The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced last night it will not defend several critical patient protections in the health law and instead is arguing to end them. If successful, the case could leave millions of Americans with serious illnesses unable to obtain health care coverage.
Today Virginia governor Ralph Northam signed into law a state budget that extends health care coverage to an estimated 400,000 low-income Virginians through the Medicaid program. Virginia is now the 33rd state, in addition to Washington, D.C., to accept federal funding to provide health insurance coverage to adults earning less than 138 percent of the federal poverty level—just under $17,000 a year for a single adult. As part of the expansion, Virginia will require Medicaid recipients attend school, work, partake in job training or engage in some kind of community engagement for upwards of 80 hours a month in order to receive benefits. This requirement could pose significant challenges to cancer patients and survivors.
More than 100 organizations representing millions of patients, providers and consumers joined together in letters and formal comments to Congressional leadership and federal agencies urging the withdrawal of a proposed rule on short-term, limited duration insurance plans (STLD).
oday the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) submitted comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on proposed changes to rules governing short-term, limited duration insurance plans (STLD). The comments detail how the proposed rule could divide the individual insurance market and significantly weaken patient protections, leaving cancer patients and survivors with few meaningful or affordable coverage choices.
Twenty organizations representing millions of patients and consumers across the country sent a letter to the Secretaries of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury urging the administration to address patient concerns before finalizing troubling rules that as currently drafted would undermine access to affordable, comprehensive health coverage.
The administration clarified that an Idaho bulletin permitting the sale of health insurance products that don’t meet required consumer protections and discriminate against those with pre-existing conditions would be in violation of the federal health care law.
The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) submitted comments to the Department of Labor regarding proposed changes to rules governing association health plans (AHPs). The comments detail several ways the proposed rule could divide the individual insurance market and significantly weaken patient protections leaving cancer patients and survivors with few meaningful or affordable coverage choices.
ACS CAN together with a dozen patient groups sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar today urging clarification that allowing health plans to be sold that would essentially discriminate against older and sicker individuals would violate numerous requirements of the health care law.
As directed by the president’s executive order, the Department of Labor issued proposed rules governing the expansion of association health plans (AHP).
Today Congress approved a final tax bill that essentially repeals the nation’s health care law with no replacement.
According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), eliminating the insurance requirement from current law would lead to 13 million more Americans being uninsured by 2027 and would increase premiums by 10 percent annually.