RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR

13 - 12:17am

WASHINGTON — Many people who buy their own health insurance could get surprises in the mail this fall: cancellation notices because their current policies aren’t up to the basic standards of President Barack Obama’s health care law. They, and some small businesses, will have to find replacement plans — and that has some state insurance officials worried about consumer confusion.

Laying bare your finances to apply for health care no longer necessary 05/01/13 - 12:24am

After complaints, Obama administration unveils simplified forms to apply for insurance under new law

WASHINGTON — After a storm of complaints, the Obama administration Tuesday unveiled simplified forms to apply for insurance under the president’s new health care law. You won’t have to lay bare your medical history but you will have to detail your finances. An earlier version of the forms had provoked widespread griping that they were as bad as tax forms and might overwhelm uninsured people, causing them to give up in frustration.

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Fallout expected for states rejecting Medicaid expansion in health care law 04/22/13 - 8:38am

Businesses could face IRS penalties

WASHINGTON — Rejecting the Medicaid expansion in the federal health care law could have unexpected consequences for states where Republican lawmakers remain steadfastly opposed to what they scorn as “Obamacare.” It could mean exposing businesses to Internal Revenue Service penalties and leaving low-income citizens unable to afford coverage even as legal immigrants get financial aid for their premiums. For the poorest people, it could virtually guarantee that they will remain uninsured and dependent on the emergency room at local hospitals that already face federal cutbacks.

Medicare increase could ding some in middle class 04/14/13 - 9:53pm

WASHINGTON (AP) — Retired city worker Sheila Pugach lives in a modest home on a quiet street in Albuquerque, N.M., and drives an 18-year-old Subaru. Pugach doesn’t see herself as upper-income by any stretch, but President Barack Obama’s budget would raise her Medicare premiums and those of other comfortably retired seniors, adding to a surcharge that already costs some 2 million beneficiaries hundreds of dollars a year each.

Upper-income seniors may see Medicare hike 04/13/13 - 12:25am

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s plan to raise Medicare premiums for upper-income seniors would create five new income brackets to squeeze more revenue for the government from the top tiers of retirees, the administration revealed Friday. First details of the plan emerged after Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testified to Congress on the president’s budget. As released two days earlier, the budget included only a vague description of a controversial proposal that has grown more ambitious since Obama last floated it.

Obama's budget to spare Medicaid from deep cuts 04/05/13 - 12:11am

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s budget next week will steer clear of major cuts to Medicaid, including tens of billions in reductions to the health care plan for the poor that the administration had proposed only last year.

Marketing studies help craft health overhaul pitch 04/02/13 - 12:02am

WASHINGTON — How do you convince millions of average Americans that one of the most complex and controversial programs devised by government may actually be a good deal for them? With the nation still split over President Barack Obama’s health care law, the administration has turned to the science of mass marketing for help in understanding the lives of uninsured people, hoping to craft winning pitches for a surprisingly varied group in society.

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Marketing studies help craft health overhaul pitch 03/31/13 - 8:34am

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is tapping the secrets of mass marketing to help sell the health care law to millions of uninsured Americans. It's a big challenge: How do you convince folks that one of the most complex and controversial programs devised by government may actually be a good for them? The federal Health and Human Services Department has posted marketing research online that provides insight into more than 48 million uninsured. Three groups are critical to so-called "Obamacare's" success or failure:

Study reveals health overhaul to raise claims costs 32 percent 03/27/13 - 12:23am

WASHINGTON — Insurance companies will have to pay out an average of 32 percent more for medical claims on individual health policies under President Barack Obama’s overhaul, the nation’s leading group of financial risk analysts has estimated. That’s likely to increase premiums for at least some Americans buying individual plans. The report by the Society of Actuaries could turn into a big headache for the Obama administration at a time when many parts of the country remain skeptical about the Affordable Care Act.

Study: No quick savings from workplace wellness 03/05/13 - 1:13am

WASHINGTON — Your bosses want you to eat your broccoli, hit the treadmill and pledge you’ll never puff on a cigarette. But a new study raises doubts that workplace wellness programs save the company money. In what’s being called the most rigorous look yet inside the wellness trend, independent researchers tracked the program at a major St. Louis hospital system for two years. Hospitalizations for employees and family members dropped dramatically, by 41 percent overall for six major conditions. But increased outpatient costs erased those savings.