Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
New York Takes 'Aggressive' Steps To Keep Obamacare Marketplaces Stable
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday issued emergency regulations aimed at deterring insurers from leaving the state鈥檚 Affordable Care Act exchange market as Congress weighs repealing former President Barack Obama鈥檚 signature health-insurance law. The ACA, often dubbed 鈥淥bamacare,鈥 set up marketplaces where consumers can buy coverage from different insurers and obtain federal subsidies to help with the cost. But the House of Representatives has passed legislation that would bring huge changes to the current exchange markets. The Senate is working on its own version of the bill. (Vilensky and Wilde Mathews, 6/5)
New York insurers have concerns about the plan, especially since the regulations to put it in place aren鈥檛 yet available, said Leslie Moran, senior vice president at the New York Health Plan Association. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not sure that they can legally just say we won鈥檛 contract, because there are already contracts in place,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e just have some questions and concerns about where they鈥檙e trying to go with that.鈥 (Tracer, 6/5)
In other Medicaid news聽鈥
Republican lawmakers and President Trump have criticized Obamacare, saying it took away people鈥檚 ability to choose their health plans and doctors, pointing to a recent exodus of insurers that could leave areas with a single insurer or none at all. Mr. Trump has insisted the markets are failing. Supporters of the Affordable Care Act hoped the law would spur more competition among insurers across the country. But so far, the law has not delivered on that promise, especially in states that never had much competition, but it didn鈥檛 create the lack of choice in those states, according to a Times analysis of insurer participation provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (Abelson and Park, 6/6)