Policy Update
New HHS Secretary Reorganizes Management of HealthCare.gov
Among her first acts as the new Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Sylvia Mathews Burwell has initiated management changes designed to ensure that HealthCare.gov is fully prepared to handle the next open enrollment period, which begins November 15. Andy Slavitt joins the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as principal deputy administrator responsible for coordinating agency-wide policy and operational programs. According to National Journal, Slavitt has more than 20 years of private sector experience and was the leader of the “surge” team brought on board to repair the troubled website late last year. As part of the restructuring, CMS will also recruit a CEO and a chief technology officer for the federal insurance exchange.
ACA Removes Cost Barrier to Prevention for 76 million Americans
A new HHS report released late last week found that 76 million Americans in private health insurance plans are receiving expanded coverage for one or more recommended preventive health care services without cost sharing, thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). ACS CAN fought to include provisions in the law to ensure cost is not a barrier to accessing important cancer prevention and early detection services, such as mammograms, colonoscopies and tobacco cessation.
CMS Releases Proposed Rule on Marketplace Re-Enrollment for 2015
CMS released a proposed regulation June 26 describing the processes that will be used to re-enroll eligible individuals in marketplace coverage in 2015, including processes for determining tax credit amounts. The proposed rule is designed to minimize paperwork for consumers who wish to remain covered under their current marketplace plan. CMS estimates that most current marketplace enrollees can be re-enrolled for next year without having to take any action. Enrollees who wish to change plans or need to report changes in income can visit HealthCare.gov, call 1-800-318-2596, or consult a navigator in their area.
ACS CAN Hosts Roundtable on ACA-related Transparency Issues
ACS CAN convened a panel of experts June 23 to examine how implementation of the ACA is affecting patients, advocates, researchers and regulators. The discussion’s central theme addressed the lack of information available to consumers about prescription formularies and provider networks. The expert panel helped to identify issues and develop recommendations for ways to improve transparency in the system. ACS CAN will share the recommendations with HHS.
Federal Update
Supreme Court Decision: Closely-Held Companies Can Deny Contraception Insurance
The U.S. Supreme Court handed down a decision June 30 in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, in which three for-profit companies sued to invalidate the ACA requirement that contraceptives be covered as an essential health benefit. Legal Times reports that the decision means closely-held for-profit corporations with sincere religious beliefs cannot be required to provide women with health insurance coverage that includes all Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved contraception methods. Religious organizations and grandfathered plans were already exempted from this requirement.
Neither the Society nor ACS CAN has taken a position on the Hobby Lobby case or others involving the law’s contraceptive coverage provisions. Our focus remains on ensuring access to affordable coverage that includes lifesaving cancer prevention and early detection tests, treatments, and followup care.
State Update
Extending Health Coverage to States’ Low-Income Citizens: Montana & Virginia
Montana: The clock ran out June 19 in Montana despite the best efforts of ACS CAN staff, volunteers and coalition partners who fought a vigorous battle to extend health coverage through Medicaid to 70,000 low-income state residents. Gov. Steve Bullock had expressed his willingness to call a special session to take up the issue if enough members of the legislature would affirm their support of the legislation. Ultimately, not enough legislators were in favor of accepting the federal funds.
A second defeat came when the Healthy Montana Initiative, which sought to allow voters to decide whether the state should accept the federal funds, fell short of the necessary number of signatures to place the issue on the November ballot.
Despite these disappointing losses, ACS CAN stood as a leader that clearly made the case for improving access to health care for low-income state residents, especially those who are in desperate need of cancer prevention services and treatment. We will continue our advocacy efforts on this issue, with a concentration on the 2015 legislative session.
Virginia: After weeks of delay, the Virginia General Assembly passed a Fiscal Year 2015 budget that did not include a plan for assisting the 400,000 Virginians who fall into the “coverage gap,” where they can neither enroll in Medicaid coverage nor receive federal assistance to enroll in a private plan through the marketplace.
In response to the passage of the budget, ACS CAN sent letters to Gov. Terry McAuliffe and the Virginia General Assembly urging them to continue working toward a solution that would improve access to the tens of thousands in need of cancer screening and cancer treatment services. Gov. McAuliffe signed the budget on June 20, but vetoed by line-item language blocking his office from accepting the federal funds and disassembling the Medicaid Innovation and Reform Commission, a body that was established in an effort to reform Virginia’s Medicaid program. Speaker William Howell declared the governor’s veto out of order.
The governor has asked Secretary of Health and Human Resources Bill Hazel to prepare a proposal by September 1 for the state to cover low-income Virginians through executive action. ACS CAN stands ready to work with Governor McAuliffe, Secretary Hazel and the members of the legislature to provide access to health care coverage to Virginia’s most vulnerable residents.
Media Advocacy
Survey Results: Nearly 60 Percent Were Uninsured Prior to Enrolling in Marketplace
According to a new survey released June 19 by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation, 57 percent of the more than 8 million people who purchased private health insurance through the marketplace were previously uninsured. Of those, a majority reported having gone without health insurance for at least two years. And more than 70 percent name the ACA as their reason for deciding to purchase insurance.
New Study Suggests ACA May Improve Health of Young Adults
A study published June 18 in the Journal of the American Medical Associationsuggests a popular provision of the new health care law that allows young adults to remain on a parent's health insurance plan up to age 26 may improve their health and financial security. The study linked dependent coverage to a 7.2 percentage-point increase in insurance coverage among young adults. Coverage is also associated with a significant measurable increase in young adults who consider themselves to be in excellent.
As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Carter Steger, Senior Director, State and Local Campaigns, at [email protected], (202) 661-5727, or Keysha Brooks-Coley, Director, Federal Relations, at [email protected], (202) 661-5720.