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In its third year, the survey tracks the experiences of assistance programs signing people up for Affordable Care Act coverage during open enrollment and, for consumers who qualify, during special enrollment periods. This year, for the second time, the survey includes health insurance brokers who helped people apply for non-group coverage in an ACA marketplace.
A new Kaiser Family Foundation survey of insurance brokers and assistance programs examines the help they provided to consumers during the 2015 open enrollment period for Affordable Care Act coverage. The 2015 Survey of Health Insurance Marketplace Assister Programs and Brokers provides estimates of the number of people helped and the number and type of assister programs, while offering an in-depth look at assisters’ assessments of the enrollment process in the second year of the…
This nationwide survey analysis of Marketplace consumer assistance programs and brokers examines the nature of Marketplace assistance during the second open enrollment period for 2015 coverage, and offers unique insights into how Affordable Care Act (ACA) implementation is progressing, what is changing, and what challenges remain. Building upon our Survey of Health Insurance Marketplace Assister Programs (2014), the analysis compares Assister Program capacity and experiences from the first open enrollment period to the next, and…
A new issue brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation draws upon 40 in-person interviews conducted with a variety of stakeholders to assess the recent experiences of five states during the second year of coverage expansions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The interviews took place in three states -- Colorado, Kentucky and Washington -- that have State-based Marketplaces, and have adopted the Medicaid expansion, and in two states -- Utah and Virginia -- that rely…
This brief provides an on-the-ground view of ACA implementation after completion of the second open enrollment period. It is based on 40 in-person interviews conducted in five states that have made different implementation choices, including three states (Colorado, Kentucky, and Washington) that have developed a State-based Marketplace and adopted the Medicaid expansion and two states (Utah and Virginia) that rely on the Federally-facilitated Marketplace (FFM) for enrollment of individuals into qualified health plans (QHPs) and…
In this new policy insight, Kaiser Family Foundation Senior Fellow Karen Pollitz explores how high cost sharing in health insurance plans can contribute to an individual’s medical debt, and explains how greater transparency in plan details could help consumers avoid some financial pitfalls. Medical Debt Among Insured Consumers: The Role of Cost Sharing, Transparency, and Consumer Assistance also provides an update on provisions of the Affordable Care Act meant to increase health plan transparency and…
This policy insight examines medical debt among insured consumers, exploring how high cost sharing in health insurance plans can contribute, and explaining how greater transparency could help consumers avoid some financial pitfalls. It also provides an update on provisions of the Affordable Care Act meant to increase health plan transparency and bolster consumer assistance.
The Affordable Care Act's second annual open enrollment period starts Nov. 15 and runs until Feb. 15 -- a three-month window for Americans to shop for and purchase new health coverage, or change their plan through Healthcare.gov or their state-run insurance marketplace. This year's open enrollment season poses both new and recurring challenges for consumers: How are premiums for marketplace plans changing, and what do the changes mean for consumers? Why might current marketplace customers…
The Kaiser Family Foundation's Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator now includes zip code-specific data on 2015 health plans that are being sold through the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces during the open enrollment period beginning Saturday, Nov. 15. With the new tool, consumers around the nation can generate estimates of their health insurance premiums and government subsidies for 2015 plans that they purchase on their own through an ACA marketplace. The estimates are based on zip…
What is a health insurance premium? Can you describe what an annual health insurance deductible is? Take this 10-question quiz and learn how health insurance literate you are compared to a survey of Americans who were asked the same questions. The language of health insurance can be complex and confusing, particularly for many long-time uninsured people enrolling in the new insurance marketplaces set up under the Affordable Care Act.
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