Sara Collins
@SaraCollins_
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Sara R. Collins, Ph.D., is senior scholar and vice president for Health Care Coverage and Access at the Commonwealth Fund
Joined March 2011
If Expanded Federal Premium Tax Credits Expire, State Affordability Programs Won’t Be Enough to Stem Widespread Coverage Losses
commonwealthfund.org
States have a part to play in helping people access and use health insurance, but affordable individual market coverage requires an ongoing federal commitment.
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Pretty striking stuff throughout this entire report. Quickly overlayed the % of a state in poverty and the % of a state that is not white on top of exhibit 1 20/26 of these below-avg states either have an above-avg poverty rate, more people of color than white people, or both
State decisions have left nearly 800,000 women uninsured, while the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade has resulted in restricted access to essential reproductive care. View the full picture of women’s health in the U.S. in this national scorecard.
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State decisions have left nearly 800,000 women uninsured, while the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade has resulted in restricted access to essential reproductive care. View the full picture of women’s health in the U.S. in this national scorecard.
commonwealthfund.org
This scorecard assesses how well the health system works for women, measuring performance in outcomes, quality, prevention, coverage, access, and affordability.
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The fate of free preventive care for 170+ million Americans hangs in the balance of a Braidwood Management v. Becerra decision. Whatever the 2024 outcome, a Supreme Court appeal is likely.
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New research paints a stark picture: even with health insurance, many Americans struggle to access care due to health care costs. Policymakers must address the full spectrum of health care expenses to ensure affordability for all.
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Rising health care costs are leaving many without adequate protection from medical debt, even with insurance coverage. Affording necessary health care should not be a struggle for working-age adults.
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If these new survey data from @commonwealthfnd don't wake up policymakers to the health care affordability crisis, I don't know what will. https://t.co/bP7ltMEgc4 thread 1/5
commonwealthfund.org
This survey shows that many Americans have inadequate coverage that’s led to delayed or forgone care, significant medical debt, and worsening health problems.
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Terrific points from Matthew Buettgens of @urbaninstitute and @commonwealthfnd - extending 12-month eligibility to adults = 267K fewer uninsured people in an average month -- -- it also means less red tape for states, consumers, and providers.
If all states were to ensure 12 months of continuous Medicaid eligibility for adults, more people would be enrolled in the Medicaid program, fewer would be uninsured, and households and employers would each save $1 billion a year in health spending.
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This piece’s fatalism about the potential to save money in health care strikes me as off-base—and as an especially odd lesson to take from a look back at the Affordable Care Act.
.@AsymmetricInfo looks at why the U.S. never saves money on health care
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Letter from the @HHSGov Secretary to health plans reminding them of their legal obligation to cover COVID-19 vaccines at no cost upon FDA approval or authorization (9/11/23) even if the problems consumers are encountering are not in their control. https://t.co/cCA3BfOqlC
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For ACA preventive services to be covered without cost-sharing, you generally have to go to an in-network provider. But if your health plan does not have an in-network provider who can provide the service, insurers are supposed to cover out-of-network care
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Thanks to @BrooksLaSureCMS and @SecBecerra for their leadership and transparency around identifying this problem and fixing it.
Breaking: @CMSGov just released the list of states that are conducting ex parte Medicaid renewals wrong by using a household standard that is causing hundreds of thousands of kids to lose coverage inappropriately. 30 states inc. DC have the issue. https://t.co/JZ1wDKfYc6
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Preventing medical debt from ending up on people's credit reports is a big step forward in addressing the medical debt crisis currently plaguing millions of Americans.
Biden Administration to Ban Medical Debt From Americans’ Credit Scores https://t.co/lnSnZU5rXy via @kffhealthnews
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Half a million children, others being reinstated after removal from Medicaid
washingtonpost.com
Federal officials halted in more than half the states much of the process of evaluating who remains eligible for the safety-net health insurance.
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A🧵on #COVID19 insurance coverage requirements for adults. In short: 1) Any COVID-19 vaccine w/FDA approval or authorization must be covered immediately 2) If out of network, you may face cost-sharing, UNLESS your plan’s network doesn't have it; then they must cover at no cost
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Excellent discussion with @aditipsen and @alanrweil on how little we understand about the dynamics of the employer insurance market, where more than half the population gets their coverage.
Also out today: related podcast! Thanks @alanrweil for the conversation (and great podcast title!).
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Great to have new work on prices in self-insured plans out in @Health_Affairs. Using @HealthCostInst data, we find that employers aren't negotiating lower prices for employees in self-insured plans despite incentives to do so.
healthaffairs.org
Almost two-thirds of the 153 million nonelderly people in the United States who have health insurance through their employer are in self-insured plans. In contrast to fully insured plans, employers...
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See the latest from @JalisaHealth and me for @commonwealthfnd about how states are confronting decades of racism in the insurance industry to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion within and by the broker community. https://t.co/MZuFBgmZzy
commonwealthfund.org
State-based health insurance marketplaces are fostering the development of more brokers of color to address issues of inequity in the insurance industry.
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Health insurance brokers play a major role in getting people covered, yet they neither come from nor serve communities of color at representative rates, @JalisaHealth @CMonahan10 report on what some state marketplaces are doing about it
commonwealthfund.org
State-based health insurance marketplaces are fostering the development of more brokers of color to address issues of inequity in the insurance industry.
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New @commonwealthfnd issue brief reveals variation in how state-based marketplaces collect consumer language data, provide multilingual services at call centers, translate materials, and strategize outreach efforts. @GtownCHIR
https://t.co/b5gwgTQiTk
@CMonahan10 @JalisaHealth
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