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Category Archives: Health Care

Health care registration deadline extended for some

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WASHINGTON --The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said it will extend Sunday's registration deadline for anyone who recently started but did not complete registration on the federally-administered health care marketplace.

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"For those consumers who were unable to complete their enrollment because of longer than normal wait times at the call center in the last three days or because of a technical issue such as being unable to submit an application because their income could not be verified, we will provide them with a time-limited special enrollment period," HHS spokesman Aaron Albright said in an emailed statement.

The extended enrollment period - from Feb. 16-22 - will give consumers who encountered delays this weekend an extra week to complete registration on Healthcare.gov or over the phone. Health care coverage for those users would kick in Mar. 1.

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High call volume and a glitch in the software used to verify users' income were blamed for the slowdown, the Associated Press reported.

The extension does not apply to new applicants - only to those who were "in line" on February 13-15.

ACAsignups.net, which tracks Obamacare enrollment numbers, reported that in addition to the 37 states participating in the federal exchange, many states that run their own exchanges have extended their registration periods, including California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, among others. Last week, HHS reported that 10.6 million people had either submitted a new application or renewed their 2014 plan. The Obama Administration hoped to see 9.1 million signed up for health care by the end of 2015. While it appears to have hit that number, there is some attrition expected.

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Health care registration deadline extended for some

Thousands of retired Texas teachers could face higher health care costs

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AUSTIN More than 200,000 retired educators and their dependents in Texas might have to pay higher premiums for health care.

Texas legislators are trying to shore up a nearly insolvent health care plan for the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

System officials told a Texas Senate panel last Wednesday that the plan for retired public education employees could become insolvent during fiscal 2016 and faces a $768 million shortfall by the end of fiscal 2017 if no new money is received.

Its not sustainable, Teacher Retirement System Executive Director Brian Guthrie told the panel.

Health care costs have outpaced growth in the payroll of active public educators, a sum on which plan contributions are based. Texas currently has to give an amount equal to 1 percent of payroll, or $495 million, in 2014 and 2015.

Initial budget proposals from the House and Senate include $562 million to cover the states statutory obligation.

The plan is funded primarily by contributions from the state, active teachers and school districts, plus retiree premiums.

Both two-year spending plans include contingency clauses for the Teacher Retirement System Board of Trustees to not increase retiree health insurance premiums. Retirement system officials want Texas to pay the shortfall, while either cutting benefits or upping contributions from the state, active public educators and school districts.

Retirees that served our schoolchildren for their careers need quality health care thats affordable for their fixed incomes, said Louis Malfaro, president of the Texas chapter of the American Federation of Teachers.

The budget board staff has recommended divvying up the projected shortfall, with the state paying 50 percent, retirees paying 25 percent, and active teachers and school districts splitting the rest.

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Thousands of retired Texas teachers could face higher health care costs

Health Care Enrollment: Obamacare Website Glitches Prompt Some States To Extend Deadlines

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Sunday's deadline to sign up for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, passed as many states held last-minute sign-up campaigns and some even extended their deadlines after a technical glitch Saturday affected some people's ability to sign up. States and local areas reported holding call-a-thons and enrollment events to encourage people to buy health insurance, efforts that were thwarted in part by technical glitches on the federal website, HealthCare.gov, as well as some sites for state-run exchanges.

In the Northeast, a winter storm over the weekend also hindered sign-ups at the last minute. Rhode Island, which runs its own marketplace, extended its deadline, giving people until Feb. 23 to sign up for a plan. Last week, California's exchange, Covered California, said it would give those who started applications by the national deadline of Feb. 15 until Feb. 20 to complete them.

Local and federal government officials encouraged people to sign up for health insurancelast week, reminding them that if they didn't sign up by Sunday's deadline, they would notlikely be able to do so again until October. But technical glitchesfrustratedsome who tried to sign up on Saturday. HealthCare.gov had problems with the income verification portion of the sign-up process, and officials spent about six hours working on the issue before it was fixed. Some state exchanges reported similar issues. Katie Hill, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) press secretary, explained the problem as being due to "intermittent issues with external verification sources."

New York state gave New Yorkers who signed up but did not complete the application for health insurance by Feb. 15 two extra weeks to finish enrolling in a plan. By February 4, in New York, more than 2 million had signed up for insurance during the 2015 open enrollment period, which began November 15, 2014, and ended on Sunday. Of those, 1.4 million had enrolled in Medicaid.

On Monday, the HealthCare.gov blogsuggested that extensions may still be possible after the end of the open enrollment period for those who either tried to enroll before Sunday but could not due to website glitches or call-center delays, or for those who had sent paper applications by mail by the Feb. 15 deadline but had not completed the enrollment process. "We know many of you worked hard to enroll in a plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace," the site said. "Despite your best efforts, you may not have been able to complete your application and select a plan."

According to acasignups.net, a site that tracks Affordable Care Act enrollment numbers, nearly 10.5 million were confirmed to have enrolled in a health care plan as of Saturday, and 11.3 million were estimated to have signed up. In the last few days before the Feb. 15 deadline, sign-up numbers drastically increased. The DHHS expected 9.1 million to sign up during the 2015 open enrollment period.

DHHS said it had 80,000 concurrent visitors to the HealthCare.gov website at 8:30 p.m. Sunday, the highest number since Dec. 15. It also reported that the HealthCare.gov call center, which can be used to start applications forhealth care coverage as well as compare plans or ask questions, fielded over 250,000 calls on Sunday. The deadline for signing up via the federal marketplace was 2:59 a.m. Eastern Time Monday, although some state-run exchanges posted different deadlines.

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Health Care Enrollment: Obamacare Website Glitches Prompt Some States To Extend Deadlines

@MD_Pinto chats w/ #SPSM about her #virtual #mentalhealth work, 9pm CST – Video

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@MD_Pinto chats w/ #SPSM about her #virtual #mentalhealth work, 9pm CST
DocForeman chats with Dr. Melissa Pinto about her ground-breaking work, using virtual technology to help teens with depression. http://spsmchat.com/2015/02/15/dr-melissa-pinto-md_pinto-chats-with.

By: April Foreman

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@MD_Pinto chats w/ #SPSM about her #virtual #mentalhealth work, 9pm CST - Video

Cornell students erupt over health care fee | Fox News

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Published February 14, 2015

Cornell president David Skorton had a "testy" exchange with students who stormed his office in protest of health care opt-out fees by the school.

Students at vaunted Cornell University are plenty smart enough to know they should not have to pay a penalty for not buying the school's health insurance if they already have coverage, but that's exactly what a new policy at the Ivy League school requires.

The $350 "health fee" for opting out of the schools insurance plan was announced in a memo school President David Skorton posted on Cornells website last week, according to higher education blog The College Fix. But it is just setting in with the student body, and many attending the Ithaca, N.Y., school are not pleased. Under the Affordable Care Act, students must have insurance, but making those already covered pay an extra fee to skip the school's plan is not sitting well.

Effective next academic year, 2015-16, we will be introducing a student health fee for those not enrolled in the Cornell Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP), read the memo. As a physician, parent and president, I am proud of our university's long history of providing quality medical, mental health, education and prevention services on campus. These essential services play a critical role in student well-being and, therefore, success. Yet funding these services and creating access to them for all students has been a growing fiscal challenge, and a personal concern of mine.

The announcement sent students into a fervor, leading to a series of rallies on campus and hashtag activism, with #FightTheFee trending on the social media website.

Students who do not opt in to the $2,352 per year plan must pay the $350 fee, which most likely wont be covered by financial aid, according to campus newspaper The Cornell Review. The newspaper also said the university plan is run through Aetna, whose CEO, Mark Bertolini, is a Cornell MBA grad. In addition the fee, students will have to pay a $10 co-pay fee when visiting the schools health center.

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Cornell students erupt over health care fee | Fox News

Volunteers help with health care signups at ACA deadline

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On the last day to get health insurance through the Affordable Care Act before emergency room fees would kick in, Orange and Osceola residents had the opportunity to sign up at two events organized by Working America and Rep. Alan Grayson (D-9).

"We have made a very substantial effort to inform the community about the availability of this health care," Grayson said Sunday. While he said Republicans in congress have made it difficult for the Obama administration to advertise the ACA, "we've made 70,000 automated calls and handed out 20,000 flyers. We're trying to inform people of something of extreme value to them."

The event in Kissimmee was held at the Robert Gueuvara Community Center, while the Orlando event was at Ana G. Mendez University on Semoran Boulevard.

"People of course are very eager to make sure to get their questions answered before the deadline today," said Maribeth Healey, project director for Working America, the community affiliate of the AFL-CIO. "We're helping to provide that info to them."

Sunday was the last day people could sign up for coverage in order to be insured by March 1, when emergency room fees of $320 would be charged to those without insurance. People could still sign up after Sunday, but would not get insured until April 1.

Even those who began the process Sunday would be credited as meeting the deadline, said Health Insurance Store spokesman Alan Bird.

In Florida, 20 percent of residents have no health insurance, Grayson said, with that number reaching 40 percent in the Hispanic community.

"We want to make sure as many Floridians as possible get the right plan for their families," Healey said.

Visitors could come in and answer questions about family size and income, to determine whether they make enough in income $11,600 to qualify for a tax credit. Many who don't qualify but also don't have incomes below $10,000 to qualify for Medicaid fall into what they called the "gap."

"Almost a million Floridians fall into the gap," said Working America volunteer Mary Jo Pezzi. "They may not be able to get them (insurance), but we can give them advice and at least get their information."

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Volunteers help with health care signups at ACA deadline

Health-care reform affects taxes

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Published: Sunday, 2/15/2015 - Updated: 15 seconds ago

BY JON CHAVEZ BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Tax-filing season is upon us again, and this year brings few changes from last year.

But one of those few changes is a huge issue that will affect taxpayers for years to come.

Political rhetoric and Congressional gamesmanship aside, the Affordable Care Act frequently called Obamacare is a reality and the law of the land.

And this tax season it is making its first appearance on every citizens tax form, with implications for many.

The biggest thing this year is the impact of the Affordable Care Act. This year were having to verify health insurance on all of our clients or they face the penalties, said Jeff Ogg of Jeffrey P. Ogg CPA Ltd. tax service in Toledo.

The ACA requires all taxpayers to do one of three things:

Have qualifying health insurance coverage for every month of the year.

Have an exemption from the requirement to have health coverage; or

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Health-care reform affects taxes

Cal MediConnect Explained: Enrollment Options and Resources with Jane Ogle – Video

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Cal MediConnect Explained: Enrollment Options and Resources with Jane Ogle
Join Jane Ogle, former Deputy Director of Health Care Delivery Services at California #39;s Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), as she explains the enrollment process, options, and resources...

By: California #39;s Coordinated Care Initiative

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Cal MediConnect Explained: Enrollment Options and Resources with Jane Ogle - Video

Dr. Scott Conard’s Health and Wellness Message to Sarasota County Employees – Video

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Dr. Scott Conard #39;s Health and Wellness Message to Sarasota County Employees
Dr. Scott Conard is a health and wellness consultant for Sarasota County. In his role Dr. Conard provides business medical direction to improve the employee #39;s experience, to improve quality,...

By: Access Sarasota

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Dr. Scott Conard's Health and Wellness Message to Sarasota County Employees - Video

Health-care overhaul to affect returns

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Published: Sunday, 2/15/2015

BY JON CHAVEZ BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Tax-filing season is upon us again, and this year brings few changes from last year.

But one of those few changes is a huge issue that will affect taxpayers for years to come.

Political rhetoric and Congressional gamesmanship aside, the Affordable Care Act frequently called Obamacare is a reality and the law of the land.

And this tax season it is making its first appearance on every citizens tax form, with implications for many.

The biggest thing this year is the impact of the Affordable Care Act. This year were having to verify health insurance on all of our clients or they face the penalties, said Jeff Ogg of Jeffrey P. Ogg CPA Ltd. tax service in Toledo.

The ACA requires all taxpayers to do one of three things:

Have qualifying health insurance coverage for every month of the year.

Have an exemption from the requirement to have health coverage; or

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Health-care overhaul to affect returns

KADLEC HEALTHY AGES – The Effects of Aging on Joints, Tendon & Bone Jan 2015 – Video

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KADLEC HEALTHY AGES - The Effects of Aging on Joints, Tendon Bone Jan 2015
Kadlec Healthy Ages is a FREE membership program expressing Kadlec Regional Medical Center #39;s commitment to the health care needs and concerns of the 50+ population. This program #39;s speaker:...

By: charterchannel3

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KADLEC HEALTHY AGES - The Effects of Aging on Joints, Tendon & Bone Jan 2015 - Video

Viral Video: Obama promoting health care mission goes viral on social media – Video

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Viral Video: Obama promoting health care mission goes viral on social media
Viral Video: Obama promoting health care mission goes viral on social mediaFor latest breaking news, other top stories log on to: http://www.abplive.in http://www.youtube.com/abpnewsTV.

By: ABP NEWS

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Viral Video: Obama promoting health care mission goes viral on social media - Video

Will the White House hit their health care enrollment goal?

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JUDY WOODRUFF: Sunday marks the deadline for enrolling in the state and federal health exchanges this year. The push is on once again to get people to sign up.

There are signs that perhaps more than 10 million will enroll, fewer than initially expected, but better than a revised estimate showed.

To fill us in on the latest, were joined again by Mary Agnes Carey Of Kaiser Health News and Susan Dentzer. Shes a health analyst for the NewsHour.

And its good to see you both again.

(CROSSTALK)

MARY AGNES CAREY, Kaiser Health News: Great to be back.

SUSAN DENTZER: Thank you.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Time to talk health care.

So, Mary Agnes Carey, just overall, how has the process been going the second year?

MARY AGNES CAREY: Well, the Web site is a lot better. It actually works, and thats better for everyone trying to enroll.

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Will the White House hit their health care enrollment goal?


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