Medigap Premiums Leap, and Consumers Have Few Alternatives
Millions of people rely on the supplemental insurance to offset the deductibles, copayments, and other costs faced by enrollees in the traditional Medicare program.
Premiums
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How To Make a High-Deductible Health Plan Work for You
Lower premiums often mean higher costs when you get sick and need care. Among the ways to plan ahead and soften the financial hit: health savings accounts, which act like a medical piggy bank.
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In the Affordability Alphabet Soup of the ACA and EHBs, a Link to Higher Premiums Isnt Clear-Cut
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Many ACA Customers Are Paying Higher Premiums. Most Blame Trump and Republicans, Poll Finds.
A KFF poll offers insights into peoples insurance coverage decisions and how those choices could play into their vote in Novembers midterm elections.
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Evidence Shows ACAs Mandated Benefits Alone Dont Drive Up Costs. The Debate Continues.
The Affordable Care Act put in place a package of benefits that health insurance plans must cover. Critics contend this mandate has jacked up premiums. Evidence supporting that claim is mixed.
By Julie Appleby and Sarah Boden -
Even Patients Are Shocked by the Prices Their Insurers Will Pay And It Costs All of Us
Health care prices are on the rise, and patients are flummoxed that even insurance companies arent doing more to control costs.
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Kind of Morbid: Health Premiums Threaten Their Nest Egg. A Terminal Diagnosis May Spare It.
Chaz and Jean Franklin were facing a sevenfold increase in their health premium payments with the expiration of enhanced federal subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans at the end of 2025. Then Jean received a crushing diagnosis that will claim her life but save the couple money.
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Nevada Debuts Public Option Amid Tumultuous Federal Changes to Health Care
The state recently became the third to offer a public option health plan through its Affordable Care Act marketplace. But researchers said its unlikely to fill the gaps left by sweeping changes at the federal level.
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Obamacare Sign-Ups Drop, but the Extent Wont Be Clear for Months
Experts say Affordable Care Act sign-up data wont be clear until people who were enrolled have paid or haven't paid their new, often much higher, premiums.
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As Insurance Prices Rise, Families Puzzle Over Options
Millions of middle-class Americans who have Affordable Care Act marketplace plans are facing soaring premium payments in 2026. Some people are contemplating big life changes to deal with new rates that kicked in on Jan. 1.
By Lynn Arditi How To Pick Health Insurance In the Worst Year Ever
Season 14, Episode 5As millions face skyrocketing health insurance premiums, the An Arm and a Leg team navigates their own limited options.
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Health Care Consolidation and Rising Costs Happen, but Obamacare Is Not the Key Culprit
The debate over expiring Affordable Care Act tax credits has given Republicans room to resurface old criticisms such as blaming the ACA for mergers and consolidation within the health care industry.
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Out-of-Pocket Pain From High-Deductible Plans Means Skimping on Care
High-deductible health insurance plans are increasingly common, and many more enrollees will likely need to choose such plans for the coming year. For those with chronic conditions like diabetes, the gamble can mean compromised care and long-term consequences.
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Health Savings Accounts, Backed by GOP, Cover Fancy Saunas but Not Insurance Premiums
Health savings accounts can be used to cover medical expenses, tax-free. But while wealthier Americans are using them to pay for gym equipment, cedar ice baths, and hemlock saunas, poorer Americans cant use them to pay their skyrocketing health insurance premiums.
By Amanda Seitz The GOP Still Can’t Agree on a Health Plan
Episode 425Senate Democrats were promised a vote by mid-December on extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, but Republicans still cant decide whether they want to put forward their own alternative or what that might include. Meanwhile, the CDC and FDA are roiled by debates over vaccines. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Aneri Pattani about her project tracking opioid settlement payments.
The Government Is Open
Episode 422The record-long federal shutdown is over after a small group of Democrats agreed to a deal with most Republicans that funds the government through January but, notably, does not extend more generous Affordable Care Act tax credits. Plus, new details are emerging about how the Trump administration is using the Medicaid program to advance its policy goals. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Appleby, who wrote the latest Bill of the Month feature.
The State of the Affordable Care Act
Episode 421Nov. 1 marked the start of open enrollment for 2026 health plans bought from Affordable Care Act marketplaces in most states. But this sign-up season is like no other in the health laws 15-year history. It remains unclear, even at this late date, whether expanded tax credits launched during the pandemic in 2021 will be continued or allowed to expire, exposing millions of Americans to much higher out-of-pocket costs. In this special episode of What the Health? from 窪蹋勛圖厙 News and WAMU, host Julie Rovner interviews KFF vice president Cynthia Cox about the past, present, and possible future of the health law and how those who purchase ACA coverage should proceed during this time of uncertainty.
This Health Economist Wants Your Medical Bills
Season 14, Episode 3A longtime health economist sets her sights on lowering Americans insurance premiums.
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Congressional Stalemate Creates Chaos for Obamacare Shoppers
This year, Affordable Care Act marketplace consumers will need to be more informed than ever to navigate their health coverage choices.
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Deal or No Deal? States Prepare for Congress To Act at the Last Minute on Obamacare
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By Amanda Seitz