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UHG To Give Profits Back To Exchange Enrollees In an effort to forestall charges against it over healthcare affordability, UnitedHealth Group announced today that it plans to give profits from its Exchange plans back to customers in 2026. Several top executives from the biggest plans will appear before two House committees Thursday as the GOP seeks to insulate itself from the affordability crisis. UnitedHealthcare offers plans on the exchanges in 30 states, and it expanded its service area in 11 of those regions. It is unknown how much money that is or if United will make a profit. Additional articles: https://www.modernhealthcare.com/insurance/mh-unitedhealth-aca-rebates-congress/ and https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/payers/unitedhealth-ceo-hemsley-says-insurer-will-rebate-aca-profits-consumers and https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/unitedhealth-to-return-aca-profits-to-customers-hemsley/810183/ and https://www.modernhealthcare.com/politics-regulation/mh-stephen-hemsley-david-joyner-congress/ (Some articles may require a subscription.) #unitedthealthcare #healthplans #congress #affordability #exchanges https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5699770-unitedhealth-group-affordable-care-act-profits Cigna May Settle FTC Insulin Suit Cigna may settle the administrative Federal Trade Commission (FTC) case over allegations it artificially raised insulin prices. The FTC said it suspended the case to

Bipartisan Lawmakers Announce Deal To Keep Government Open A bipartisan deal was announced that would keep the federal government open for the rest of federal fiscal 2026 (to Septemeber 30) and enact long-sought healthcare changes. Given the bipartisan and bicameral nature of the deal, the bill likely can be passed by the end of July when the government would otherwise partially shut down. But some fear conservatives in each chamber could oppose the deal on budgetary grounds. Medicare telehealth coverage would be extended for two years. The Medicare hospital-at-home program would be extended for five years. The bill would also move further toward site-neutral payments in Medicare. Medicare Advantage (MA) plans would be required to maintain accurate provider lists and patients who visit providers erroneously due to bad data would only have to pay in-network rates. The bill doesn’t include limits on MA prior authorization. The bill also boosts pay to physicians participating in

Exchange Compromise Appears To Be Fizzling Prospects for a compromise bill in the Senate on an enhanced Exchange subsidy extension compromise appear to be fizzling. I have said the chance is at best 50-50 and now those odds are even dwindling. The negotiating group has failed to reach agreement on two of the biggest sticking points – allowing some or all of the dollars to move to health savings accounts (HSAs) and stricter “Hyde amendment” abortion restriction language. Meanwhile, some Democrats are also arguing the minimum premium of $5 or $10 per family per month is unaffordable for those who are low income. The GOP argues zero premiums have led to fraudulent enrollment. On the home front, states and plans are waiting to see what the fallout of an average 26% premium hike and 114% hike for subsidized individuals will mean. The latest statistics say that enrollment is only down

Trump’s “Great Healthcare Plan” President Donald Trump made a major healthcare announcement today, calling his reform framework “The Great Healthcare Plan.” But the announcement provided few details and leaves much of the work to Congress. GOP lawmakers do appear to be crafting ideas to limit exposure on healthcare unaffordability, but extending the expired enhanced subsidies may not be part of the deal. Here is the very skeletal outline of the president’s proposals: President Trump deserves a great deal of credit on drug price reform, but otherwise the deal is not well thought out and does not tackle the true reason for a lack of affordability – price in the market. I will give more details in a blog soon. Additional articles: https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/regulatory/trump-takes-aim-insurance-industry-unveiling-great-healthcare-plan and https://www.beckerspayer.com/policy-updates/trump-pitches-healthcare-policy-outline-aimed-at-lowering-costs-3-takeaways/ and https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/15/politics/trump-health-care-plan and https://apnews.com/article/trump-health-care-insurance-congress-savings-accounts-b7b4caae9ad14fda4646c42d3858202b and https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2026/01/15/trump-congress-aca-subsidies-health-care.html and https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2026/01/president-trump-unveils-the-great-healthcare-plan-to-lower-costs-and-deliver-money-directly-to-the-people/ and https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/The-Great-Healthcare-Plan.pdf and https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5691065-trump-health-care-affordability-plan/ and https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/trump-great-healthcare-plan-affordability-aca/809759/ and https://www.medpagetoday.com/publichealthpolicy/healthpolicy/119456 (Some articles may require a subscription.) #healthcare #healthcarereform https://www.modernhealthcare.com/politics-regulation/mh-trump-great-healthcare-plan-drugs-premiums MedPAC

CMS Actuary Releases 2024 Healthcare Spending Each year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Office of the Actuary releases annual healthcare expenditures for the prior year. This year the release was delayed due to the government shutdown. The Actuary found that the U.S. spent $5.28 trillion on healthcare in 2024, a 7.2% increase from the prior year. The robust growth shows the challenges ahead for healthcare. It was the second consecutive year costs trended up more than 7%. Healthcare accounted for 18% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, up slightly from 2023. Spending on hospital care grew 8.9% to $1.6 trillion. Spending on physician and clinical services increased 8.1% to $1.1 trillion. The Actuary said prices are a factor but non-price factors, such as utilization, were the driver. CMS’ actuaries attributed about 1% of the gain to population growth, 2.5% to price increases, and 3.6% to remaining

Exchange Compromise Is Slipping Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-OH, a leading supporter of a compromise on extending enhanced Exchange premium subsidies, says a deadline of the end of January has been set for having a compromise framework ready and that the main holdup remains abortion. The earlier goal of having a bill this week will not be met. Meanwhile, the Republican Study Committee, the largest caucus of conservatives in the House, unveiled a framework for a second reconciliation bill. Such a bill would only need a majority in each house to become law. The bill addresses affordability broadly and includes some provisions on healthcare. Additional article: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5686728-gop-housing-health-energy-reforms/?tbref=hp #exchanges #healthcare #coverage #pbms #medicaid https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5687461-senate-obamacare-compromise-deadline Government May Pull Back 340B Reform – For Now A court filing appears to show that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will pull back on its contentious 340B Rebate Pilot, at least for now. The

Trump May Veto Subsidy Bill If Passes; Exchange Enrollment Down So Far The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reports that about 22.8 million consumers have signed up for 2026 individual market Exchange coverage through Jan. 3. This is surprisingly robust with 12 more days to enroll. About 21.4 million enrolled in 2024 and about 24.3 million enrolled in 2025. About 23.6 million people enrolled in the Exchanges plans through Jan. 4, 2025. The 800,000 drop so far is likely less than most had expected. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said 2.2 million will lose coverage in 2026 due to the expiring enhanced subsidies. The CBO said an average of 3.8 million more uninsured people annually would result from 2026-2034. The results so far include 15.6 million Exchange selections in the 30 states using the HealthCare.gov platform for the 2026 plan year and 7.2 million plan selections in the