Photo: Matt Johnson via Flickr
Many people who gained coverage under the Affordable Care Act voted for Donald Trump, even though he promised to get rid of it and has not been crystal clear about what he would put in its place.
Sarah Kliff of Vox traveled to Whitley County in Kentucky to find out why. In that county, the uninsured rate dropped by 60 percent (from 25 percent in 2013 to 10 percent now, according to Enroll America). Yet, 82 percent of them voted for Trump. Continue reading
Kaiser Family Foundation
The New York Times Magazine’s recent feature, “Life in Obamacare’s dead zone,” looked at the Medicaid gap we’ve frequently written about since the Supreme Court in 2012 made the ACA expansion optional for states.
The article describes how people who fall into the bizarre coverage gap – in which they are too poor to get subsidized coverage that people just a few slim rungs up the income ladder can get – cobble together care, or just do without, often with pretty grim consequences. Continue reading
Photo: Health Trust via Flickr
Amid promises to overturn the health care reform law and re-engineer Medicaid, voters swept Republicans into power in November. Oral health advocates now are wondering what lies ahead for efforts to expand access to dental services to poor, working and uninsured Americans.
Dental benefits were not exactly a high-profile topic in the campaign. More than 100 million Americans, including seniors, working-age adults and children still lack dental coverage according to the National Association of Dental Plans. Continue reading
Tom Price
President-elect Donald Trump has selected Dr. Tom Price, an orthopedic surgeon from Georgia who has served in the House for six terms, to serve as his secretary of Health and Human Services.
That’s a signal that the Trump administration is going to pursue a very conservative health policy agenda – and not just on repealing the Affordable Care Act. Continue reading
Photo: Wayne MacPhail via Flickr
Senior services will likely be under severe pressure in President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. While it is impossible to know now which program budgets will be cut – or by how much – services funded through the Older Americans Act (OAA) such as Meals on Wheels, adult day care, and information assistance could all be targeted.
Significant changes to the Affordable Care Act could affect how care is delivered through Medicare and Medicaid. Those programs also could face even bigger changes, since Trump and House Republicans say they want to restructure both. The changes may increase out-of-pocket Medicare costs for seniors and limit the federal contribution to Medicaid. Continue reading
Photo: IRISS Photo Collection via Flickr
What happens now? For those working in aging services, opinions range from cautiously optimistic to downright fearful.
Aging experts and service providers worry about the fate of innovative home- and community-based programs that allow older adults to age in place, about vital services funded under the Older Americans Act, and about the millions of older adults who rely on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security to get by. Continue reading