Empowering patient voices through voter registration
While roughly 83% of adults in the United States will visit a health care provider in the next year, an estimated
News
2-6-13 Affordable Care Act Update
February 25, 2013
Policy Update
CMS Sends FMAP Guidance to States
The Centers on Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sent a letter February 1 to state Medicaid directors providing guidance on the 1 percent increase in the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for coverage of preventive services with no co-pay. CMS said the increase applies to services given an A or B rating by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, and to recommended adult vaccines. States will receive the increase for services provided through fee-for-service or managed care basis, or through a benchmark or benchmark-equivalent benefit plan (referred to as an "alternative benefit plan"). Alternative benefit plans will be offered to newly eligible Medicaid enrollees and must include preventive care. If states provide preventive care at no cost to the patient, they will also receive the FMAP increase for those services.
Tax Credits
Last week, the Treasury Department issued a final regulation on eligibility for tax credits in the health insurance exchanges. The regulation includes a provision that may adversely affect families with employer-provided health insurance. Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), if a person has to pay more than 9.5 percent of their income for health insurance provided by an employer, they may drop the employer coverage and receive federal subsidies to help pay for coverage in the exchange offered in their state. The final rule measures "affordability" based on the cost of coverage for the worker, rather than by the cost of coverage for his or her family. So if coverage in an employer plan costs a worker 9 percent of his or her wages, but the cost of family coverage is 13 percent of wages, neither the worker nor the worker's dependents will be eligible for subsidies in the exchange. ACS CAN and many other consumer groups strongly opposed this policy when it appeared earlier in a proposed regulation, but the administration did not change the final rule, saying its final policy position is based on its interpretation of the ACA statutory language.
State Update
ACS CAN Medicaid Polling Media Coverage
ACS CAN polling showing strong support in various states for accepting federal funds to cover more low-income people through Medicaid continues to make headlines and generate volunteer action in the states. Two weeks ago, ACS CAN released polling results showing that by large margins, voters in Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico and Texas support their state accepting the federal funds versus turning down the funds and leaving thousands of working families without access to health coverage. Numerous local media outlets and state political blogs have cited the polling results. ACS CAN has also been successful in helping volunteers place letters to the editor and op-eds in local publications such as the Lansing State Journal in Michigan.
ACS CAN field staff continue to engage our volunteers and call them to action as governors address Medicaid in their State of the State and annual budget addresses and as legislatures begin taking up this issue during their spring sessions. For example, in Michigan more than 600 volunteers responded to ACS CAN's call to action to urge Governor Rick Snyder to accept the federal funds to increase access to Medicaid coverage. It was the largest response by volunteers to an advocacy action alert since the 2009 smoke-free campaign. Template materials, including letters to the editor, op-eds, press releases and action alerts have been shared with field staff to support their engagement of policy makers, volunteers and the public on this critical issue. Please continue to utilize these materials, and let us know if you have any questions.
Policy Brief on Health Exchanges
A new Health Policy Brief from Health Affairs and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation explores the issues facing the federal government and the states in the establishment and operation of federally facilitated health insurance exchanges, which will be established in states that do not elect to set up their own exchange. At present, 25 states have opted for a federally facilitated exchange. As a result, the federal government will have a major role in those states in expanding insurance coverage in the individual and small-group insurance markets.
As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families.
Chris Hansen | President
ACS Cancer Action Network | American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Inc.