Recent Articles

Unlike the last few election cycles, paid political advertising that features healthcare issues hasn’t played a starring role in the early primaries. But once the Democratic and Republican nominees are selected, watch out. The Affordable Care Act and other healthcare issues are going to get plenty of screen time, according to experts who track campaign…

Health Care Service Corp. improved its net loss in 2015, but the Blue Cross and Blue Shield conglomerate continues to hemorrhage money in the Affordable Care Act’s nascent marketplaces. HCSC, which owns the Blue Cross and Blue Shield affiliates in Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, lost $1.5 billion on its individual ACA-compliant plans…

According to the GAO report, billions of dollars in Obamacare subsidies were paid out in 2014 to individuals with “unresolved inconsistencies” regarding their eligibility for coverage: • As of April 2015, more than 431,000 applications — amounting to $1.7 billion in taxpayer subsidies — had unresolved paperwork discrepancies dating to 2014. • Roughly 22,000 applications…

The Obama administration, responding to consumer complaints, says it will begin rating health insurance plans based on how many doctors and hospitals they include in their networks. At the same time, the maximum out-of-pocket costs for consumers under the Affordable Care Act will increase next year to $7,150 for an individual and $14,300 for a…

There may finally be one thing Republicans hate more than ObamaCare: TrumpCare. The GOP front-runner, after weeks of talking in vague terms about his plans for the health care system, put out a seven-point proposal Wednesday night, just in time for the GOP debate in Detroit and four more primary contests this weekend. But within…

Obamacare does not have a mandate. Wait: Has Marco Rubio proposed an individual mandate? The Cato Institute’s Michael Cannon and James Capretta of AEI have engaged in a spirited and informative point-counterpoint on that question here at NRO. Cannon writes that Rubio’s Obamacare-replacement plan is built “around an individual mandate.”  Capretta responds by noting that…

Six of the 32 states implementing the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion to date have done so through Section 1115 waivers. Using these waivers, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has approved terms that extend beyond the flexibility provided by federal law. Section 1115 waivers authorize research and demonstration projects that, in the view…

State Medicaid agencies say Congress’ decision to suspend the Affordable Care Act’s tax on health insurers for one year is a good first step, but they are pushing for its permanent repeal. While most private health insurance plans have had to pay the tax themselves, states that contract with Medicaid managed-care plans have had to…

Last week at the Houston GOP presidential debate, Marco Rubio hammered Donald Trump on his ignorance of health care policy. “What is your plan, Mr. Trump?” asked Rubio. “The lines around the states,” Trump feebly responded. When Trump was asked if his plan had any other provisions, Trump said “no, there’s nothing to add.” That…

Donald Trump on Wednesday laid out for the first time how he will reform the U.S. health care system after repeatedly pledging to “repeal and replace Obamacare with something much better.” Trump published a seven-point health care reform plan that calls for repealing Obamacare, breaking down state barriers that prevent the sale of health insurance…