AHL’s TOP STORY: White House Issues Veto Warning on House GOP Bill To Redirect Funding To Boost Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan

The White House on Tuesday, in a Statement of Administration Policy, warned that President Obama would veto a House Republican bill (HR 1549) that would shift funds under the Affordable Care Act to sustain the ACA’s temporary high-risk insurance pool program through the end of the year if it reaches his desk, AP/U-T San Diego reports.

POLL: Should Cancer Centers Be Granted Exemption From Sequester Cuts?

The mandated spending cuts under sequestration are having the unintended result of reducing the number of Medicare patients that can be treated at cancer clinics, according to a report by the Washington Post‘s “Wonkblog.”

AHL’s TOP STORY: ACA’s Potential Impact on Costs, Hiring Top Concerns Among Small Business Executives, Survey Finds

The Affordable Care Act and its potential effect on employee coverage costs and hiring trends has overtaken the general uncertainty about the U.S. economy as the top concern among a vast majority of U.S. small businesses, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s latest small-business survey, The Hill‘s “On The Money” reports (Needham, “On The Money,” The Hill, 4/4).

AHL’s TOP STORY: Medical Claims Costs Expected To Increase an Average of 32% Nationwide, Actuaries Report Finds

Health insurers likely will have to pay an average of 32% more for medical claims under the Affordable Care Act, which potentially could result in higher insurance premiums for some consumers, according to a study released yesterday by the Society of Actuaries, AP/U-T San Diego reports.

For the report, researchers analyzed a model of the effects of the ACA’s insurance expansion in the individual market in each state. According to AP/U-T San Diego, the report did not attempt to estimate the effects on medical claims for those with employer-sponsored health plans, mainly because the ACA’s insurance expansion is focused on individuals who do not have insurance through their employers.

BLOGGER VS. BLOGGER: Ryan’s Budget Proposal — Ambitious or Bogus?

Bloggers are taking aim at House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan’s fiscal year 2014 budget proposal, which was released last Tuesday.

AHL’s TOP STORY: House Committee Debates Effect of ACA’s Age-Rating Provision

Republican and Democratic members of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health on Friday debated whether certain provisions in the Affordable Care Act would significantly increase health insurance premiums, particularly for young adults in the individual and small-group markets, The Hill‘s “Healthwatch” reports (Viebeck, “Healthwatch,” The Hill, 3/15).

BACK AND FORTH: ACA, Physician Shortage Renews Debate on Midlevel Providers’ Scope of Practice

States are seeking to define the extent of health care services a growing group of midlevel health professionals — including physician assistants and nurse practitioners — can provide, as demand for their skills rise in the face of a potential physician shortage under the Affordable Care Act, the Los Angeles Times reports.

AHL’s TOP STORY: Obama Administration Releases More Than 700 Pages of Affordable Care Act Regulations

The Obama administration on Friday released more than 700 pages of new regulations to implement various aspects of the Affordable Care Act, The Hill‘s “RegWatch” reports. Three of the four sets of rules have been finalized and take effect on May 11. All four sets are scheduled to be published sometime in the middle of this month.

They cover the ACA’s health insurance exchanges and new standards and reforms to the insurance market, such as encouraging cost-sharing, stabilizing health insurance premiums and blocking insurers from denying coverage, “RegWatch” reports (Wilson, “RegWatch,” The Hill, 3/1).

Details of Regulations

One of the three finalized sets of rules requires insurers to report data on all rate increases, rather than just rate increases of 10% or more. The requirement will apply to health plans marketed to individuals, families and small businesses, the New York Times reports. Federal officials said the new rule is needed to provide additional data to monitor trends in premiums as the ACA takes effect.

In addition, the new rules include a requirement that insurers pool the claim costs of all their customers when setting rates in the individual market in a state. Similarly, insurers must consider the claim histories of all of their small-business customers when setting those rates. The requirement aims to ensure that premiums for certain products reflect the combined experience of all products in the market (Pear, New York Times, 3/3).

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AHL’s TOP STORY: HHS Releases Set of Final Rules for Affordable Care Act Provisions

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Friday released the final rules on how insurers can implement individual and group health insurance policies under the Affordable Care Act, The Hill‘s “Healthwatch“ reports (Baker [1], “Healthwatch,” The Hill, 2/22). The rules — which govern how insurers can vary premiums, require preventive coverage in catastrophic coverage plans and mandate statewide, high-risk pools — regulate insurance plans providing coverage beginning in 2014.

AHL’s TOP STORY: Obama Administration Begins ‘Full-Throttle’ ACA Marketing Effort

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced yesterday that she and other senior HHS officials will tour the country to promote the Affordable Care Act, as health insurance exchanges prepare to open enrollment on Oct. 1 and governors weigh the costs of participating in the Medicaid expansion, CQ HealthBeat reports (Norman, CQ HealthBeat, 1/15).