Side-By-Side Comparison of ACA/GOP Plan, Aetna Posts Loss, Court Upholds Block on Anthem Bid for Cigna, Yellow Fever Vaccine, Shortage of Home Health Workers, Long-Term Birth Control, $1 Trillion Spending
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May 3, 2017 |
Volume 4, Number 7 |
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In This Issue
Side-By-Side Comparision of ACA and GOP Replacement Plan Court Upholds Block on Anthem Bid for Cigna Shortage of Home Health Workers Contact Us The James Group, LLC This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Memphis: 901-273-8600 Atlanta: 770-709-7210
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Los Angeles Times: A Side-By-Side Comparison Of Obamacare And The GOP’S Replacement Plan Here’s how the proposed Republican American Health Care Act—along with an amendment introduced this week—compares to the 2010 Affordable Care Act. (Levey and Kim, 4/26) Source: The Los Angeles Times Reuters: Insurer Aetna Posts Loss, Evaluates Obamacare Exposure Aetna Inc reported a quarterly net loss on Tuesday related to costs from its failed acquisition of Humana Inc and said it will cut exposure to money-losing Obamacare coverage in 2018. Like other U.S.-based health insurers including Anthem Inc and Molina Healthcare Corp, Aetna faces deadlines to file 2018 plans but is uncertain about components of premium rates such as the continuation of government subsidies and the mandate for Americans to have insurance. (5/2) Source: Reuters The Associated Press: Appeals Court Upholds Decision To Block Anthem Bid For Cigna A federal appeals court on Friday left in place a decision blocking Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurer Anthem’s bid to buy rival Cigna, saying that a bigger company is not better for consumers. The 2-1 decision upholds a federal judge’s ruling in February that said the proposed $48 billion acquisition would further reduce competition in the already concentrated health insurance market. Anthem argued the combination would save $2.4 billion in medical costs and lead to lower consumer premiums. But the Justice Department said Anthem had no real plan to reach those savings. (Hananel and Murphy, 4/28) Source: The Associated Press NPR: U.S. Supply Of Yellow Fever Vaccine Will Run Out By Midsummer Come July, the yellow fever vaccine could be tough to find. So, if you're traveling this summer to a place with the disease, you probably want to schedule a trip to a clinic sooner rather than later, the Centers for Diseases for Control and Prevention tells NPR. "Take heed of our warning: Plan ahead," says CDC spokesperson Tom Skinner. "It may be difficult to get this vaccine. And if you can't get it, then you should postpone your trip." (Doucleff, 4/28) Source: NPR Kaiser Health News: Severe Shortage Of Home Health Workers Robs Thousands Of Proper Care Judith Graham reports: "Acute shortages of home health aides and nursing assistants are cropping up across the country, threatening care for people with serious disabilities and vulnerable older adults.In Minnesota and Wisconsin, nursing homes have denied admission to thousands of patients over the past year because they lack essential staff, according to local long-term care associations." (Graham, 4/26) Source: Kaiser Health News The Washington Post: Long-Term Birth Control Is The Most Reliable. So Why Do So Few Young Women Use It? For many women this college graduation season, the primary reason to see a doctor soon after graduation may be to get birth control. They may want to stick with whatever they’ve been using, whether that’s the pill or the patch or the vaginal ring. Or they may want to consider a broad menu of options that vary with regard to ease of use, side effects and duration of protection. (Adams, 4/24) Source: The Washington Post The Associated Press: Lawmakers Settle On Hard-Fought $1 Trillion Spending Bill Congressional Republicans and Democrats have reached agreement on a huge $1 trillion-plus spending bill that would fund most government operations through September but denies President Donald Trump money for a border wall and rejects his proposed cuts to popular domestic programs. Aides to lawmakers involved in the talks disclosed the agreement Sunday night after weeks of negotiations. The bill was made public in the pre-dawn hours Monday. ... The measure funds the remainder of the 2017 budget year, through Sept. 30, rejecting cuts to popular domestic programs targeted by Trump such as medical research and infrastructure grants. (5/1) Source: The Associated Press
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