Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Healthcare.gov Capacity Being Tested By This Year's Enrollment Period
The Wall Street Journal: HealthCare.Gov Site Straining To Keep Up With Enrollees
HealthCare.gov has been straining to handle this year’s would-be enrollees, who are frequently being placed in holding areas on the site to avoid crashing the sign-up system, enrollment workers around the country say. Online “waiting rooms,” where people are sent at times when the site’s capacity is stretched, have been deployed regularly since the new sign-up period began last Tuesday, Nov. 1. (Radnofsky, 11/7)
The Wall Street Journal: Health-Insurance Rate Hikes Pinch Those Without Subsidies
In a letter from her health insurer just over a week ago, Tawni Phelan of Oklahoma City learned the cost of her family’s coverage, which they buy themselves, would nearly double next year. The new premium, about $974 a month, “would be a struggle” for Ms. Phelan, a 43-year-old who is self-employed, and her husband. Instead, they may try to get a small-business plan tied to her company. (Wilde Mathews and Armour, 11/7)
Health News Florida: Habits Must Change Before Health Care Prices Stabilize, Insurance Expert Says
One prediction of the Affordable Care Act was that health care prices would drop when more people became insured... But six years in, the price of health care continues to increase along with insurance premiums. It takes time to get the newly-insured to visit their physicians for preventative care instead of visiting the emergency room when something is wrong, said Florida Blue market president Penny Shaffer during a recent interview with Health News Florida’s Tom Hudson. (11/7)
