Affordable Care Act News

Wisconsin Governor Requests Federal Waiver for Reinsurance Program

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration filed a request with the federal government seeking a waiver that would allow Wisconsin to offer a $200 million reinsurance program designed to lower premiums and attract more providers to the private marketplace. Walker told reporters …

Iowa Law Allowing Health Plans to Skirt ACA Signed by Governor

Iowa will allow people to buy a cheaper form of health insurance that skirts Affordable Care Act rules, under legislation signed into law by the state’s Republican governor. The law will allow Iowa’s Farm Bureau to partner with a designated …

Update: Wisconsin Gov. Signs Health Reinsurance Bill; State Joins ‘Obamacare’ Suit

Gov. Scott Walker has signed into law a $200 million measure designed to stabilize the health insurance market under the Affordable Care Act in Wisconsin, after authorizing fellow Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel to take lead on a new multi-state …

Survey: Minnesota’s Jump in Uninsured Led by Drop in Private Coverage

The number of Minnesota residents without health insurance jumped by 116,000 in the past two years, the state Department of Health said. A biennial survey by the department and the University of Minnesota School of Public Health found that the …

Idaho’s ‘Freedom’ Plans Ignore Obamacare, But Have Limits

After Idaho’s Republican governor promised to find creative ways to get around Obamacare, one health plan in the state plans to offer skimpy coverage that may violate many of the law’s protections for patients. Blue Cross of Idaho said Wednesday …

In Turnabout, Wisconsin Governor Moves to Stabilize Insurance Market

In a tack to the left in an election year, Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker announced Sunday that he wants a state law that would bar insurers from denying a person health coverage due to a pre-existing condition. He also …

Minnesota Gov. Cranks Up Pressure on Feds to Protect Health Programs

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton blasted federal health officials on Sept. 20 for holding up approval of a program meant to lower health insurance costs and threatening millions of dollars in cuts to health care for the working poor. State lawmakers …

Percent of Indiana Residents Without Health Insurance Declines

A U.S. Census Bureau report has found that Indiana had 373,000 fewer people without health insurance last year than three years earlier. The report released last week said about 8 percent of Indiana residents, or about 530,000 people, lacked medical …

Hey Congress, Hurricanes and Health Care Have a Lot in Common: Bloomberg View

As Congress continues to struggle with health insurance reform, members should be ruminating on the scenes of “recovery” beaming in from East Texas and Florida, where the majority of households — many now severely damaged or destroyed — had not …

Number Drops but Texas Still Has Highest Rate for People Without Health Insurance

The number of people without health insurance in Texas continues to decline, but the state still has more residents without coverage than anywhere in the nation. U.S. Census Bureau data released Tuesday shows Texas’ 2016 rate of uninsured at 16.6 …