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Below is this week’s update on the Affordable Care Act. As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families Request for Comments Regarding Exchange Provisions in the Affordable Care Act On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a “Request for Comments” regarding provisions in the Affordable Care Act that require the creation of state based health exchanges. HHS is soliciting comments in advance of final rulemaking. Specific areas that HHS is interested in includes: what type of ...

Policy Update   New Health Insurance Enrollment Tool Available   The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced a new tool on healthcare.gov to help consumers who still need health insurance coverage determine whether they are eligible for special enrollment, Medicaid and/or the Children’s Health Insurance Program ... benefits, “cancer patients are in a much better position than they were originally.”   Doctor Shortages   Recent news coverage of primary care physician shortages of at Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals resulting in long waits for medical care has sparked comparisons to potential doctor ...

Federal Update   Provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that require new private health plans to cover specific women's preventive services at no cost to patients took effect on August and ... can cause cervical cancer. The benefits were recommended by a panel convened by the Institute of Medicine at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services. Health insurers must begin covering the benefits on the first day of the new plan year for non-grandfathered health ...

... Task Force, and to recommended adult vaccines. States will receive the increase for services provided through fee-for-service or managed care basis, or through a benchmark or benchmark-equivalent benefit plan (referred to as an "alternative benefit plan"). Alternative benefit plans ... for those services.    Tax Credits   Last week, the Treasury Department issued a final regulation on eligibility for tax credits in the health insurance exchanges. The regulation includes a provision that may adversely affect families with employer-provided health insurance. Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), if a person has to pay more than 9.5 percent of their income for health insurance provided ...