Catalyst Center Coverage
Roundup of news related to financing of care for children and youth with special health care needs |
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Quote of the Week
"If you over-plan, you close the door on possibilities."
~ Patti Smith
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Featured Article
 The Health Care Supreme Court Case: Who Would Be Affected? 
By Matthew Bloch, Margot Sanger-Katz, K.K. Rebecca Lai and Alicia Parlapiano
The New York Times
June 2, 2015
The U.S. Supreme Court will rule on King v. Burwell later this month or in early July. This challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is based on 6 of the 234,812 words in the national health care reform legislation. Those words state that consumers who purchase insurance through "an exchange established by the state" can receive subsidies. The King challenge hinges on the Court's interpretation of those words and if they consider Healthcare.gov, the federal Marketplace that operates in 34 states to be "established by the state." If the Court rules in favor of King, more than six million people will lose the federal subsidies they depend on to help them afford health insurance. This will increase the price of insurance premiums for everyone in those 34 states, as individuals with the greatest health care needs will retain insurance, while healthier people decide to drop their coverage. The ruling will exacerbate existing geographical health insurance disparities. Employed, white, high-school graduates living in the south will be at highest risk of losing their health insurance. Individuals living in states that passed laws banning the mandate to have insurance and prohibiting the creation of a state-based Marketplace will have the most difficulties maintaining affordable coverage. |
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IN THIS ISSUE
Featured Article
News
Resources
News from Our Partners
Announcements and Events
In Case You Missed It...
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News Items
Second State Moves to Save ObamaCare Subsidies
By Sarah Ferris
The Hill
June 4, 2015
If the U.S. Supreme Court rules in favor of the plaintiffs in the King v. Burwell case, Delaware and Pennsylvania have a backup plan to preserve the subsidies their residents receive that make it possible for them to afford health insurance. These two states would create state-based Marketplaces, which would be unaffected by the ruling.
Interactive: The Affordable Care Act by the Numbers
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
Associated Press
June 2, 2015
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) turned 5 in March of this year. This article includes an interactive map that displays the percent of people younger than 65 who have gained coverage, the percent who receive subsidies, and the average monthly amount of the subsidy. Interactive charts show:
- A decrease in the number of uninsured over the past 5 years
- Public opinion is still mixed (spoiler alert: today, more people oppose the ACA than support it)
- Enrollment in Medicaid has increased by 9.5 million since December 2013
Feds Launch Financial Effort Aimed at People with Disabilities
By Michelle Diament
Disability Scoop
June 4, 2015
The ROADS to Financial Independence initiative is an effort to support the financial health of individuals with disabilities who work or who will be entering the workforce. The program will be piloted in Austin, Texas; Birmingham, Alabama; the New York state Finger Lakes region; Seattle, Washington; Delaware; and District of Columbia. Each participant will work with a financial counselor to open a bank account, manage income, and set financial goals. In addition to helping the individual participants, long term, the goal is to identify best practices that can be replicated throughout the country to help individuals with disabilities work toward financial independence.
Nurse.com
June 4, 2015
Many children come to the U.S. to escape violence, gang threats, kidnapping, and rape. This article describes the efforts of nurses to ensure the health and well-being of children who are not lawfully present in this country, who are at risk for mental health problems due to these types of trauma, and who have chronic conditions that have worsened due to delayed care. The nurses have developed Primary Care of the Newly Immigrated Child guidelines and champion the use of schools, school-based health centers, free clinics, and other settings to provide "care with dignity" that ensures the children are immunized, chronic health needs are treated, and connections are made to other needed social services.
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Resources
By Kathie J. Mazza
State Health Reform Assistance Network
May 2015
This issue brief describes a win-win-win partnership used by two states during the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) second open-enrollment period. The Minnesota and Illinois Marketplaces partnered with insurance brokers who were willing to support the Marketplaces' advertising efforts. This accommodated families' preferences for in-person assistance (win 1), helped brokers build their direct enrollment business (win 2), and maximized outreach, enrollment, and renewal efforts of the Marketplaces (win 3). Using the brokers' office spaces as enrollment centers reduced costs. Additional partnerships between the brokers and other assistors in the community increased the availability of face-to-face assistance. The brief includes a guide and suggested timeline other states can use for soliciting brokers for this Lead Broker Agency program.
The Supreme Court Decision in King v. Burwell Could Affect Your Wallet
Kaiser Health News
June 4, 2015
This two-minute video explains King v. Burwell, a challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on by the end of the month. An estimated six million people will lose the subsidies they rely on to afford health insurance if the Court rules in favor of King. Learn why and how this might affect the price of your health insurance, even if you didn't purchase it through Healthcare.gov, the federal Marketplace that operates in 34 states.
Statereforum, an online network for health reform implementation, has compiled a list of resources about telehealth. These resources include use of telehealth to ensure access to care for rural populations, laws and reimbursement policies, provision of behavioral health services, and more.
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Announcements & Events
Date: June 12, 2015
Time: 2:00 to 3:30 pm ET
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In case you missed it... the most popular news item from our last issue
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Want more news?
To view more articles from past issues of Catalyst Center Coverage, visit the Catalyst Center website. Or follow the Catalyst Center on Facebook or Twitter.
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News to share?
If you have suggestions for news items related to coverage and financing of care for CYSHCN please email Beth Dworetzky Catalyst Center Coverage editor and Catalyst Center Project Director by 12 noon on Friday.
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The Catalyst Center is a national center dedicated to working with states and stakeholder groups on improving health care insurance and financing for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN). For more information, please visit us at www.catalystctr.org or contact Meg Comeau, Co-Principal Investigator, at mcomeau@bu.edu.
The Catalyst Center, the National Center for Health Insurance and Financing for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs, is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number U41MC13618, $473,000. This information or content and conclusions are those of the Catalyst Center staff and should not be construed as the official position or policy of nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. LT Leticia Manning, MPH, MCHB/HRSA Project Officer.
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