Michelle Andrews provides an overview for Kaiser Health News of the Affordable Care Act regulations that impact employer plans, and how these might change under a repeal or replacement of the act.
Since election day, the future of healthcare in the US has been unpredictable, to say the least. More aptly, the healthcare industry is in a state of chaotic uncertainty with many unanswerable questions, and a lack of clarity and real solutions from the new administration (save a repeated promise to repeal the ACA – without any solid plans for a replacement).
Image: Global Reporting Initiative
Phil Albinus writes for Benefit News about the top employee benefit concern among employers - their role in the Affordable Care Act.
While the future of the ACA hangs in the balance, the fact remains that the law is still in existence until those critical decisions are made. As such, ACA mandates and regulations – both old and new – need to be strictly adhered to.
Below is a quick round up of changes to the ACA that are coming down the pike for 2017… at least for the foreseeable future.
Beth Braverman reports on the top five healthcare trends in 2017 in this article for The Fiscal Times. She notes that "the American health care system faces massive uncertainty heading into 2017," as more Americans gain coverage but fewer can afford it.
Kristen Rasmussen recently wrote for Benefits Pro about what companies need to do to prepare for the possible repeal of, or dramatic changes to, the Affordable Care Act.
Drew Altman writes on increasing deductible costs, “which are transforming the nature of health insurance from more comprehensive coverage to skimpier insurance with higher out-of-pocket costs.”
Michael Z. Stahl recently wrote for Forbes, “a 2014 survey by the National Small Business Association found that small employers spend an average of 13 hours or $1,274 a month just to keep up with Affordable Care Act compliance.”
Benjamin D. Sommers takes a look at why the annual Spring panic around premium increases for ACA marketplace plans is “overblown.” The fact that most increases will be reduced before open enrollment and that most consumers received premium tax credits are both cited as reasons the initial proposed increases are not a big deal.
Read the full article on The New England Journal of Medicine.
