How New Health Insurance Regulations Could Affect Some Premiums, Coverage
As he trumpeted what he called a new "Patient's Bill of Rights" Tuesday, President Barack Obama tried to calm fears that the new health law would increase insurance costs.
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As he trumpeted what he called a new "Patient's Bill of Rights" Tuesday, President Barack Obama tried to calm fears that the new health law would increase insurance costs.
The White House today released a "Fact Sheet: The Affordable Care Act's New Patient's Bill of Rights," the Obama administration's summary of new regulations issued by the Department of Health and Human Services.
High deductible health plans and the associated health saving accounts that allow people to put aside money tax-free to cover medical expenses get mixed reviews from many consumers. But supporters of the plans worry that the health overhaul may hamper their use.
The President will also discuss the health law's new benefits, cost savings.
When the big California health insurer Wellpoint sought rate increases up to 39 percent this year, some wondered if they were unusual. But in a new national survey consumers who buy their own policies report the most recent rate requests averaged 20 percent.
The federal government is giving states until June 25 to say how they intend to run high-risk pools to insure people who have been denied coverage due to a pre-existing medical condition and have been uninsured for at least six months.
Consumer-directed health plans have been useful in controlling the rise of health costs over the last several years, but the survival of these plans is threatened by the new health overhaul law.
The Senate is debating ways to reverse a 21 percent cut in Medicare physician payments that began on June 1.
A new Obama administration regulation lays out how employers and insurers can revise their health plans
Administration officials tout the Medicare drug rebate as an early and tangible benefit of health reform while Senate Democrats continue trying to advance a legislative package that includes the Medicare physician payment fix and, potentially, an extension of enhanced Medicaid funding for states.
New health plans must cover tests, supplements for pregnant women, and home visits for young mothers.
The law will extend health insurance to 32 million currently uninsured Americans by 2019, and will also have an impact on how nearly every American buys insurance and what insurance must cover.
Bowing to pressure from Democratic fiscal conservatives, House Democratic leaders scaled back health-related provisions in tax extenders legislation the House passed before beginning its Memorial Day recess.
A foursome of longtime industry watchdogs are helping steer the federal government's effort to overhaul the private insurance market. Karen Pollitz, Steve Larsen, Jay Angoff and Richard Popper have top spots in the newly minted Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight.
Michelle Andrews' latest consumer column explores the health care tax credit for small businesses, which is designed to help employers pay for insuring workers. But the credit has several conditions, and some are worried that it won't provide enough help.
Challenges from conservative Democrats forced party leaders this week to cut some major spending programs, such as extending COBRA benefits for workers being laid off and providing extra money to state Medicaid programs.
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said federal officials are urging self-insured employers to keep young adults up to age 26 on their parents' health plans before the deadline under the new health overhaul law. Self-insured employers, who pay the medical bills of millions of Americans, in many cases could wait until January to comply with the law.
With the new health law's requirement that young adults be able to remain on their parents' health plans until they turn 26. But when exactly the new benefit begins, who exactly is eligible and who decides all have the same answer: It depends.
Caught up in the congressional politics swirling around a pending tax bill are proposals that affect health care for newly laid-off workers as well as Medicare and Medicaid patients.
The new health overhaul law will encourage employers to stop offering health insurance. We should welcome this, provided the decline in employer coverage is gradual and good alternatives exist. The upside is that it will make more visible the biggest looming health care problem: costs.
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