Healthcare reform

Encouraged by Rep. Paul Ryan’s focus on fiscal responsibility, many brokers and advisers remain satisfied a week after Gov. Mitt Romney announced his vice presidential pick, saying the seven-term Wisconsin congressman brings a fresh perspective to the presidential election.

Employee morale continues a slow but steady decline from 2008 levels, but the benefits enrollment season, vastly approaching, offers employers the chance to positively engage their employees, according to recent research from Unum.

As carriers ramp up to gain market share ahead of PPACA, Aetna acquires Coventary —increasing its overall share of government health plans to more than 30%, and nearly 42 million members nationwide.

Working Americans would receive a set of capped tax credits to cover their health care costs under a proposal by Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan, who believes excluding employer-provided coverage from federal taxes provides an unfair advantage.

The Obama administration this week will try to encourage reluctant U.S. states to move forward with health insurance exchanges amid fears that time is running out for states to act on a reform provision meant to extend coverage to millions of low-to-moderate income uninsured Americans.

By choosing U.S. Representative Paul Ryan as his running mate, Mitt Romney has added some verve to what had been a tedious presidential contest.

PPACA compliance is expected to hit employers with large part-time employee populations hardest, while some firms may need to think twice about low-paid workers qualifying for Medicaid.

Walmart Stores Inc, the largest private employer, endorsed a new Democratic proposal for controlling health care spending that would seek to keep the rising cost of medical services in line with wage growth.

With the cost of employer-provided health care benefits at large U.S. employers expected to rise another 7% next year, a new survey by the National Business Group on Health suggests employers are eyeing a variety of cost-control measures but also sharply boosting financial rewards to engage workers in healthy lifestyles.

Forty-seven million women will now have access to eight new prevention-related health care services under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced on Wednesday.

Want to disseminate summary of benefits and coverage materials as required by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on a mobile device?

There is no question that the Supreme Court upholding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in a 5-4 ruling has solidified, for now, the change in the country's health care market that took form when President Barack Obama signed the legislation into law in March 2010.

Are you pessimistic or are you optimistic about the Supreme Court's June decision to basically uphold all of PPACA? What is your plan in this sea of personal and corporate uncertainty?

In the movie armageddon, Earth faces destruction from a giant asteroid on a collision course with our planet before it is saved by the heroic sacrifice of the character played by Bruce Willis. As 2014 hurtles toward us, brokers across the country helplessly search for a savior from the cataclysmic PPACA disaster. "Help us, Supreme Court!" No? Then, "Help us, Republicans!" Maybe. Maybe not.

After the June 28 Supreme Court ruling that found the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be constitutional, many group medical producers felt that their business was over. I want to begin by saying that there has never been more opportunity than there is right now and that there will be for the foreseeable future.

Under health reform, state health care exchanges are slated to operate in 2014 - not much time to figure out the role a broker will play in the system. As we await more definitive information on what exactly constitutes a "navigator," one can look toward California, which is further along in setting up its exchange, as a potential model, says Neil Crosby, director of sales at Westlake Village, Calif.-based Warner Pacific Insurance Services.

With health reform there's a real opportunity for brokers and consultants to truly add value to their client services. It allows them to go above and beyond just the tactical nature of health plans and step up the strategic level of advice and guidance.

While President Barack Obama's open support of same-sex marriage hasn't caused any immediate change in federal law, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston ruled recently that part of the Defense of Marriage Act - which denies federal benefits to same-sex married couples - is unconstitutional and cannot be enforced. Noting that a "Supreme Court review of DOMA is highly likely," however, the 1st Circuit put the ruling on hold.

Last September, after the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act gave the Department of Health and Human Services authority to review premium rates in states that didn't have strong enough review programs, the agency began handing down decrees of "unreasonable" premium rates for insurers that proposed increasing rates by an average of 10% or more - meaning HHS can publically shame an insurer.

Employers who postponed action on health reform compliance will now be going full tilt to continue meeting the legislation's provisions that take effect this year and beyond. But even larger strategic questions loom over their roles as benefit sponsors.