Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives On Obamacare: Where Millennials Stand; Overlooking The Health Law's Merits And Examining Its Flaws
The Wall Street Journal: A Millennial’s ObamaCare Lament
ObamaCare won’t work without young Americans like me, and the Obama administration knows it. That’s why the president is holding a Millennial Outreach and Engagement Summit focused on the Affordable Care Act at the White House on Tuesday. But no matter what the president says, many young Americans simply aren’t buying what he’s selling—mainly because we can’t afford it. (David Barnes, 9/25)
The New York Times: It’s Easy For Obamacare Critics To Overlook The Merits Of Medicaid Expansion
But it’s important to remember that many, if not most, of the newly covered Americans became insured through an expansion of Medicaid. Here, too, you hear a lot of bad news: that Medicaid offers poor quality and little choice of providers, that it is expensive for the states to administer and that its growing cost will eventually bankrupt states. As of today, 19 states have still refused to participate in the expansion. Such declarations consider only one side of the equation, though. In most ways, Medicaid offers an excellent return on investment. (Aaron E. Carroll, 9/26)
The New York Times: Football Team At The Buffet: Why Obamacare Markets Are In Crisis
Insurers have announced that they are sharply raising prices or pulling out entirely. Many consumers will have fewer choices of insurance plans, and many insurance plans will include fewer doctors and hospitals. The turmoil can’t be explained by one factor alone. But many of the most important problems can be understood if you think of an Obamacare marketplace as a particular kind of restaurant: an all-you-can-eat buffet. It can be a solid business, but it’s hard to get the pricing right. (Margot Sanger-Katz, 9/23)
San Antonio Press Express: Why Expanding Medicaid Is A Bad Idea For Texas
Since the ACA mandates that everyone have health insurance, the federal government provided health insurance to citizens who earn too much to be eligible for Medicaid but too little to pay for insurance. Whether the state created its own exchange or relied on the federal exchange, citizens are allowed a subsidy by the federal government if their income is less than 400 percent of the federal poverty limit. A family of four would have to make slightly less than $100,000 to be eligible for a federal subsidy.If Texas were to expand the Medicaid offering, the result would likely be similar to what California experienced. That was a 51 percent increase in Medicaid recipients. (Alan Preston, 9/24)
