Archive for the ‘CMS’ Category

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) thave released final rules that simplify requirements and add new flexibilities for providers to make electronic health information available when and where it matters most and for health care providers and consumers to be able to […]

With Marketplace Open Enrollment set to begin on Nov. 1, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have announced grant awards totaling $67 million to support outreach efforts designed to connect people with local help as they seek to understand the coverage options and financial assistance available at HealthCare.gov. Awarded to 100 organizations located […]

The next open enrollment period for Marketplace coverage begins on Nov. 1, 2015, for coverage starting on Jan. 1, 2016. Some people can sign up for health coverage outside of open enrollment, before Nov. 1, because they qualify for a special enrollment period (SEP). A consumer can qualify for a SEP for such circumstances as […]

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) ran a two-year sting operation on the federal Obamacare site, HealthCare.gov, and was able to enroll 11 fake applicants using fabricated documents and even leaving some required information out. All 11 were renewed this year, according to a report released yesterday. Six applicants at one point were terminated, but GAO […]

Hawaii became the latest state to shut down its online health insurance marketplace after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) began cutting back on grant funds because its exchange was out of compliance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Hawaii exchange enrolled only 8,500 persons in the first year of Obamacare, costing the […]

An independent evaluation report released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today reportedly shows that an innovative payment model created as a pilot project by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) generated substantial savings to Medicare in just two years, according to an HHS press release. Additionally, the independent Office of the Actuary in […]

Nationwide, nearly 11.7 million consumers selected or were automatically re-enrolled in health insurance coverage through the state and federal Health Insurance Marketplace as of Feb. 22, according to a report released Tuesday by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Of the total, 8.84 million (76 percent) were in states using the HealthCare.gov platform, […]

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have announced a special enrollment period (SEP) for individuals and families who did not have health coverage in 2014 and are subject to the fee or “shared responsibility payment” when they file their 2014 taxes in states which use the Federally-facilitated Marketplaces (FFM). This special enrollment period […]

Of the 4.7 million persons who obtained insurance coverage from HealthCare.gov in 2014, about 1.2 million of them shopped around and switched plans for 2015. Another 1 million did comparison shopping but stuck with their 2014 plans. The unexpected shopping spree was attributed in large part to premium variations. The most successful insurance companies from 2014, […]

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have issued the Final HHS Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2016.  This rule seeks to improve consumers’ experience in the Health Insurance Marketplace and to ensure their coverage options are affordable and accessible. The rule finalizes the annual open enrollment period for 2016 to begin […]