Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Preventive Care Coverage Preserved While Case Plays Out In Courts
Politico: Compromise Struck To Preserve Obamacare’s Preventive Care Mandate
The Texas conservatives challenging Obamacare’s preventive care mandate have reached a tentative compromise with the Justice Department that preserves free coverage for a range of services — from syphilis tests to depression screenings. The agreement, which still needs approval from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, keeps coverage intact nationwide while the case proceeds. The Biden administration, in exchange, pledged not to enforce the mandate to cover HIV prevention drugs and other preventive care services against the employers and individual workers who sued claiming that doing so violated their religious beliefs. This means that even if the Affordable Care Act rules are upheld on appeal, the government can’t penalize the challengers for refusing to cover required services. (Ollstein, 6/12)
The New York Times: Obamacare Mandate For Preventive Care Is Restored, For Now
The deal they reached leaves the provision almost fully intact, requiring a vast majority of health plans to continue providing preventive care at no charge. The agreement includes an exemption for the small businesses and individuals challenging the provision; these entities will be allowed to use a plan that does not cover all preventive services if they can find a health insurer who offers it. (Kliff, 6/12)
Also —
Crain's Detroit Business: Michigan Democrats Plan To Codify 'Obamacare' Into State Law
Michigan Democrats are poised to codify the federal health care law into state law, a step that would lock coverage requirements and protections in place in case all or parts of the Affordable Care Act are struck down by courts, changed by Congress or weakened by a future president. (Eggert, 6/12)
KFF Health News: Fraudsters Are Duping Homeless People Into Signing Up For ACA Plans They Can’t Afford
Mary Zhelyazkova was surprised when pharmacists at Florida’s largest safety net hospital said they could not fill her prescription. Zhelyazkova, 40, was living at a homeless shelter and needed Suboxone, a medication to manage the symptoms of opioid withdrawal. She said she had been getting Suboxone at the Jackson Memorial Hospital pharmacy for free through the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, which provides medical care at little or no cost to people with HIV. (Chang, 6/13)
