A legislative panel commissioned to determine whether Oklahoma should pursue building its own health insurance exchange system has finally reached a conclusion. The panel released a report to the state’s Legislature recommending action be taken on building an exchange in order to avoid the federal government taking charge and establishing its own. The state has had a rocky history with the concept of the exchange and has been slow to adopt legislation that would make the program possible. The panel is now stressing the importance of building an adequate system…
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Cutting individual insurance mandate could have dire consequences for health care, says RAND
A new study from the RAND Corporation, a non-profit institution that provides research and analysis for various political endeavors, suggests that axing the mandatory health insurance provision from the Affordable Care Act could be a costly mistake. The health care law has generated a large amount of controversy for its various provisions that introduce dramatic changes to the nation’s tax, insurance and medical services structure. None of these provisions have been quite as contentious as the health insurance mandate. The mandate, and the law as a whole, will be heading…
Read MoreMinnesota lawmakers clash over recommendations from health insurance exchange advisory task force
Legislators are clashing in Minnesota over recommendations regarding a health insurance exchange program. The recommendations come from a task force that had been commissioned by Governor Mark Dayton. The task force’s goal was to determine the necessity of a health insurance exchange program for the state. According to the group’s recommendations, the program would bring significant benefits to residents and could help improve the economy of the state, which is why the task force is now supporting plans to build and exchange. The task force was comprised of some of…
Read MoreTexas health insurance waiver denied by the federal government
The federal government has announced that it has not approved Texas’s request for exclusion from a new law that places limitations on allowable amount of overhead spending by health insurers. The law from which Texas wanted to be excluded is one of the changes made in 2010 as a part of the Affordable Care Act for federal health care. Officials in Texas are claiming that this part of the Act is unconstitutional. It is called the medical loss ratio requirement, and it states that health insurance companies must spend a…
Read MoreSome states making major progress on insurance exchanges, while others lag behind
Throughout the U.S., progress on setting up health insurance exchanges is accelerating. As of December, 2011, 13 states had fully functional exchange programs. Several other states have legislations pending that would allow for the building of the exchanges. While many states oppose the overarching Affordable Care Act, only Arkansas and Louisiana have chosen not to build insurance exchanges of any kind. According to the law, all states must have an operational exchange program in place by 2014. As of now, 20 states are making major progress toward establishing exchanges. The…
Read MoreSupreme Court may delay ruling on Affordable Care Act until 2015
The Supreme Court is scheduled to begin hearing a case regarding the constitutionality of the 2010 Affordable Care Act on March 26. Many have assumed that the individual insurance mandate provision of the law, which requires all U.S. citizens to have some form of health insurance, would be among the first topics of discussion. The Court, however, has announced that the issue to be discussed will be whether a decision on the constitutionality of the law should be made now or delayed for the future. The Supreme Court may choose…
Read MoreHealth care reform faces more dangers than those posed by the Supreme Court and 2012 elections, say health care specialists
While the Affordable Care Act faces a questionable future with the coming Supreme Court hearing and the 2012 elections, the rising U.S. deficit may pose the greatest threat to the law. Both current and former health care professionals working with the Obama administration claim that the health care law may run aground, financially, as early as 2013 if the deficit is not addressed. The problems may be due to sluggish action from Congress and the rampant infighting between the two ruling parties of the government. The Affordable Care Act makes…
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