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Tag: West Virginia

Hundreds of Millions Spent to Attack New Health Care Law, Little to Defend

A new analysis finds the nation’s health care overhaul deserves a place in advertising history as the focus of extraordinarily high spending on negative political TV ads that have gone largely unanswered by the law’s supporters.  The report, released Friday by nonpartisan analysts Kantar Media CMAG, estimates that $445 million was spent on political TV ads mentioning the law since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Spending on negative ads outpaced positive ones by more than 15 to 1.

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Contact Steven Cosby with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.

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Cost-control plan for health care could cost you

You just might want to pay attention to the latest health insurance jargon. It could mean thousands of dollars out of your pocket.  The Obama administration has given the go-ahead for a new cost-control strategy called “reference pricing.” It lets insurers and employers put a dollar limit on what health plans pay for some expensive procedures, such as knee and hip replacements.

Some experts worry that patients could be surprised with big medical bills they must pay themselves, undercutting financial protections in the new health care law. That would happen if patients picked a more expensive hospital — even if it’s part of the insurer’s network.  The administration’s decision affects most job-based plans as well as the new insurance exchanges. Other experts say reference pricing will help check rising premiums. A recent policy ruling from the administration went to unusual lengths to acknowledge concerns, saying the pricing strategy “may be a subterfuge” for “otherwise prohibited limitations on coverage.”

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Contact Steven Cosby with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.

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Obama Appoints ACA Adviser to Key Policy Role

President Barack Obama has chosen health care aide Kristie Canegallo to serve as a deputy chief of staff tasked with policy implementation on a range of issues, including the Affordable Care Act, expanding internet access for schools and ending the war in Afghanistan, the White House said Friday.

Canegallo’s appointment to the new role comes as Phil Schiliro, brought in late last year to manage the implementation of the ACA following HealthCare.gov’s troubled launch, prepares to depart. The impetus for creating the position comes from “a lesson learned” by White House chief of staff Denis McDonough from the health care rollout, an official said: the West Wing needs a senior-level staffer to coordinate the implementation of policy.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/obama-aca-health-care-kristie-canegallo-deputy-chief-of-staff-106770.html#ixzz327v6dpWB

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Contact Steven Cosby with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.

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Employers Eye Moving Sickest Workers To Insurance Exchanges

Can corporations shift workers with high medical costs from the company health plan into online insurance exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act?

Some employers are considering it, say benefits consultants. “It’s all over the marketplace,” said Todd Yates, a managing partner at Hill, Chesson & Woody, a North Carolina benefits consulting firm. “Employers are inquiring about it and brokers and consultants are advocating for it.”

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Contact Steven Cosby with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.

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Care for Veterans ‘Not Good Enough,’ Hagel Says

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says he supports beleaguered Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, but adds that the care the VA offers veterans is “not good enough.”
Shinseki is a retired four-star general and Vietnam veteran who has come under criticism since reports surfaced that as many as 40 veterans died while waiting for medical care from the VA hospital in Phoenix. Veterans have also waited years in some cases to collect benefits from the administration. The American Legion and some in Congress have called for Shinseki’s ouster. 

Read full article here.

 

Contact Steven Cosby with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.

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