Commonwealth article recommends reinstatement of COBRA until 2014

Posted on August 28, 2011 | No Comments
Filed under Health Insurance, Library, Long Term Care, Medicaid and CHIP, Third Party Resources, Workforce and Access

PDF Version

Details

Library

Implementation Briefs

Key Developments

Chronically high unemployment rates have left many Americans without job-based health insurance. Affordable insurance programs such as Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) are, at present, only available to pregnant women, children, and parents with very low incomes. Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), which was in place from 2008-2010, individuals who were employed by a firm with 20 or more workers and had health insurance sponsored by that firm could retain their coverage for up to 18 months in the event that they lost their job. The Affordable Care Act (ACA), upon full implementation in 2014, will dramatically increase coverage options for people who lose their jobs. In the report, “Realizing Health Reform’s Potential: When Unemployed Means Uninsured: The Toll of Job Loss on Health Coverage, and How the Affordable Care Act Will Help,” the Commonwealth Fund encourages policymakers to bridge the gap for Americans until 2014. The Commonwealth Fund recommends that first, policymakers should consider an additional extension of unemployment benefits, as the current extension is set to expire in December 2011. Second, the paper suggests that government consider reestablishing the COBRA premium subsidies to help the millions of Americans who have lost their job-based health insurance until the ACA coverage takes effect in 2014.

No Comments

Commonwealth's report suggests policy framework to close health care divide for vulnerable populations

October 7, 2011

The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System's report "Ensuring Equity: A Post-Reform Framework to Achieve High Performance Health Care for Vulnerable Populations" examines the continuing problems facing vulnerable populations and offers a policy framework for moving forward. The framework features three overarching strategies to close the health care divide: 1) ensure that insurance coverage affords adequate health care access and financial protection; 2) strengthen the care delivery systems serving vulnerable populations; and 3) coordinate health care delivery with other community resources, including public health services.

Center for Health Care Strategies advises States on how to prepare for Medicaid eligibility expansion

March 9, 2011

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), 16 to 20 million more Americans will become eligible for Medicaid, starting in 2014. To help meet this large demand, the ACA requires state Medicaid agencies to increase primary care provider (PCP) reimbursement to the level of Medicare rates in 2013 and 2014 and provide federal funding to cover the additional cost. With Commonwealth Fund support, the Center for Health Care Strategies has created a guide for states, "Implementing Medicaid Primary Care Rate Increase: A Roadmap for States," which outlines key implementation and planning activities that states can undertake now to prepare for these changes. The roadmap provides advice on how to analyze fee schedules, engage stakeholders, leverage policy opportunities, and other tasks.

Update: Medicaid Program Eligibility Changes under the Affordable Care Act

August 31, 2011

This update to the Medicaid Implementation and health insurance Exchange Briefs reviews a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) implementing the Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment simplification, and coordination provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Issued by the United States Department of Health and Human Services on August 17, 2011, the rule is comprehensive in scope; its public comment period ends October 31, 2011. The Medicaid NPRM is part of a group of three regulations, all of which are summarized at HealthReformGPS.org. Together the rules are designed to implement both the Medicaid eligibility expansions, the process of determining eligibility for premium tax credits and cost sharing assistance in the Exchange individual market, and standards for employers purchasing coverage in Exchanges. Collectively, the rules are designed to allow individuals and families to acquire and keep coverage and move more seamlessly among publicly-supported sources of health insurance as family income and circumstances change.

HHS and IRS release NPRMs on exchange eligibility, tax credits, medicaid expansion

August 12, 2011

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have released Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Exchange eligibility and insurance premium tax credits, respectively. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released an NPRM related to the Medicaid eligibility expansion authorized by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). All three NPRMs are designed to simplify Exchange eligibility and enrollment by coordinating with state Medicaid agencies and the IRS to determine eligibility for premium tax credits and Medicaid under the new expanded eligibility rules laid out in the ACA. Also addressed in the proposed rules is the eligibility and calculation of tax credits for small businesses. For more information on the Medicaid eligibility expansion, click here. For more information on tax credits, click here. For more information on Exchange eligibility, click here. Finally, for more information on tax credits for small businesses, click here.