When Health Plans Drop Your Doctor: Are Narrow Networks a Bad Idea?
Many health plans on Covered California and other insurance exchanges exclude some prominent doctors and hospitals. The trade-off — less access for lower prices — has raised concerns and even spurred lawsuits, but experts say it’s the likely direction for the nation’s health system.
How Many People Are Losing Their Plans Under Obamacare, Really?
The swirl of political attention around “Obamacare cancellation letters” has tended to ignore the policy realities — including that most people receiving cancellation letters are being offered other plans. Here’s a closer look at how many plans are being canceled and four other key questions dogging the Affordable Care Act’s latest hot-button issue.
What Medicare Part D Can — and Can’t — Teach Us About the Affordable Care Act
Increasingly, observers are cautioning: Don’t rush to judgment about the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces, because the launch of Medicare Part D was rocky, too. But comparing the two programs makes less and less sense as the weeks go by.
Should Obamacare Be Delayed — And More to the Point, Can It?
Mounting problems with the federal health insurance exchange have sparked widespread concern, and even supporters of the ACA are turning critical. Experts weigh in on whether the individual mandate and other elements of Obamacare should, or even can, be delayed if the problems persist.
What Covered California Did Right in Week One — and What Other States Did Better
It was a bumpy debut for Covered California, as the state’s health insurance exchange launched last week with long wait times and a glitch-filled website. How did the Golden State grade out?
California Raced To ‘Set the Pace’ on Obamacare Implementation. Did it Pay Off?
Golden State leaders vowed to lead the nation when implementing health reform. On the verge of the ACA rollout, did they win the race — and does it even matter?
A Dozen Hospitals Are Laying Off Staff and Blaming Obamacare. Don’t Believe Them.
Hospital leaders from coast to coast are blaming the health reform law for recent decisions to pare their payrolls. And while the Affordable Care Act is creating new pressure for providers — from tighter reimbursement to new penalties on poor performance — the full story is much more complex.
The Exchanges Won’t Be ‘Ready’ in Time. And it (Probably) Won’t Matter.
Less than a month remains before the health insurance exchanges are supposed to be up and running — and while Covered California is in strong shape, officials in many other states are scrambling. But even if the marketplaces don’t launch on time, it might not mean much in the long run.
UPS Among the First To Dump Spousal Coverage. It Won’t Be the Last.
UPS’ eye-catching announcement to exclude 15,000 spouses of employees from its health insurance plan is being blamed, in part, on the Affordable Care Act. Here’s a closer look at the decision, whether it will be a tipping point for other firms and the zero-sum game behind dropping spousal coverage.
Why One Insurer Quit Covered California
Ventura County Health Care Plan applied for Covered California with every intention of participating in the new marketplace. Half a year later, administrators made the tough call to pull out for 2014. What can their experience teach us?