Coverage Reassurances Only Offer Partial Solace To Those With Pre-Existing Conditions
Despite promises that people with pre-existing conditions will still be able to get coverage if the health law is replaced, many patients worry about what that will actually look like in terms of their wallets. Other stories also examine the ways repeal may affect Americans across the country.
USA Today:
Patients Brace For Post-Obamacare Out-Of-Pocket Health Costs
A lack of clarity into what the Trump administration will do about the Affordable Care Act and drug prices is unnerving many patients with cancer and other chronic diseases, who worry that the alternative to high premiums and deductibles could lead to worse solutions than the high out-of-pocket costs they have now. Assurances that people with pre-existing health conditions will still be able to get insurance through any ACA replacement plan offers only partial solace to many cancer and heart patients. They know the details of any plan will determine whether they are better or worse off financially. (O'Donnell, 1/31)
Modern Healthcare:
Prevention Benefits At Risk With An Obamacare Repeal
The Affordable Care Act extended 100% coverage for a range of preventive healthcare services, including some types of cancer screening, to seniors on Medicare. That first-dollar coverage likely saved lives by increasing diagnoses of early-stage colorectal cancer by 8% among Medicare beneficiaries during the first three years it was in effect, a new study in Health Affairs reported. Now experts fear Republicans will eliminate the law's mandate for full coverage of recommended preventive services in taxpayer-financed and employer-based health plans. The GOP proposals also would erase the requirement that individual plans offer minimum essential benefits in 10 categories, including mental health and substance abuse, maternity care and prescription drugs. (Meyer, 1/28)
Miami Herald:
Repeal Of Obamacare May Affect Medicare Beneficiaries And Pre-Retirees
If you’re on Medicare and think you don’t have to worry about the growing threat to the Affordable Care Act, you might want to check your confidence at the door. And if you’re not quite at the magical age of 65, when Americans become eligible for the federal health insurance program, you might want to start fretting, too. Some ACA provisions that have helped the 65-and-over set might go bye-bye if it’s repealed, as Republicans have threatened for years. (Veciana-Suarez, 1/30)
Kaiser Health News:
Demand For Popular Short-Term Insurance Plans Could Surge If Health Law Is Relaxed
Short-term health plans have been around for decades, bridging coverage gaps for people who are between jobs or have recently graduated from school, among other things. After the health law passed, some people gravitated toward them because they were willing to trade comprehensive coverage for a cheaper sticker price — even if it meant paying a tax penalty for not having the comprehensive coverage required in the law. Sales increased. Now, as Republicans look for ways to weaken the health law’s coverage requirements and explore the possibility of not enforcing the requirement that people have health insurance, short-term plans may be poised to grow even more. If that happens, consumer advocates warn it could be bad for consumers. (Andrews, 1/31)
San Jose Mercury News:
Could California Go It Alone With Obamacare?
How much would Californians be willing to spend to keep Obamacare in the Golden State? That’s a question lawmakers might be asking residents in the months to come as President Donald Trump and the Republican Congress scurry to repeal the Affordable Care Act and scramble for a plan to replace it. (Seipel, 1/30)
Georgia Health News:
Political Uncertainty Adds To Challenges Of Rural Hospitals
With repeal of the Affordable Care Act looming, the health care world is buffeted by an unusual level of uncertainty. Advocates of the repeal plan say it will be an improvement over the ACA, while defenders of the 2010 health law paint a dire picture of what could come next. Health organizations large and small are feeling apprehensive, wondering what will happen in Washington. (Miller, 1/30)
St. Louis Post Dispatch:
Obamacare Repeal Through The Eyes Of Area Residents
Missourians, along with the rest of the nation, are anxiously watching to see what becomes of President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act. The House and Senate have already passed measures that would allow them to begin peeling back parts of the law through a budget process. The 2010 law brought the country’s uninsured rate to historic lows, and those who gained coverage and are protected by the law’s ban on denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions are waiting to see the Republicans’ plan for a replacement. (Liss, 1/31)
The Philadelphia Inquirer:
Kenney: ACA Repeal Would Leave 200,000 In Philly Uninsured
Mayor Kenney joined a chorus of local officials who say repealing the Affordable Care Act without replacement would have a devastating impact, particularly on Philadelphia residents. Kenney and city controller Alan Butkovitz sent a joint letter to the three congressmen and two senators representing Philadelphia, Monday, saying more than 220,000 Philadelphians would lose their health insurance if the Affordable Care Act is repealed without an appropriate replacement. (Terruso, 1/30)
Reuters:
Medical Students, Faculty Rally To Try To Save Obamacare
Hundreds of medical students and faculty members gathered at Northwestern University's school of medicine in Chicago on Monday to voice their opposition to the dismantling of Obamacare. The demonstration was part of a larger White Coats for Coverage effort organized by medical students across the country and came a day before the annual deadline to enroll in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), former President Barack Obama's healthcare law. (Chiarito, 1/30)
