Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
With Open Season About To Begin, Minnesota Exchange Officials Expect Busy Season
Minnesota Public Radio: MNsure Looks Forward To Busy, But Smooth, Enrollment Period
Year Three of open enrollment for private health insurance plans starts Sunday. MNsure officials expect to be busier than ever. Unlike last year, there's not much speculation this year about whether the state's online health insurance marketplace will crash, or whether its call center will have unacceptably long wait times. MNsure turned in a respectable performance a year ago following a disastrous open enrollment in Year One. (Zdechlik, 10/30)
Cleveland Plain Dealer: In Year Three Of Obamacare, Insurance Costs In Northeast Ohio Drop 6.3 Percent
Round three of Obamacare began Thursday in a crowded church off Cleveland's East Avenue. That's the spot government officials and health care advocates chose to launch a campaign to enroll hundreds of thousands of uninsured Ohioans over the next several weeks. This year, they will have more than clergy and community volunteers on their side. In Northeast Ohio, premiums for plans offered through the state's health care exchange are down 6.3 percent, a reduction officials hope will significantly boost enrollment. (Ross, 10/30)
The Associated Press: Cost Of Insurance Under Health Law Likely To Drop
Many Indiana consumers who get their health insurance through the federal health care law can expect to pay less in the coming year, according to estimates from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The cost of health insurance under the President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act is expected to climb across much of the U.S. — in some cases by double digits. (10/29)
The Richmond Times-Dispatch: Number Of Uninsured Children In Virginia Was 107,000 In 2014
Nearby states are doing better than Virginia when it comes to children with health insurance, according to a report that shows the uninsured rate of children nationally reaching a historic low of 6 percent since implementation of national health care reform. (Crowe, 10/29)
Georgia Health News: More Georgia Kids Insured As ACA Takes Hold
The number of uninsured children in Georgia dropped by nearly 50,000 after the full implementation of the Affordable Care Act in 2014, a new report has found. But the state’s 189,000 children who remain uninsured make Georgia’s rate relatively high – 7.6 percent, versus 6 percent nationally. (Miller, 10/29)
