Budget Solutions 2016: State-employee health insurance: Opportunities for reform
Budget Solutions 2016: State-employee health insurance: Opportunities for reform
State workers’ health-insurance benefits make up $3 billion of the state’s budget.
Why Rauner should roll back Illinois’ Medicaid expansion ASAP
Why Rauner should roll back Illinois’ Medicaid expansion ASAP
Services for the most vulnerable Medicaid populations will be first in line for budget cuts. Childless, able-bodied adults will be last.
ObamaCare: Americans want control
ObamaCare: Americans want control
The president’s signature health-insurance overhaul is as unpopular as ever. And the underlying causes for dissatisfaction continue to worsen.
ObamaCare: The year ahead
ObamaCare: The year ahead
The Affordable Care Act is headed back to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015.
Is Medicaid access about to get worse in Illinois?
Is Medicaid access about to get worse in Illinois?
Illinois’ Medicaid reimbursement rates are dropping back to about 54 percent of what the federal Medicare program pays for similar visits and procedures.
Long ER waits at University of Chicago not surprising in the wake of ACA
Long ER waits at University of Chicago not surprising in the wake of ACA
There should be little doubt that these access problems will be exacerbated as the state has essentially handed out 500,000 Medicaid cards without providing any additional capacity for patient care.
What Rauner can do to reform social services in Illinois
What Rauner can do to reform social services in Illinois
There is clearly no lack of commitment aimed at supporting those in need here in Illinois. The question is how to do a better job of it.
The fiscal nail in the single-payer coffin
The fiscal nail in the single-payer coffin
Health-care access and affordability are important goals. But they will never be achieved with a single-payer system – and that isn’t bad news.
Will Congress finally live by the same set of rules under ObamaCare?
Will Congress finally live by the same set of rules under ObamaCare?
If lawmakers begin to enter the ObamaCare exchanges themselves, it will certainly draw attention to the hypocrisy of some lawmakers who have imposed this costly law on Americans. But perhaps more importantly, it could serve as an important lever to force lawmakers to re-examine the most damaging aspects of the law.
No more blank checks for ObamaCare insurers
No more blank checks for ObamaCare insurers
The new federal spending bill, dubbed the “CRomnibus,” codifies that the ACA payments to insurers are budget-neutral, as the revenue to fund them will come from fees already assessed on health-insurance plans. This is not the blank check that insurers were hoping for.
Illinois lawmakers deserve praise for holding off on state-funded ObamaCare exchange
Illinois lawmakers deserve praise for holding off on state-funded ObamaCare exchange
It might be rare to heap praise on Illinois’ state lawmakers, but their decision not to move forward on a state-funded exchange deserves recognition.
Illinois House committee passes race and gender quotas for Health Benefits Exchange Board
Illinois House committee passes race and gender quotas for Health Benefits Exchange Board
“It just seemed wrong to me, that you would deny a woman, or a person of color, or someone from downstate, a seat on this governing board, just based on who they happen to be, as opposed to their merit and their talent.”
Proposed fee on health-insurance plans can’t cover costs of a state-funded exchange
Proposed fee on health-insurance plans can’t cover costs of a state-funded exchange
Legislation being advanced by state Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Chicago, would attempt to cover costs by charging a fee on every health-insurance plan sold through the state-funded health insurance exchange. This funding mechanism is likely to be insufficient. In fact, the new state tax on insurance plans may need to be three times the amount currently under consideration to truly cover administrative costs.
Ruling against ObamaCare IRS subsidies would save Illinoisans billions in penalty costs
Ruling against ObamaCare IRS subsidies would save Illinoisans billions in penalty costs
There is a silver lining should the Supreme Court rule against the ACA: Illinoisans would no longer be subject to an estimated $6.5 billion in IRS penalties.