An HHS proposed rule released Monday would do away with a Trump-era policy allowing states to bypass HealthCare.gov when seeking enrollees for Obamacare plans. The Department of Health and Human Services is also proposing to extend the annual regular open enrollment period for Affordable Care Act plans by an additional month, from Nov. 1 to Jan. 15 as compared with the current end date of Dec. 15. The new proposed rule (RIN 0938-AU60) supplements the regular annual rule setting parameters for Affordable Care Act plans. The CMS finalized payment parameters for 2022 ACA plans in April.
MassHealth director Dan Tsai is moving on after more than six years running the state’s Medicaid program to join the Biden administration as deputy administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The Baker administration announced Tsai’s departure, effective June 29, on Monday. In his new role, the state’s longest-serving Medicaid chief in almost 20 years will take on the role of director for the Center for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Services.
Healthy Indiana Plan participants no longer can lose their Medicaid health coverage for failing to comply with the employment mandate championed by Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) last week notified Indiana officials the federal government has revoked the state's authorization to require able-bodied, adult Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP) members to work, search for a job or participate in community service at least 20 hours a week as a condition of receiving state-supported health coverage.
Earlier this year, ordinary investors on Reddit made a lot of headlines as they inspired a lot of people to buy shares in GameStop (NYSE:GME) and AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC). The run on the shares caused a massive short squeeze, and the two stocks skyrocketed in value almost overnight. Now some home traders are trying to pull off a similar feat with a healthcare company, Clover Health (NASDAQ:CLOV). Will this stock zoom higher? Or will the share price crash and burn?
Dr. Cynthia Southern expects the phone to ring often in her Pulaski County dental office beginning Thursday, when Virginia expands its Medicaid program to provide a comprehensive dental benefit to poor adults. More than 750,000 Virginians will become eligible for a benefit that the state believes will transform their health, help them land jobs and make eating a pleasure again. "A lot of people in our area are going to use that benefit," said Southern, whose practice in the town of Pulaski serves not only the county, but also surrounding jurisdictions in the mountains of rural Southwest Virginia about 50 miles south of Roanoke.
Express Scripts is suing the U.S. government, according to a lawsuit filed this week. The pharmacy benefit manager, owned by health insurer Cigna, is demanding $43 million in tax refunds from 2010 and 2011, alleging the IRS wrongfully denied the company's use of a now-repealed income tax deduction.