NEW NDNRC MEDICAID VIDEO AVAILABLE
Please note that for the summer the NDNRC Update is being released on a biweekly basis.
Earlier this month, we released three videos which highlight the benefits that Medicaid has had for real individuals. This week, we have released a new story from Marty and how Medicaid has helped her son. To watch Marty’s story, click here. The NDNRC Medicaid story videos are part of an effort to increase outreach for Medicaid enrollment. To view the prior stories we posted from three families who have benefited from Medicaid coverage, check out the videos from Cyndi, Sally and Carol. These four videos are all available on our YouTube channel which can be found here.
Last week, CMS released a new report which looks at overall spending in the marketplace and what that means for the risk pools. To find out about some of the key findings in the report or to download a copy, check out our news item by clicking here. To read more about this report from CMS, you can check out the blog from Health Affairs here.
Speaking of Health Affairs, they have released two new reports which address issues which have a definite effect on people with disabilities’ access to care – network adequacy and prescription drug costs. Narrow networks have been a way that insurance companies have tried to control costs, but there are some regulations attempting to define what is required for an adequate network of providers. To read the Health Affairs policy brief on these regulation efforts, click here.
Health Affairs has also published an article this week which demonstrates that individuals who have gained coverage through Medicaid expansion or private insurance now have an increased access to and use of prescription drugs but have actually experienced lower out-of-pocket costs. To read this article, click here.
If you’re looking for a tool to help with all the nuances that relate to Special Enrollment Periods, be sure to check out the chart prepared by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities entitled the “Guide to Special Enrollment Periods.” To access the chart, click here. This resource can also be found on our Resources & Links page under “Enrollment Resources – Overview.”
If you assist consumers with appeals, be sure to check out the Consumer Complaint Toolkit from Community Catalyst. The toolkit includes a step-by-step guide for filing a complaint, how to work with your state’s Department of Insurance or Attorney General’s Office, and how to use a complaint to address the lack of parity for mental health or substance use disorder coverage in a health plan. The toolkit is available here and can also be found on our Resources & Links page under “Affordable Care Act (ACA) Enrollment Resources.”
Our colleagues at the University of Washington, Healthy Aging Rehabilitation Research Training Center (RRTC) have written a series of Factsheets and Plain Language Research summaries and they have just released the newest Plain Language Research Summary: “The Role of Happiness in People Living with Chronic Pain”. The Plain Language Research Summary is available here.
We’ve previously reported on the phenomenon known as churning which is the process of individuals moving between Medicaid and private insurance (see our prior blog on churning here). The National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) released a new issue brief last week which looks at churning. To read more about this brief or to download a copy, check out our news item by clicking here.
Are you looking for local partners to help with outreach to the disability community? The NDNRC is funding eighteen Community Outreach Collaboratives (COCs) for the third year of our project. This includes the eleven that were funded last year, plus seven new locations in six new states. The COCs increase collaborations in the community, dissemination and outreach efforts and enrollment of people with disabilities in the ACA. To find a COC, click here.
To access the archives for our weekly updates click here.