Appeals Court Says Obamacare Individual Mandate Unconstitutional and Sends Law Back to Lower Court

A federal appeals court has found the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate unconstitutional but did not invalidate the entire law, which remains in effect. The 2-1 decision by the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals likely pushes any Supreme Court action on Obamacare until after the 2020 election but again thrusts the issue of health… Continue reading Appeals Court Says Obamacare Individual Mandate Unconstitutional and Sends Law Back to Lower Court

Advocates Call for ACA Open Enrollment Extension after Website Glitches

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Democratic lawmakers and health care advocates are calling on the Trump administration to extend the deadline for ObamaCare open enrollment after reports of widespread glitches with the healthcare.gov website. For the 38 states that use healthcare.gov, Sunday is the last day to sign up for ObamaCare plans for coverage beginning Jan. 1, 2020. According to… Continue reading Advocates Call for ACA Open Enrollment Extension after Website Glitches

More Uninsured People, Faster Growth in Health-Care Spending Due to ACA Tax: Report Says

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More Americans are going without health coverage and the pace of spending on health care nationally is rising in part because of an Affordable Care Act tax on insurers, Trump administration officials said Thursday. A federal report from actuaries at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services documented trends that are likely to further fuel… Continue reading More Uninsured People, Faster Growth in Health-Care Spending Due to ACA Tax: Report Says

Number of Americans without Health Insurance Shows First Increase Since 2008

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The number of Americans without health insurance climbed to 27.5 million in 2018, according to new federal data that shows the first increase since the passage of the Affordable Care Act. The increase follows years of steady declines in the number of uninsured and comes amid Trump administration efforts to curtail the Obama-era health law.… Continue reading Number of Americans without Health Insurance Shows First Increase Since 2008

Health Insurers Set to Expand Offerings Under the ACA

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Insurers are expanding their Affordable Care Act plan offerings for next year, with the once-troubled business now generating profits, even as the overall individual-insurance market has shrunk. Oscar Insurance Corp. is the latest to announce its expected growth for 2020, adding six new states, including Pennsylvania and Georgia, to its current roster of nine. Insurers… Continue reading Health Insurers Set to Expand Offerings Under the ACA

Despite Calls to Start Over, US Health System Covers 90%

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America’s much-maligned health care system is covering 9 out of 10 people, a fact that hasn’t stopped the 2020 presidential candidates from refighting battles about how to provide coverage, from Bernie Sanders’ call for replacing private insurance with a government plan to President Donald Trump’s pledge to erase the Affordable Care Act and start over.… Continue reading Despite Calls to Start Over, US Health System Covers 90%

Bipartisan House Coalition Strikes Against Health Law’s Cadillac Tax

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The House of Representatives is poised to vote to repeal the “Cadillac tax” on high-cost employer health insurance, removing a piece of the Affordable Care Act that never took effect. Wednesday’s scheduled vote could deliver a victory to labor unions and employers that teamed up against the tax. On the losing side: deficit hawks and… Continue reading Bipartisan House Coalition Strikes Against Health Law’s Cadillac Tax

Obamacare’s Survival May Hinge on Some Technical Legal Questions

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The fate of Obamacare, the law that President Donald Trump campaigned on repealing and replacing, could hinge on several technical points of law as a federal appeals court prepares to decide whether it’s unconstitutional. And the appeal of whatever the three-judge panel rules may land the Affordable Care Act back at the U.S. Supreme Court… Continue reading Obamacare’s Survival May Hinge on Some Technical Legal Questions

Supreme Court to Hear Insurers’ Bid for $12B in Obamacare Money

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The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether insurers can seek $12 billion from the federal government under a program set up by the Obamacare law aimed at encouraging them to offer medical coverage to previously uninsured Americans. The justices will hear an appeal by a group of insurers of a lower court’s… Continue reading Supreme Court to Hear Insurers’ Bid for $12B in Obamacare Money

Your Employee Health Plan Could Soon Look Like Your 401(k)

A landmark change will soon give more American workers control over their health-care coverage, but be warned: There are pitfalls. Beginning Jan. 1, 2020, companies can provide employees with tax-free dollars to purchase an individual policy rather than offer them a traditional group-health plan. The Trump administration laid out the final rules for the so-called… Continue reading Your Employee Health Plan Could Soon Look Like Your 401(k)