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…
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Americans speculate regarding the outcome of the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the health care reforms
According to a poll performed by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the majority of people in the United States believe that the Supreme court will rule against the law at the center of the health care reform that would require Americans to purchase health insurance, and that it will deem this law to be unconstitutional. Slightly less than one third of Americans believe that the Affordable Care Act provision of the healthcare overhaul will be upheld by the Supreme Court. When the participants in the poll were asked whether or not…
Read MoreWisconsin to return federal money meant for insurance exchange
Governor awaits the fate of the Affordable Care Act to continue work on the project – Wisconsin decided this week to return federal money that would have helped the state establish its own health insurance exchange. The state had been given more than $38 million in federal grants for the project last year. Since then, legislators have been working on how to establish and exchange and whether or not one would actually exist in the state. Governor Scott Walker has been an opponent of the federal Affordable Care Act, the…
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 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…
Read MoreObama gives states control over healthcare benefit levels
The Obama administration has announced that it has shifted the power from the federal government to the states themselves in deciding the level of medical benefits that will be required for coverage by insurance companies beginning in 2014. The purpose of this move was to help to eliminate the chance that there would be a clash between the states and the federal government regarding a foundational element of the new healthcare overhaul. The new regulation means that state leaders will hold more control over the limits for health insurance even…
Read MoreSupreme Court orders briefings ahead of health care showdown
In November, the Supreme Court announced that it would be hearing cases regarding the Affordable Care Act. Appeals from 26 states regarding the matter will come to a conclusion once the high court determines whether the health care law is constitutional. Before judicial proceeding can commence, however, the Supreme Court has ordered briefings regarding the issue. Those involved in the case are being called to explain their position and offer their perspective on the constitutionality of the health care law. To date, the Supreme Court has agreed to consider questions…
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