Healthcare & Policy News
Reporting on health care policy, insurance coverage, and federal health programs. Includes news updates and conservative commentary from The Daily Signal.
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- News
Reporter Calls Colorado’s Obamacare Website ‘Clunky, Counterintuitive and Confusing’
Colorado journalist Brandon Rittiman called the state’s Obamacare exchange website “clunky, counterintuitive and confusing” after reviewing the website for a TV news story. Colorado received $179 million in federal grants for the state’s healthcare exchange, a portion of which was dedicated to building the site.Natalie Johnson -
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Nevada Woman Dies After Suing Over Delayed Obamacare Coverage
A woman with a brain tumor who sued Nevada’s Obamacare exchange contractor for delayed coverage died earlier this week. Linda Rolain was among 150 Nevadans suing the contractor Xerox for lack of coverage. She is the first to die of complications from an illness, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “We are worried that this is…Natalie Johnson -
- News
Obamacare Awash in Millions of Data ‘Inconsistencies,’ Report Finds
Little more than eight months ago, the bungled rollout of the government’s Obamacare website, HealthCare.gov, touched off an avalanche of bad news for President Obama and his health care team. Now comes a new federal report that gives more details on the technical woes of the online insurance exchange — problems that could result in…Marguerite Bowling -
- Opinion
Obamacare Is Working Out Great (If You Ignore the Problems)
Obamacare had a bad week at the Supreme Court. Actually Obamacare has had a pretty bad four years. Not surprisingly, most Americans still don’t like Obamacare. So the Obama administration’s allies are insisting that the unpopular law is working very well, thank you very much. For example, New York Times columnist Paul Krugman says, “The…Robert Moffit -
- Opinion
Q&A: How the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby Decision Affects Obamacare
Yesterday morning, the Supreme Court ruled against the coercive Obamacare HHS mandate, prohibiting the government from forcing two family businesses, Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood, to provide coverage of potentially life-ending drugs and devices. The Court held that the HHS mandate violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) as it applied in this case. In…Sarah Torre -
- Opinion
After Hobby Lobby, Another Part of the Obamacare Mandate Could Fall
Today’s Supreme Court ruling in favor of Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties, which are for-profit companies, raises questions about the fate of the HHS mandate accommodation for which certain religious non-profit employers are eligible. Under the accommodation, non-profit employers self-certify to their insurance provider or third-party administrator that they have a religious objection to…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
The Fight Isn’t Over: Nuns, Others Still Face Obamacare Mandate Despite Today’s Hobby Lobby Decision
Despite today’s Supreme Court ruling in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, the fight against the coercive HHS mandate is far from over. More than 300 other family businesses, schools, and religious organizations still must decide whether to violate their beliefs or face government penalties. Charitable organizations such as Little Sisters of the Poor and Mother Angelica’s…Sarah Torre -
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What Does New Auto-Enrollment Rule Mean for Obamacare Customers?
Insurance customers on HealthCare.gov will be automatically enrolled in their current plans for 2015 unless they buy new coverage through federal and state-run online exchanges, the Obama administration announced. The Health and Human Services Department’s proposed rules are meant to reduce potential drop-off for any of the 8 million Americans who, the administration said, selected a…Marguerite Bowling -
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Two-Thirds of Manufacturing Executives Fear Obamacare Will Hurt Growth
Manufacturers are worried about how Affordable Care Act regulations will affect their costs, according to a recent survey by the tax and consulting firm McGladrey Inc. More than two-thirds of executives surveyed believe government regulation will stunt their companies’ future growth. The Affordable Care Act garnered the most blame and was cited by 69 percent…Philip Wegmann -
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Pictures of Faith at Work: This Family Waits, Prays for Obamacare Ruling
The Supreme Court is expected to decide as early as today whether the government can force two family businesses, Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties, to provide employee health plans that cover abortion-inducing drugs and devices. Countless other faith-based family businesses face devastating fines under Obamacare if they don't break their moral and religious convictions and comply with the same…Kelsey Bolar -
- Opinion
Insurers on Obamacare Exchanges in 2015: What to Watch For
There have been a number of recent news reports about additional insurers applying to offer coverage in Obamacare exchanges in 2015. Although it is too early to draw any conclusions—since this is just the beginning of a three-month process—it is still likely that at least a few more insurers will participate in the exchanges next…Edmund Haislmaier -
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Obamacare Exchanges Are ‘Disappointing’ With Fewer Than 4 Million Newly Insured. The Government Hoped for 26 Million.
In April, President Obama told the nation that “marketplace” or “exchange” enrollment, at 8 million customers as of March 31, had exceeded expectations and costs were lower than expected. Many in the news media accepted the selectively released statistics, despite the Obama administration’s record of sometimes providing inaccurate or incomplete information on HealthCare.gov. Even today, the…Sharyl Attkisson -
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Why One Family-Owned Business Is Fighting Against Obamacare
LORETTO, Minn.—Doug Doboszenski moves tons of dirt in his excavation business, but that’s nothing like trying to move the mountain known as the federal government. Under the Affordable Care Act, Doboszenki and Sons must provide health coverage in employee medical plans that contradicts the owners’ religious beliefs—or face thousands of dollars in Internal Revenue Service…Tom Steward -
- Opinion
Medicaid Expansions Break Conservative Principles
It is time to stop, take a breath and ask some basic questions about health care: Do we want to see greater government control over health care dollars and decisions, or less? Do we favor more federal spending, taxes and debt, or less? Are we in favor of a surrender to, or a decisive victory…Nina Owcharenko Schaefer -
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Obamacare’s Risk-Management Programs Could Cost Billions, Experts Tell House
Obama administration officials insisted that Obamacare’s risk-management programs are temporary and budget neutral, but others at a hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today argued the programs will be a boondoggle for taxpayers. “All of you ought to be very concerned about the way the risk corridors program is being implemented”…Marguerite Bowling -
- Opinion
HHS Mandate: Only the Beginning of Obamacare’s Conscience Problems
Any day now the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in the case of Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties—family-owned businesses that have gone to court to challenge a provision under Obamacare that requires them and nearly all other employers to cover abortion-inducing drugs, contraception and sterilization, regardless of their religious beliefs. As these…Jennifer Marshall -
- Opinion
Obamacare Anti-Conscience Mandate: Court Says Being Complicit in Sin Isn’t a Sin
Last week, in Michigan Catholic Conference v. Burwell, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit rejected the appeal of Catholic nonprofit groups in their challenge to the Obamacare anti-conscience mandate. The court got it wrong by second-guessing the religious beliefs of these groups. Formal houses of worship and their integrated auxiliaries (e.g., church-run…Elizabeth Slattery -
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Virginia Lawmakers Block Medicaid Expansion, but Governor Vows ‘This Fight Is Far From Over’
After months of grueling debate and discord over expanding Medicaid in Virginia, Republicans got their way. The GOP-led House and Senate approved a budget that not only lacks funding to expand Medicaid but also requires General Assembly approval in the future—an attempt to block Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe from implementing the Affordable Care Act component…Kathryn Watson -
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18 States Delay ‘Employee Choice’ in Obamacare for Small Businesses
President Obama has allowed 18 states to continue delaying a key part of Obamacare’s health insurance exchange for small businesses—“employee choice”—from being implemented until 2016, if then. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently approved petitions from the states, which didn’t want to implement the “employee choice” feature in their online exchanges in…Marguerite Bowling -
- Opinion
Obamacare’s Medicare ‘Reforms’ Result in Little Savings
Promoted as a way to move away from an outdated payment structure in Medicare, Accountable Care Organizations were expected to deliver better care at lower costs. But, two years later, like many of Obamacare’s promised savings, this experiment is falling short. As part of the “Medicare Shared Savings” program under Obamacare, ACOs join together doctors…Alyene Senger