How Arm-Twisting, Wooing And Cajoling Got 49 Bare Counties In U.S. Down To Zero
Stat talks to the director of Nevada’s insurance exchange, where 14 of 17 counties had no insurers offering coverage under the Affordable Care Act, about lessons learned and the future of the marketplace.
Stat:
Where Did All The Bare Counties Go? Four Takeaways From Nevada's Fight To Preserve Coverage
In June, Nevada suddenly found itself in quite a jam — 14 of its 17 counties had zero insurers offering plans on the Obamacare exchanges. Insurance officials in the state scrambled, wooing and cajoling insurers to return. Two weeks ago, those efforts paid off. Centene Corp., a Missouri-based insurer, agreed to provide coverage in all the bare counties. A similar relief has played out nationwide: From a high of 49 counties left bare in late June, it was announced last week that every county in the country had at least one insurance carrier for 2018. (Ross, 8/30)
In other national health care news —
The Wall Street Journal:
Pressure Grows To Fund Children’s Health Program
State officials increasingly worry that this year’s turbulent health-care politics could threaten funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, a popular initiative that usually wins broad bipartisan support. Federal funding for CHIP is set to end Sept. 30. The federal-state program provides health coverage to more than eight million low-income, uninsured children whose family incomes are too high to qualify for Medicaid. (Armour, 8/29)
Modern Healthcare:
Providers Feel The Pain Of Slow Medicaid Mental Services Rule Rollout
David Ramsey's hospitals and emergency departments in West Virginia see the effects of the opioid epidemic every day. Medicaid beneficiaries battling addiction and psychiatric disorders crowd into his emergency departments even though the CMS has launched a nationwide policy to pay for substance abuse treatment and stays at inpatient psychiatric facilities. But a year after that Medicaid policy became effective nationwide, Ramsey's hospitals have seen no relief. (Dickson, 8/29)
The Wall Street Journal:
Advisory Board Co. To Be Split And Sold For $2.58 Billion, Including Debt
The Advisory Board Co. will be split up and sold in a deal valued at around $2.21 billion, with its health-care business going to UnitedHealth Group Inc. and its education unit to private-equity firm Vista Equity Partners Management LLC. The consulting and software company had announced in February that its board was exploring strategic alternatives, including a possible sale. That move came after activist hedge fund Elliott Management Corp. said it and related entities had bought about 8.3% of the company’s shares, saying at the time they were undervalued and it wanted to engage in a dialogue with the company’s board. (Wilde Mathews and Cooper, 8/29)
The Associated Press:
Sessions: Drug Overdoses 'The Top Lethal Issue' In The US
Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Tuesday called drug overdose deaths "the top lethal issue" in the U.S. and urged law enforcement and social workers to "create and foster a culture that's hostile to drug use." Sessions spoke to the annual conference of the National Alliance For Drug Endangered Children. He said preliminary data show nearly 60,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2016, the highest ever. (Moreno, 8/29)
Politico:
Why Hasn’t The White House Declared A State Of Emergency Over The Opioid Crisis?
Speaking from Bedminster, New Jersey, in early August, President Donald Trump vowed to formally dub the U.S. opioid crisis a “national emergency.” But nearly a month later, the president has yet to officially declare a state of emergency — a move that would enable the federal government to pump funds into addressing the drug epidemic. (8/30)
Politico:
Mattis Allows Transgender Troops To Serve As Pentagon Studies Trump's Ban
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday that transgender troops would continue serving in the military while the Pentagon studied the issue, a decision that delays the implementation of President Donald Trump’s recently signed directive. Mattis said he would establish a “panel of experts serving within the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security” to provide advice and recommendations on putting into effect the president’s order to bar transgender individuals from serving in the armed forces. The presidential guidance, which Trump signed on Friday, gave the defense secretary until Feb. 21 to submit a plan for implementing the new policy. (Hillman, 8/29)