Latest News On Obamacare Plans

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Presidential Election Could Decide Fate of Extra Obamacare Subsidies

KFF Health News Original

Most states that saw enrollment in the Obamacare marketplace double from 2020 to 2024 are in the South. But the enhanced federal subsidies that attracted people with $0 premiums and low out-of-pocket costs will expire next year.

Exclusive: Senator Urges Biden Administration To Thwart Fraudulent Obamacare Enrollments

KFF Health News Original

With tens of thousands of Americans already affected by enrollment scams that leave some without doctors or treatments, Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden wants increased enforcement against rogue agents or other perpetrators and legislation to allow for criminal penalties.

Biden Team’s Tightrope: Reining In Rogue Obamacare Agents Without Slowing Enrollment

KFF Health News Original

Federal regulators face a growing challenge — how to prevent rogue health insurance agents from switching unknowing consumers’ Obamacare coverage without making the enrollment process so cumbersome that enrollment declines.

Biden’s Election-Year Play to Further Expand Obamacare

KFF Health News Original

The Biden administration wants to make it easier for Americans to get dental care. But don’t try booking an appointment just yet. A new regulation out this month allows states to include adult dental care as a benefit that health insurers must cover under the Affordable Care Act. Following record ACA enrollment this year, the proposal represents an […]

Lawsuit Alleges Obamacare Plan-Switching Scheme Targeted Low-Income Consumers

KFF Health News Original

The lawsuit filed in federal court alleges that large call centers were used to enroll people into Affordable Care Act plans or to switch their coverage, all without their permission.

After Public Push, CMS Curbs Health Insurance Agents’ Access to Consumer SSNs

KFF Health News Original

Days after publication of a KFF Health News article about Obamacare enrollees being switched to different plans without their knowledge or consent, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services took steps to tighten insurance agents’ access to private consumer information on the federal marketplace.

Unauthorized Sign-Ups Cast Shadow on Obamacare’s Record Enrollment

KFF Health News Original

The Biden administration faces what looks like a growing problem for the federal Affordable Care Act’s insurance exchange: disreputable insurance brokers enrolling people who don’t need coverage or switching them to new plans without their authorization. It happened to Michael Debriae, a restaurant server who lives in Charlotte. Unbeknownst to him, an agent in Florida […]

The GOP Keeps Pushing Medicaid Work Requirements, Despite Setbacks

KFF Health News Original

Work requirements in Medicaid expansion programs are back on the agenda in many statehouses — despite their lackluster track record. In Mississippi, the idea has momentum from GOP lawmakers advancing legislation to expand Medicaid. In Kansas, the Democratic governor proposed work requirements to try to soften Republican opposition to expansion. (She’s had little luck, so […]

ACA Plans Are Being Switched Without Enrollees’ OK

KFF Health News Original

Insurance agents say it’s too easy to access consumer information on the Affordable Care Act federal marketplace. Policyholders can lose their doctors and access to prescriptions. Some end up owing back taxes.

America Worries About Health Costs — And Voters Want to Hear From Biden and Republicans

KFF Health News Original

The presidential election is likely to turn on the simple question of whether Americans want Donald Trump back in the White House. But health care tops the list of household financial worries for adults from both parties.

Ouch. That ‘Free’ Annual Checkup Might Cost You. Here’s Why.

KFF Health News Original

The designers of the Affordable Care Act might have assumed that they spelled out with sufficient clarity that millions of Americans would no longer have to pay for certain types of preventive care. But they didn’t reckon with America’s ever-creative medical billing juggernaut.

Biden Cracks Down on Prior Authorization — But There Are Limits

KFF Health News Original

More than a year after it was initially proposed, the Biden administration announced a final rule yesterday that will change how insurers in federal programs such as Medicare Advantage use prior authorization — a long-standing system that prevents many patients from accessing doctor-recommended care. “When a doctor says a patient needs a procedure, it is […]

What Would a Second Trump Presidency Look Like for Health Care?

KFF Health News Original

Health policy during Donald Trump’s tenure was dominated by covid-19 and a failed effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. His appointments to the Supreme Court led to the end of national abortion rights, and he took steps to increase hospital price transparency and improve care for veterans.