Health Reform

President Biden’s FY 2022 budget proposes lowering the Medicare enrollment age from 65 to 60, and a group of over 150 House Democrats recently called for a provision lowering the Medicare age to 60 or 55 to be included in the President’s American Families Plan. President Biden’s budget proposes “giving people age 60 and older

The Biden Administration has started taking steps to reverse Trump Administration policy and regulations that significantly narrowed the implementation and administrative enforcement of Section 1557, the Affordable Care Act’s nondiscrimination provision, particularly as the regulations apply to gender identity and sexual orientation. In addition, several lawsuits challenging the regulations, which were initially issued by the

Key Findings The latest KFF Health Tracking Poll finds majorities of the public saying many current health care proposals being discussed by lawmakers are important priorities for Congress to focus on in the coming months, and few (less than one five) saying each of the health priorities “should not be done.” While majorities of the

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden in March 2021. The ARPA includes provisions that increase subsidies for Marketplace shoppers who were already eligible for financial assistance and removes the upper income cap on subsidy eligibility, eliminating what was known as the “subsidy cliff.” As

The pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the nation’s mental health, and a new issue brief shows that children are also facing worsening emotional and cognitive health. The brief examines factors contributing to worsening mental health and substance use outcomes among children and adolescents during the pandemic, looking closely at those who are at

Introduction During the COVID-19 pandemic, children have experienced major disruptions as a result of public health safety measures, including school closures, social isolation, financial hardships, and gaps in health care access. Many parents have reported poor mental health outcomes in their children throughout the pandemic ’ in May 2020, shortly after the pandemic began, 29%

President Biden proposed lowering the age of Medicare eligibility to 60 during the presidential campaign and reiterated his support recently, with the goal of broadening coverage and making health coverage affordable for older adults.  Proposals to lower the age of Medicare, either to 60 or a younger age, may be considered by Congress.  One KFF

Top executives at nearly 90% of large employers surveyed believe the cost of providing health benefits to employees will become unsustainable in the next five-to-10 years, and 85% expect the government will be required to intervene to provide coverage and contain costs, according to a new survey released today from Purchaser Business Group on Health

Medicare currently offers health insurance coverage to more than 60 million Americans ages 65 and older and younger adults with long-term disabilities. During the presidential campaign, President Biden proposed to lower Medicare’s eligibility age from 65 to 60, along with other policies to address health insurance coverage and affordability. Then-candidate Biden stated that the proposal

A new KFF issue brief explores several potential policy options that would help close the Affordable Care Act’s “coverage gap,” including providing further new incentives for states to expand Medicaid, creating a new “public option” or extending ACA Marketplace premium subsidies to low-income people who don’t currently qualify for federal help. At stake is affordable

As of April 2021, 12 states have not adopted the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provision to expand Medicaid to adults with incomes through 138% of poverty. In these states, 2.2 million uninsured people with incomes under poverty fall in the “coverage gap” and do not qualify for either Medicaid or premium subsidies in the ACA

Financial assistance to buy health insurance on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces is primarily available for people who cannot get coverage through a public program or their employer. Some exceptions are made, however, including for people whose employer coverage offer is deemed unaffordable or of insufficient value. For example, people can qualify for ACA

A new KFF analysis estimates 5.1 million people nationally fall into the Affordable Care Act’s “family glitch” that occurs when a worker receives an offer of affordable employer coverage for themselves but not for their dependents, making them ineligible for financial assistance for marketplace coverage. The so-called glitch occurs because the ACA prohibits people with

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has provided subsidized health insurance on HealthCare.gov and state-run Marketplaces since 2019, with about 9 million people purchasing coverage with federal premium help. However, millions remain uninsured despite being eligible to purchase on the Marketplace. Some uninsured people have been priced out of the market because their incomes did not

The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act signed into law earlier this month includes a number of provisions aimed at making health coverage more accessible and affordable amid the public health and economic crises created by the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes include a temporary expansion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits for people

The American Rescue Plan (ARP), recently signed into law by President Biden, increases and expands eligibility for Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium subsidies for people enrolled in marketplace health plans. The law also creates new, temporary premium subsidies for COBRA continuation coverage; and it temporarily changes the rules for year-end tax reconciliation of marketplace premium

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) made premium tax credits available to people purchasing health coverage on the Marketplaces, but generally only when their incomes fall between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level. These subsidies work by capping what an enrollee must spend on a silver benchmark plan premium at no more than a

Las siguientes preguntas lo ayudarán a entender esta calculadora. Hay más disponibles en nuestra página de preguntas y respuestas sobre la reforma de salud. ¿Dónde puedo buscar ayuda para entender cómo me afecta la ley de salud? Si tiene preguntas sobre cómo la reforma de salud lo afectará a usted y a sus opciones de

KFF has updated its 2021 Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator to reflect the expanded premium tax credits available to people who purchase their own coverage through their state’s health insurance exchange as passed by Congress in the American Rescue Plan Act and expected to be signed into law soon. The calculator allows users to enter their

 The FAQs below are intended to help you understand this Calculator. More detailed questions and answers about signing up for coverage are available on our Health Reform FAQ page. Where can I go for help understanding how the health reform law will affect me? If you have questions about how the health reform law will

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) made premium tax credits available to people purchasing health coverage on the Marketplaces, but generally only when their incomes fall between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level. These subsidies work by capping what an enrollee must spend on a silver benchmark plan premium at no more than a

The House COVID-19 relief proposal would temporarily lower what millions of Marketplace enrollees and uninsured potential enrollees would pay toward premiums and would provide states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs a financial boost that would more than offset their costs initially, two new KFF analyses find. The analyses assess two parts of the

On February 15, 2021, HealthCare.gov, the federal health insurance marketplace serving 36 states, reopened for enrollment for 12 weeks. Though styled as a “special” enrollment period, it will operate more like an open enrollment period; no qualifying life event is required to apply.  People who are currently uninsured can enroll, and people already enrolled in

In recent years, federal and state policymakers have introduced several proposals to lower prescription drug costs in an attempt to respond to the public’s ongoing concerns about high and rising drug prices. As President Biden takes the reins in Washington DC, his administration inherits a handful of final rules advanced by the Trump Administration in

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis, about 4 in 10 adults nationwide have reported symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder ’ a four-fold increase from pre-pandemic levels. Drawing on the latest national survey data, KFF polling and other research, an updated brief explores what’s known about the pandemic’s impact on people’s mental health

Based on campaign pledges, President Biden is expected to reopen Marketplace enrollment, for example, through a COVID-19 special enrollment opportunity (SEP), and his administration is also expected to direct significantly more resources to marketing and outreach efforts. Millions of people remain uninsured despite being eligible for free or reduced cost coverage through the ACA Marketplaces

The economic downturn and change in Administration are likely to bring renewed attention to gaps in Medicaid coverage in states that have not expanded eligibility under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In recent months, millions have gained health insurance coverage through Medicaid as a result of the economic effects of the pandemic as well as

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic began, signing up for health coverage and applying for financial assistance was often challenging.  A 2020 KFF survey found half (51%) of consumers who looked for coverage during the 2020 open enrollment encountered difficulties, and nearly 5 million consumers sought in-person help but couldn’t get it.  During the 2021 open

In this report, we analyze transparency data released or updated in 2020 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to examine claims denials and appeals among issuers offering individual market coverage on HealthCare.gov; data are from plan years 2019 and 2019.  The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires transparency data reporting by non-grandfathered group

The details vary but the story is always the same: every candidate’s big plans for health care morph, shrink, and change after they are elected and confronted with new political and economic circumstances. That will be true in spades for President-elect Biden. Very narrow margins in both houses of Congress means two of the big