Proposed Regulations Aim to Give Consumers Clearer Explanation of Health Benefits

Plain English, that's the ticket. Proposed regulations announced last week by Obama administration officials promise that starting in 2012 consumers will get an "easy-to-understand" summary of benefits and coverage and a glossary demystifying insurance jargon. Read more »

Report Finds Children Gaining Public Health Coverage Even in Poor Economy

While there may be a growing number of children in families that lack health insurance as the economic crisis continues, the good news last week was that more kids are getting enrolled in public health insurance programs. Read more »

Medicare Advantage Plan Choices Should Be Simplified, Report Says

When it comes to picking Medicare Advantage plans, less may actually be more, according to a new Health Affairs article. Researchers from the Harvard Medical School's Department of Health Care Policy found that Medicare enrollment decisions would be made easier if the choices were simpler.
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Yet Another Source of Rising Health Costs: Hospitals Hiring Physicians

Hospitals are increasingly signing up physicians as employees, but the trend may raise health care costs in the short term, says a study released by the Center for Studying Health System Change. Read more »

Multistate Plans Should Comply With State Laws, Insurance Regulators Say

The nation's insurance regulators said that they're worried a "loophole" in the health care law could allow multistate insurance plans to operate under more favorable rules than smaller plans in health insurance exchanges. Read more »

OMB to Review Final Rule on Whether Association Health Plans Are Subject to Rate Review

A final Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regulation that determines whether association health plans are subject to rate review under the overhaul law is at the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, according to a notation on its Web site. Read more »