Related Stories

TMA Asks AMA to Stay Out of Affordable Care Act Suit - 05/02/2023

Leaders of the Texas Medical Association on Tuesday publicly objected to the American Medical Association’s plans to get involved in a high-profile federal lawsuit — filed in Texas — challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.


Private Health Plans Must Cover Women’s Obesity Counseling, Other Preventive Services - 04/05/2022

Starting next year, private health plan policies that began after the Affordable Care Act (ACA) went into effect now will have to cover multiple types of prevention counseling for women, as well as contraceptive care, double electric breast pumps, and more.


Tell Your Uninsured Patients About HealthCare.gov Marketplace Enrollment - 11/19/2021

Enrollment in the federal health insurance marketplace on HealthCare.gov is now open, so it’s a good idea to let your uninsured patients know the option is there. And if they sign up by Dec. 15, their coverage will begin at the start of 2022.


Enrollment for Marketplace Plans Extended by One Month - 09/24/2021

The Biden-Harris administration has announced a 30-day extension of the upcoming open enrollment period for federal marketplace health plans available through HealthCare.gov, as well as a new monthly special enrollment period targeting people with low incomes.


Remind Uninsured Patients: ACA Enrollment Ends Aug. 15 - 07/21/2021

The Texas Medical Association encourages physicians to remind uninsured patients to take advantage of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Special Enrollment Period , which has been extended to Aug. 15 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.


CMS Finalizes Lower-Than-Proposed Cost-Sharing for Marketplace Plans; Enrollment Closes Aug. 15 - 06/17/2021

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has settled on a lower maximum for consumers’ out-of-pocket costs for federal health insurance marketplace plans in 2022 than what the agency proposed last November.


CMS Working to Improve Enrollment in ACA Marketplace Health Plans - 04/26/2021

More federal resources will be available next year to help uninsured Texans gain access to health coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said last week.


Open Enrollment 2020: Be Prepared for Coverage Changes - 11/13/2019

You’re probably already aware that open enrollment for commercial health insurance plans, including those on the Affordable Care Act Exchanges, opened Nov. 1 and will run through Dec. 15. While some patients won’t make any changes to their coverage, others will make significant changes, including enrolling with a completely different health plan.


ACA Ruling An Opportunity to Improve Health Care Access - 12/19/2018

The Texas Medical Association believes a Texas federal judge’s recent ruling that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional provides a bipartisan pathway to strengthen access to health care and provide coverage for the 4.5 million Texans without health care coverage.


Enrollment in Health Insurance Through the Marketplace After Implementation of the Affordable Care Act in Texas - 11/29/2018

The Journal — October 2016 Tex Med. 2016;112(10):e1. By Gordon Gong, MD, MS; Cassandra C. Huey, MS; Coleman Johnson, JD; Debra Curti, MEd, RHIA; and Billy U. Philips Jr, PhD, MPH Gordon Gong, MD, MS; Coleman Johnson, JD; Debra Curti, MEd, RHIA; and Billy U. Philips Jr, PhD, MPH, F. Marie Hall Institute for Rural and Community Health, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, Texas; and Cassandra C. Huey, MS, F. Marie Hall Institute for Rural and Community Health, and Department of Human Development and Family Studies, College of Human Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas.  Send correspondence to Billy U. Philips Jr, PhD, MPH, Executive Vice President and Director, The F. Marie Hall Institute for Rural and Community Health, Marie Hall Chair and Professor, Family and Community Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Suite 2B440, 3601 4th St, MS 6232, Lubbock, TX 79430-6232; e-mail: billy.philips@ttuhsc.edu.  Abstract One ...


When Patients Don’t Pay Their Premiums in the ACA Marketplace - 04/17/2018

Will physicians have to refund payments to an insurer if a patient who bought coverage from that insurer in the Affordable Care Act marketplace doesn’t pay his or her premiums?


Analysts: Ending ACA Cost-Sharing Payments to Affect Middle Class - 12/05/2017

The Trump administration made a splash in October by announcing an end to government subsidies that help insurers provide discounts to low-income enrollees in the Affordable Health Care (ACA) marketplace. However, analysts say it won't be low-income people who will feel a financial hit from President Donald Trump's decision on the cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments. Instead, people with higher incomes pick up the tab, analysts said.


The American Sickness: A Clinical Perspective - 11/17/2017

American medicine has done more to relieve suffering and forestall death than any other health system in history. Today, this system is facing a major challenge: steadily rising cost. To understand the state of health care in the United States, we must understand the historical perspective and how our modern system of reimbursement evolved.


Purchasing Insurance Across State Lines - 05/25/2017

The Affordable Care Act, signed by the President in 2010, actually provides for the sale of health insurance across state lines. States may form interstate compacts that would allow states in those compacts to sell qualified health plans to purchasers in other states in the compact.


Can I Pay My Patient’s ACA Premium to Ensure Coverage? - 03/30/2017

If I receive notice that patients who are covered by a health plan in the Affordable Care Act exchange are within the three-month grace period for paying their premiums, may I just pay their premiums to make sure they have coverage while I provide services?