Health insurance companies that sell individual coverage plans through state exchanges are currently in the process of setting the rates they will charge customers for 2018. And the uncertainty over the state of America’s health care laws and President Trump’s repeated threats to summarily cut off billions of dollars in federal subsidies to insurers has many of these companies asking for significant increases. But not everyone would have to pay those higher prices, and some could actually end up with slightly lower premiums than they pay now. [More]
health care
Appeals Court Will Let States Defend Obamacare Subsidies That White House Likely Won’t
By 8.1.17
A federal appeals court has granted a request from 16 attorneys general to allow them to intervene in a long-running legal challenge to billions of dollars in federal subsidies provided by the Affordable Care Act. [More]
Senate Parliamentarian Says GOP Obamacare Replacement Goes Too Far, Rules Against Planned Parenthood Defunding
By 7.21.17
As you may be aware, the Republican effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act is being pushed through Congress as a budget resolution, meaning it only needs a simple majority in the Senate (as opposed to 60 votes) to pass. However, budget resolutions are also very limited in what they can do, and today the Senate Parliamentarian issued her opinion that several key measures of the Senate replacement bill go beyond the scope of what’s allowed. [More]
What Is Going On With The GOP Effort To Repeal Obamacare?
By 7.20.17
The Republican plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act has been dealt a number of potentially lethal blows in recent days, but some supporters of the effort — including President Trump — continue to push their colleagues to move forward with repeal. Will a vote happen? Will it succeed? And how does the news of Sen. John McCain’s brain tumor affect the numbers? [More]
Budget Office: Repeal Of Obamacare Would Double Premiums, Leave Additional 32 Million Without Insurance
By 7.19.17
Though it was effectively declared dead on arrival earlier this week, the latest Republican plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act is still technically on life support, with President Trump pushing for lawmakers to continue working on the measure. However, the Congressional Budget Office has once again confirmed that simply repealing Obamacare without a replacement would result in a huge number of additional Americans losing or going without health insurance, and significantly higher costs for those who remained on their policies. [More]
3 Things We Know About The Senate’s Obamacare Repeal Bill
By 6.12.17 — Updated: 6.13.17
The Senate — or at least, 13 Republican senators — are currently plugging away at their version of legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Hill-watchers say the goal is to have a vote within the next two weeks, but no drafts of the bill have circulated, no hearings have been held, and all talks are closed-door — so what do we know about the bill? [More]
GOP Pulls Obamacare Repeal Bill Minutes Before Scheduled House Vote
By 3.24.17
Facing all but certain death in the House of Representatives, the American Health Care Act — the budget resolution intended to repeal much of the 2010 Affordable Care Act — was pulled from consideration only minutes before legislators were set to vote. [More]
Here Are The Changes Made To The Obamacare Replacement Plan Since Last Week
By 3.21.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
As you’ve probably noticed, there is is a lot going on down in D.C. right now. Amid all the confirmation hearings, investigative hearings, and press events about hearings, the House of Representatives is preparing to vote on the recently unveiled replacement to the Affordable Care Act. However, the bill they consider later this week will be slightly different from what was first released. [More]
Hospital, Doctors Groups Say They Can’t Support Current Obamacare Replacement Proposal
By 3.8.17
People are still dissecting and deciding where they come down in response to the recently proposed legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Yesterday, two of the largest groups in the American healthcare business advised lawmakers that they are not thrilled with what they’ve seen so far. [More]
Key Players Give Their Opinions — For And Against — On GOP’s Obamacare Replacement
By 3.7.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
After years of railing against the Affordable Care Act and calling for its repeal, and following weeks of secrecy, coyness, and treasure hunts around Capitol Hill, GOP lawmakers have finally proposed this much-awaited legislation. Now that it’s out there, what are folks from all sides of the political spectrum saying? [More]
Federal Judge Blocks $54 Billion Anthem/Cigna Merger
By 2.9.17
Only a few weeks after a federal court blocked the insurance mega-merger of Aetna and Humana, it’s happened again: Last night, a U.S. District Court judge rejected the $54 billion marriage of health insurance giants Anthem and Cigna. [More]
Trump Executive Order Directs Federal Agencies To Scale Back Obamacare; Could Remove Individual Mandate
By 1.21.17 — Updated: 2.24.17
One of President Trump’s first acts in the Oval Office on Friday was to sign an executive order directing federal agencies to scale back on enforcing and implementing the Affordable Care Act wherever they can, while the new administration and Congress work on dismantling the 2010 law. [More]
3 Benefits Your Employer-Sponsored Health Care Could Lose After Obamacare Repeal
By 1.19.17
With the House and Senate moving forward with their plan to disassemble the Affordable Care Act through a budget resolution, much of the focus has been on the millions of people who would be affected by losing insurance that they purchase directly through an exchange. However, the ACA also has a number of aspects that benefit Americans who receive insurance through their employer, some of which could be at risk if the law is repealed. [More]
Report: Affordable Care Act Repeal Could Increase Rates, Leave 18 Million Without Coverage After First Year
By 1.17.17
Last week, both the House and Senate took the first steps toward dismantling the Affordable Care Act. This morning, a review by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office concluded that one approach to repealing this law would result in millions of additional uninsured Americans and higher rates for those with insurance. [More]
Senate Takes First Step Toward Repealing Affordable Care Act
By 1.12.17
In the early hours of Thursday morning, the U.S. Senate voted — largely along party lines — on a resolution instructing multiple legislative committees to begin the process of disassembling the 7-year-old Affordable Care Act. [More]
Former Pharma Execs Accused Of Boosting Fentanyl Sales By Bribing Doctors With Sham Speaking Engagements
By 12.9.16
Fentanyl is an incredibly potent opioid painkiller; it acts quickly and powerfully, but doesn’t last as long as others, meaning its medical application is limited. So if you’re a drug company trying to boost sales of your new fentanyl spray, how do you sell more of a product that very few people have a real need for? You could bribe doctors with paid “speaking engagements,” take them out and show them the “best nights of their life,” all so they write prescriptions for patients who probably shouldn’t be getting your drug. [More]
Pediatricians Call On Mylan To Make EpiPens More Affordable
By 8.26.16
Following reports on the skyrocketing cost of the EpiPen emergency allergy treatment, drugmaker Mylan has been heavily criticized for putting profit over patients. Even the recent expansion of its savings card program has been slammed as being more beneficial to Mylan than it is for consumers. Now, the nation’s largest group of pediatricians are calling on the company to rethink its pricing of the drug. [More]
International Partnership Created To Speed Up Antibiotic Development
By 7.28.16
Drug-resistant superbugs are on the rise, increasingly rendering a number of drugs useless even for infections that were once easily treated. At the same time, it’s been more than three decades since medical science found a new class of antibiotics, meaning the bugs may be outpacing the drugs. Today, the U.S. government, along with private organizations in the United Kingdom and stateside, announced a partnership intended to accelerate the development of new antibiotics. [More]
