Affordable Care Act: What will be the next move?

The federal government has been embroiled in a battle regarding last year’s health care reform. One of the key provisions of the Affordable Care Act, and one that is most indignantly contested, calls for states to establish a health insurance exchange. Thus far, the federal government has provided states with funding to help them toward this goal. Republicans, many of whom oppose the health care overhaul, have been trying to bar the government from providing money to states for, what they say, is an unconstitutional measure. Late Wednesday, the U.S.…

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Wisconsin at the forefront of democrat healthcare reform requirements

Wisconsin seems to be ahead of the curve when it comes to instituting health insurance exchanges. The state has recently completed the infrastructure necessary for supporting the system in spite of stiff opposition from Governor Scott Walker. Walker has denounced the exchanges as an overstepping of the federal governments boundaries, a notion shared amongst several Republicans that have opposed the health care reform law.  According to the law, states are tasked with setting up a self-sustaining exchange program by 2014. If they fail to do so, the federal government will…

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North Carolina’s health insurance exchange hits a bump in the road

North Carolina’s efforts to establish a health insurance exchange program may have come to a halt. The State House and Human Services Committee ruled this week to make changes to a proposal that would have set up the exchange, prompted by the results of an oversight panel that showed that business interests far outweighed those of consumers. The stalling of the plan has put many on edge, baffled at how businesses could be considered more important that consumers. Health insurance exchanges are a provision of the Affordable Care Act, passed…

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Health insurance exchange debate over agents role

As states begin to take steps to establish their health insurance exchanges, private insurance agents in West Virginia are not quite enthusiastic of the efforts. State legislators are beginning t debate a pending bill that would create a state-run health insurance exchange. The measure could be passed this week, as Republicans who oppose the bill find themselves in the minority. Independent agent lobbyist, Gary Marion, argues that the bill would hamper agent’s ability to compete in the market. Health insurance exchanges act as a means for individuals and small groups…

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Americans uninsured on the rise

An epidemic has swept across our nation. The number of people who are uninsured is over 13 million. There are about 1500 community care clinics across the United States. Many of those clinics will have their funding cut; if they even get government aid; many are funded on donations or private grants. Where do you turn when you’re ill and have no insurance? At last count, there were 43 states that made Medicaid unavailable for adults with no children. Even if you didn’t have a dime to your name; without…

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