Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CMS Touts Stability Of Exchanges As Health Law Enrollment Dips Slightly To 11.4 Million For 2019
The Associated Press: 11.4M Sign Up For Obama-Era Health Plans This Year
The government says 11.4 million people have signed up for coverage this year under former President Barack Obama's health law. That's just a slight dip from 2018. Despite the Trump administration's ongoing hostility to "Obamacare," a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released on Monday found remarkably steady enrollment— down only about 300,000 consumers. (3/25)
Reuters: Obamacare Enrollments Drop Marginally For 2019
The agency also said it was issuing guidance to allow issuers to continue certain health plans, often referred to as "grandmothered" plans, by one year. Such plans do not meet all the rules under the Obamacare laws. "Not extending the grandmothered plan policy would ... force people to decide between buying coverage they cannot afford on the individual market or going uninsured," CMS Administrator Seema Verma said. (3/25)
The Wall Street Journal: Affordable Care Act Sign-Ups Total 11.4 Million For This Year
Average rates for popular health plans sold on the exchanges fell about 1.5% this year, according to the Trump administration, the first such drop and a sign that the insurance markets are gaining firmer traction despite tumult in the past two years. The majority of people who obtain coverage on the exchanges get tax credits to reduce premium costs. Headed into the 2020 campaign, Democrats are divided over pursuing legislation now to shore up the exchanges or pushing for Medicare for All, a government-run health system. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office said Democrats will release health-care legislation Tuesday focused on curbing costs and protecting people with pre-existing conditions. (Armour, 3/25)
The Hill: ObamaCare Enrollment Declines Slightly To 11.4M Sign-Ups For 2019
In the past three years, enrollment in state-run marketplaces has remained steady at 3 million people, while enrollment on the federally run marketplaces declined from 9.2 million to 8.4 million. (Sullivan, 3/25)
In other health law news —
Modern Healthcare: Reinsurance Will Cost Feds $30 Billion To Support ACA Insurers
Adopting a nationwide reinsurance program to bolster Affordable Care Act insurers would cost the U.S. $30.1 billion over three years, according to a new study. The study published Thursday in the Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision and Financing projects that a reinsurance program with an 80% payment rate for expenditures between $40,000 to $250,000 would cost the federal government $9.5 billion in 2020 or $30.1 billion from 2020-2022. (King, 3/22)
