Dec 12, 2018

4.2 million Americans could get $0 premiums on ACA coverage

Sam Baker

Roughly 4.2 million people, or 27% of uninsured Americans, could get ACA coverage with a $0 premium, the Kaiser Family Foundation said yesterday. The poorest consumers are eligible for subsidies that would be big enough to cover the entire premium for a lower-tier “bronze” plan.

Yes, but: Bronze plans have high deductibles — more than $6,200 per year, on average, according to Kaiser.

  • Many of the people eligible for a bronze plan with a $0 premium would actually be better off going one level up, to a “silver” plan, where they’d have to pay part of the premium every month but could get help with their out-of-pocket costs.

My thought bubble: This is a pretty complicated calculation to ask people to do, especially those who don’t have a clear picture of how much health care they’ll need next year.

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Stef W. Kight

Federal court temporarily halts "Remain in Mexico" program

Migrant wearing a cap with U.S. flagin front of the border between Guatemala and Mexico. Photo: Jair Cabrera Torres/picture alliance via Getty Image

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court's earlier injunction on Friday, temporarily stopping the Trump administration from enforcing the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) — known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy.

Why it matters: Tens of thousands of migrants seeking asylum have been forced to wait out their U.S. immigration court cases across the border in Mexico under the policy. The Trump administration has long credited this program for the decline in border crossings following record highs last summer.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 2 hours ago - Politics & Policy
Axios

Coronavirus updates: WHO raises global threat level to "very high"

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens.

The World Health Organization raised its global risk assessment for the novel coronavirus to "very high" Friday, its highest risk level as countries struggle to contain it. Meanwhile, National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow this morning tried to reassure the markets, which continued to correct amid growing fears of a U.S. recession.

The big picture: COVID-19 has killed more than 2,860 people and infected about 83,800 others in almost 60 countries and territories outside the epicenter in mainland China. The number of new cases reported outside China now exceed those inside the country.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 3 hours ago - Health
Dan Primack

Bernie's plan to hike taxes on some startup employees

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Sens. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced legislation that would tax nonqualified stock options at vesting, rather than at exercise, for employees making at least $130,000 per year.

The big picture: Select employees at private companies would be taxed on monies that they hadn't yet banked.

Go deeperArrow3 hours ago - Politics & Policy