Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 19, 2012. Today Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced awards of more than $80 million to 197 school-based health center programs across the country, made possible by the Affordable Care Act.  This funding will allow school-based health centers to serve an additional 384,000 students, and[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 17, 2012. By Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services Starting in 2014, consumers and small businesses in every state will have access to quality, affordable health insurance ­­– known as qualified health plans – offered through an Exchange – a marketplace where consumers can choose a[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 14, 2012.  Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that three states have made significant progress in setting up their own affordable health insurance marketplaces, or Exchanges.   The District of Columbia, Kentucky, and New York are conditionally approved to operate a State-based Exchange, which means[Read More…]

Additional value possible with plan options during Open Enrollment Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 3, 2012. As the final week of Medicare Open Enrollment approaches, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that savings on prescription drugs made possible by the Affordable Care Act reached $5.1 billion.  More than 5.8 million[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 20, 2012. The Obama administration moved forward today to implement provisions in the health care law that would make it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions. The provisions of the Affordable Care Act also would make it easier for consumers to compare health[Read More…]

One of the biggest issues that both candidates in the US presidential election differ on is that of healthcare. Barack Obama’s healthcare reform has been one of the most polarizing topics during the US election campaign, and Mitt Romney has vowed to repeal what has been termed "Obamacare" if he[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 1, 2012.  Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the final rule implementing the part of the health care law that delivers higher payments to primary care physicians serving Medicaid beneficiaries.  The new rule raises rates to ensure doctors are paid the same for treating[Read More…]

Over 20.7 million with Medicare also receive free preventive services in the first nine months of 2012   Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 25, 2012.  As a result of the Affordable Care Act, 5.6 million seniors and people with disabilities have saved $4.8 billion on prescription drugs since the law was enacted, Health and[Read More…]

CHICAGO–(ENEWSPF)–October 12, 2012..Contrary to what Congressman Ryan said last night during the Vice Presidential debate, President Obama was able to expand women’s access to contraception while protecting religious liberty by exempting churches and religiously-affiliated organizations from paying for contraceptive coverage. Mitt Romney and Congressman Ryan, on the other hand, would[Read More…]

People with Medicare will have access to 127 four- or five-star Medicare Advantage plans. Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–October 12, 2012.  Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that people with Medicare have more high-quality choices and the performance of Medicare Advantage plans is improving. HHS also released the 2013[Read More…]