PathWays PA Policy Blog

Last week, the federal government announced a proposed change to the Health Care Rights Law (part of the Affordable Care Act) that would overturn healthcare protections for transgender people. Under the rule change, gender identity would no longer be protected by federal laws preventing discrimination in health care. Requirements that insurers give notice of a patient's rights to translation services would also be eliminated. According to the ACLU , the new rule would also remove "termination of pregnancy" as a reason to make a legal claim of sex discrimination in health care. Both the specific protections for transgender people and termination of pregnancy have been the subject of lawsuits and were stopped under federal injunction. While there are other protections for transgender people in the ACA , repealing this part of the law could lead to further rollbacks later. Take Action: The Protect Trans Health Campaign has a link to submit a comment to the Dep...

While the Senate chose to skip its usual August recess this year, the House is at home with its constituents - you. Why not take the time to meet with your legislators and tell them what you are thinking about? If you're not sure how to go about setting up a meeting (or what to do once you're there), check out our information below. Decide what you want to meet about: There's so many issues to discuss right now - healthcare ,  DACA , domestic violence and the Violence Against Women Act, paid family leave and the FAMILY Act , payday lending .... Think about what matters to you, and do a little research to learn more until you feel comfortable talking about it. Set up the meeting: Prosperity Now put together a great tool for setting up recess meetings, including a sample email and information on how to contact the scheduler in your legislator's office.  If you're uncomfortable with this format, you can make it simple - find your member of Congress here , a...

With so much happening, here are some short takes on today's news: Families Belong Together : Despite a court order for reunification by July 10, nearly half of the children under 5 remain without their parents. Over 50 children are expected to be reunited today, with others in limbo as lawyers work to clear parents to take custody or to find parents no longer in custody - some of whom have been deported without their children .  Take Action : You can continue to call legislators and support organizations helping families in need. For further information, read our blog post from a few weeks ago.  Shut Down Berks is holding a vigil on Sunday to Shut Down the Berks County Family Detention Center. Check out the link to learn more . SCOTUS : Last night, the President announced his nominee for the Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh. Judge Kavanaugh currently serves on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Take Action : You can read more about Judge Kavana...

The Senate is expected to take up the Farm Bill this week, with a vote likely tomorrow. S. 3042 protects current SNAP benefit levels and eligibility rather than adding burdensome requirements (including additional work requirements) to the law. At the same time as SNAP is being debated in Congress, rules changes are rumored from the Administration. These changes could mean that immigrants would not be eligible for green cards if they or their children use benefits such as Medicaid, CHIP, or even the ACA marketplace - even though the immigrants in question have entered the country legally and are legally allowed to use the programs. Take Action:  Call your Senators at 202-224-3121 to share your thoughts on S. 3042.  Here's a sample script: "Hello, my name is _________ and I am a constituent of Senator __________. My zip code is __________. I am calling today in support of S. 3042, the Farm Bill, as it is currently written. Please support this bill but do not allow...

Congress is once again looking at ways to change or overturn the ACA. The latest vehicle is the Cassidy-Graham Plan, which we first reported on in July as a proposed amendment to other repeal attempts . Cassidy-Graham would make many of the changes that earlier ACA overhaul promised. Medicaid Expansion, which covers 11 million low-income adults, would end under the legislation. ACA subsidies for low-income people would also be eliminated. In their place, states would receive block grants to cover people who use Medicaid Expansion and subsidies. The plan changes how much money each state would receive, which means states with higher needs may not get enough funding. The total amount of block grants given would be 17% lower than current spending. By 2026, block grants would end, leaving states to determine how to cover people without any funding to do so. At the same time, Cassidy-Graham calls for a per capita cap on Medicaid spending, leaving states on the hook for any higher cost...

Last week, it seemed as though the Senate Healthcare Bill was stopped in it's entirety. The Bill did not have enough votes to pass and Sen. McConnell's attempts to pass a repeal-only Bill forward were shut down, so it seemed as though the Affordable Care Act was safe for the time being. However, we are now hearing that there is a possibility of the Bill being revived and voted on once again this week. A CBO analysis showed the statistics behind the revised Senate Healthcare Bill - 22 million Americans would be kicked off of their insurance should it pass. This number was found before taking into account the "Cruz Amendment" which would allow insurance companies to offer less comprehensive insurance. Both repealing and replacing the ACA in this form (causing 22 million Americans to lose coverage) or repealing without replacing  (causing 32 million Americans to lose coverage), are unacceptable options.  Take advantage of this opportunity to call your senators at 866...

***Watch this space for updates as we learn more*** Senators today unveiled changes to the proposed American Health Care Act (AHCA), and information is drabbling out to the public (and to most senators). Here's what we've heard - we will update below as we learn more : The revised bill will add $70 billion in additional money to states to make health care more affordable. As in previous versions, Medicaid will move to a block grant system. However, during public health emergencies, spending will not count towards Medicaid caps. These cuts could mean 15 million fewer people would be insured by Medicaid in 2026. Insurers will have the option to offer plans that do not meet ACA standards as long as at least one of their offerings meets "sufficient minimum coverage" under the ACA. People who enroll in catastrophic health insurance will be able to use subsidies to pay for those plans. $45 billion will be added to combat opiod addiction. Updated 7/13 3:25 PM - T...

With thanks to our friends at PCCY As we have previously mentioned on this blog, the Senate has recently released their upcoming Health Care Bill. The bill was not voted on, but the details are now available to the public. The Senate is currently in recess for this week which makes this an ideal time to be vocal about the effect the bill will have. Whether it is to family, friends, the public or directly to your legislators, this is a great opportunity to educate and inform about the implications of the bill. The Senate bill currently retains caps on Medicaid which would harm millions of children, seniors and individuals who are disabled. Below are ways that you can continue to be active around the Senate Health Care Bill, including daily actions you can do and upcoming events you participate in. Things you can do every day this week: Call Senator Casey and Senator Toomey and ask them to reject the Senate bill. Tell them how it would affect your child and/or cause millions of A...

**UPDATE**  - The Congressional Budget Office released its scoring of the bill, showing that 22 million more people would become uninsured under the program. On June 23rd, Senate Republicans revealed their plan for a new Health Care bill that will act as a replacement for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). With information on the bill now available to the public, it is important to check to see how your coverage will be affected by the American Health Care Act (AHCA) and how the new bill compares to the Affordable Care Act. Below, a table has been attached to show how coverage for different groups was affected by the Affordable Care Act and how things will change should the AHCA be passed through Congress. Information used in the table regarding the AHCA was found at NPR.org, click here for more detailed information . Make sure to have your voice be heard by reaching out to your Senators and telling them how you feel they should vote on the upcoming bill. Call se...

Every time my soon-to-be 3 year old son hears sirens - police, fire, ambulance - he starts yelling "Emergency! It's an emergency!" And if you're not saying the same thing about the Senate healthcare bill, you probably should be. After negotiating for over a month behind the scenes, the Senate healthcare bill is ready to see the light of day. And, despite saying that the House healthcare bill was "dead on arrival " in the Senate, they've done a pretty good job of resuscitating it. (See a chart from NPR here  comparing the ACA, the AHCA, and the new Better Care Reconciliation Act.) Medicaid: Medicaid is the largest government health program in the country. It covers about half of all births in the US, and provides insurance to nearly 40% of all children . Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare), states could choose to expand Medicaid to more low-income families. The House version of the American Healthcare Act (AHCA) would roll back that...

If you or someone you know needs health insurance or need help re-enrolling in the federal marketplace do not miss the FREE healthcare enrollment event at PathWays PA's West Philadelphia TLP office (4911 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19139) TOMORROW (1/7/16) from 9:00-5:00 To prescreen for eligibility, call: (215) 977-7255, or email: navigator@healthfederation.org To schedule an appointment online, go to: https://www.getcoveredamerica.org/connector and enter your zip code. Search for the PathWays PA enrollment event. PLEASE SHARE!

King v. Burwell was decided on today by the United States Supreme Court, essentially allowing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to survive by upholding that ACA subsidies should be available in states that don't have their own exchanges. This allows  an estimated 6.4 million Americans to keep the tax subsidies that help them afford health coverage. The key question of the case centered on whether or not the federal government had the right to create an insurance market to help low-to-middle income Americans buy health insurance. Challengers in the case argued that the legislative language of the law only allowed for subsidized insurance in states that set up their own insurance exchanges, and not allowed  in states that relied on the federal marketplace. Thirty-four states currently rely on the federal marketplace - including Pennsylvania. The Supreme Court ultimately rejected this argument. Chief Justice John G. Roberts delivered the majority opinion, writing that "the...

The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) highlighted some important statistics  on the relationship between paid sick leave and preventive health care. Since the Affordable Care Act (ACA) took effect in 2010, health care access has opened up to numerous Americans, including low-income earners who were previously uninsured and women seeking preventive care . Unfortunately, too many Americans simply do not have the time to actually receive these services. More than 40 million workers in the U.S. (39 percent) have no paid sick days and nearly 95 million workers (87 percent) have no paid family leave. 80 percent of low-wage workers earning $15,000 or less per year have no paid sick days. Work protections such as paid sick leave and paid family and medical leave are crucial for preventive health care, which in turn is key for healthy and safe lives. Routine health checkups and screenings can help prevent or detect early on diseases and other health problems, but a 2015 study ...

The Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment period for 2015 begins November 15, 2014. This one-day event is intended for CMS partners and Stakeholders who help consumers through the Marketplace process and provide basic awareness and education about the Marketplace. What will be presented this year: An Overview of the Health Insurance Marketplace Information on Health Insurance Literacy Current Topics Best Practices and Lessons Learned Online and fax registration is available here . There will be no charge to you for the training. NOTE: Registration requests will be considered on a first come, first served basis until the meeting reaches capacity. The number of attendees from the same organization may be limited.

From our friends at PHAN As more and more people benefit from the ACA across the country, some people are still falling through the cracks. In some states, individuals and families who earn too much for Medicaid but not enough to afford health insurance can take advantage of Medicaid Expansion. In Pennsylvania, Governor Corbett has chosen to propose a different health care model to the US government, and is waiting for their decision. Right now, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is reviewing Governor Corbett's proposed alternative "Healthy PA" plan. Under this plan, thousands of current Medicaid enrollees could see their coverage and access drastically reduced. The public comment period to have your voice heard on the Governor's "Healthy PA" plan ends April 10. Please tell CMS how you feel about "Healthy PA" . Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians are stuck in the a gap right now - earning to o much to qualify for Me...

From our friends at the Coalition on Human Needs  HHS.gov is hosting a series of webinars on the Affordable Care Act throughout March. All webinars are open to the public and include a question and answer session where you can ask HHS staff any questions you may have. Please see the full list of upcoming webinars below. Health Care Law 101 - Health Insurance Marketplace  Wednesday, March 19 at 7:00 p.m.- Register Here   To Join By Phone Only, Dial 646-307-1706, Access Code: 281-771-511 For those joining by phone only, the Pin Number is the # key.  A presentation on the main provisions of the Affordable Care Act, the health care law. Information on the Health Insurance Marketplace, how to enroll in health insurance and key websites with resources on the law will be shared. We will end with a question and answer session. Please send your questions to ACA101@hhs.gov prior to March 19 at 12:00 p.m.  Questions and Answers on the ACA  Thursday, M...

From our friends at the National Women's Law Center  On Thursday, March 6, beginning at 2:ooPM, NWLC, ACLU, Planned Parenthood and NARAL will host a phone conference to provide information on the upcoming Supreme Court case. Beginning on March 25th, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in the cases brought by 2 for-profit corporations who want to deny their employees insurance coverage of contraception. Contraception is critical to women's health and equality. This benefit is currently enjoyed by 27 million women and these employers want to take it away from the women who work for them. If you are interested in learning more, join the National Women's Law Center, ACLU, Planned Parenthood and NARAL for a conference call that will update you about the cases and inform you about the public education and media events in support of the contraceptive coverage benefit over the next few months and on the day of the court hearing. RSVP is required: Please email Yumhee Park...

From our friends at PHAN  On Tuesday, March 4 beginning at 6:00PM, PHAN will host a call to discuss the new rights and protections gained within the LGBT community for health reform as well as what issues need further advocacy. Join the call! You can dial-into this call from anywhere as long as you RSVP first here: http://bit.ly/LGBTandACA

From our friends at PHAN. On, Monday January 20th from 10:00am- 1:00pm, PHAN will be at Bright Hope Baptist Church at 1601 N 12th Street in Philadelphia. If you would like to set up an appointment please call 1-877-570-3642. **Free flu shots will be available for those that need it at this event! Can't Make It Monday ? PHAN has Certified Application Counselors Available to Help you Enroll! To set up an appointment please call 1-877-570-3642 or go online to www.pahealthaccess.org/helpline Open enrollment goes until March 31, 2014 Don’t need help? Go to www.healthcare.gov to enroll now * Certified Application Counselors can help you enroll in the health insurance marketplace if you are uninsured or if you are paying too much for the insurance you have. They can help eligible people sign up for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and/or Medicaid. CACs have been certified and extensively trained to help people sign up for health insurance, ...

The Health Insurance Marketplace has opened the door for working Pennsylvanians to shop for and compare affordable, comprehensive health care options. Meanwhile, the Corbett administration has proposed a plan to take up a federal option to expand Medicaid health coverage along with benefit cuts and other changes to the state's existing Medicaid program. Join the webinar on Friday, November 1 at Noon to get the latest on what's happening on the health care front in Pennsylvania. Laval Miller-Wilson of the Pennsylvania Health Law Project will be on hand along with other health care advocates and experts to answer your questions and to give you some insight into what lies ahead. You can also check out the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center's other upcoming webinars and watch past ones on the web site.