces in our new “Ask KFF” feature.

Fielded a week after the 2018 midterm elections, this poll examines the public’s priorities for the next Congress, measures favorability for ACA provisions including Medicaid expansion, and takes a look at knowledge of the current open enrollment period among adults ages 18-64 who purchase their own insurance or are currently uninsured. With the impending Texas v. United States lawsuit, in addition to several Trump administration policy actions aimed at different aspects of the U.S. health care system, this KFF survey also examines the public’s position on pre-existing conditions protections, prescription drug advertisements, and employer exemptions from covering birth control.

Only 1 in 4 Potential Marketplace Customers Know When ACA Open Enrollment Ends; 1 in 5 Say They Would Buy a Short-Term Plan A large majority of the public backs the Trump Administration’s initiative to require prescription drug advertisements to include information about prices, but fewer support other administrative actions…