Bloomberg News

The biggest U.S. medical insurer is learning to sell health insurance to consumers the way other companies sell shoes, office supplies or iPhones — through a storefront — as PPACA’s sweeping reforms take place.

Globally, those who are slightly overweight and obese have the lowest risks, according to a new U.S. government report, but critics say the study doesn’t take enough other factors, such as disease or nutrition.

The House of Representatives voted late Tuesday night on a Senate-backed plan to avoid the “fiscal cliff” of automatic spending cuts and tax increases. However, 77% of U.S. households will face higher tax rates this year because the deal allowed the payroll tax cut to expire.

Although research finds an increased risk of developing macular degeneration among long-term aspirin takers, study authors still advise patients who take aspirin for cardio-vascular reasons to continue to do so.

The authors of a recent medical report say diabetes is leading to increasing rates of vision loss, and they recommend upping efforts to prevent and quickly diagnose diabetes in order to prevent expensive eye treatments.

Rules for the six state insurance exchanges that won conditional approval from the Obama administration Dec. 10 are split evenly between those with strict criteria for companies that want to participate and states that have opened their exchanges to all comers, a scenario supported by the insurance industry. A high bar for inclusion could limit the number of insurers offering health plans in some states.

Many states led by Republican governors have already said they won’t build their own insurance exchanges. That puts the onus on the Obama administration.

Of the six states that have won HHS approval to run their health care exchanges, some, like Maryland, have opened theirs to all comers, while others, such as Connecticut, plan strict criteria. Insurers will have to twist and contort to play by the irregular rules.

Health insurance premiums may double for some small businesses and individual buyers in the U.S. when the Affordable Care Act’s major provisions start in 2014, Aetna’s chief executive officer said.

The Department of Health and Human Services says six states – all led by Democrats – have earned conditional approval to begin enrolling members in their health-insurance exchanges.

The second-largest U.S. phone company plans to shift about one-fourth of its pension obligations to Prudential Insurance to remove risk from its balance sheet.

The world’s largest computer-services provider will only match defined contributions on Dec. 15 of each year — workers who leave or are fired before that date get nothing. The move could lead to significant savings, but it’s already led to criticism.

A report published this week claims there’s no such thing as resistance to aspirin, and that expensive prescription blood thinners may be overused.

The vote by the American Psychiatric Association follows a seven-year debate that split the mental health community over whether the changes will spur over-diagnosis of some autism spectrum disorders, and limit treatment for others.

Health care reform means that many patients can no longer be denied health insurance because of preexisting conditions. But there’s a big catch: Coverage for many Americans without insurance will come at a potentially unaffordable cost.

Aetna and other insurers that initially fought President Obama’s health care overhaul are reversing course and supporting the effort by funding a group planning to spend $100 million to help the uninsured get coverage.

As PPACA is implemented, the number of IT, software and service jobs created could easily boom into the hundreds of thousands.

The Supreme Court gave a university founded by Jerry Falwell a new chance to argue in a lower court that President Obama’s health care law doesn’t give religious objectors a broad enough exemption.

Health care reform shifts how hospitals are reimbursed, taking into account patient satisfaction — which could well be mitigated by long emergency room waits — but will online reservations encourage patients to seek even more expensive ER care for non-emergencies?

HHS outlines various conditions and services insurers must cover, and rules to let companies expand employee wellness programs in new proposed regulations of the ACA posted Tuesday.