Health Beat: 2.5 million Americans may be eligible for Affordable Care Act premium tax credits
by October 5, 2016 6:04 am 119 views
Editor’s note: Each Wednesday, Talk Business & Politics provides “Health Beat,” a round-up health-related topics. –––––––––––––––
2.5 MILLION AMERICANS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR AFFORDABLE CARE ACT PREMIUM TAX CREDITS
Since the Affordable Care Act became law, millions of Americans gained coverage or found more affordable options thanks to premium tax credits available through the Health Insurance Marketplace, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Tuesday (Oct. 4). According to new data, 2.5 million Americans who currently purchase off-Marketplace individual market coverage may qualify for tax credits if they shop for 2017 coverage through the federal marketplace.
Six states (California, Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Illinois, and Pennsylvania) each have more than 100,000 individuals enrolled in off-marketplace individual market coverage whose incomes may qualify them for ACA tax credits.
The HHS analysis estimates that about 6.9 million individuals currently purchase health insurance in the off-marketplace individual market. Of those, about 1.9 million either have incomes that would qualify them for Medicaid or place them in the Medicaid coverage gap or are ineligible to purchase ACA coverage due to immigration status, while the remainder could enroll in qualified health plans.
UAMS TO HOLD EVENT TO ADDRESS EFFECTS OF TOBACCO ADDICTION
Insight into the effects of tobacco addiction will be addressed at an upcoming event hosted by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) on Oct. 20. The daylong Tobacco and Disease Pre-conference is open to health care professionals, community advocates and others interested in learning about the effects of tobacco use. It will be held at the UAMS Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute.
The pre-conference will kick off a two-day Family Medicine Update for health care professionals set for Oct. 21-22. Cost for single-day admission to the pre-conference is $50. Topics will include lung cancer risk reduction and survivorship, tobacco regulatory science, therapies for tobacco dependence, and more. Registration and an event agenda are available online here.
NATIONAL HEALTH PANEL DEVELOPS PLAN FOR PREVENTING YOUTH SUICIDE
An independent panel convened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has developed a 10-year roadmap for advancing research to prevent youth suicide. The panel listed 29 recommendations that address three critical issues: improving data systems, enhancing data collection and analysis methods, and strengthening the research and practice community.
The panel cited several barriers that impede efforts to combat youth suicide. For example, there is limited availability of linked data systems to facilitate identifying important risk factors for youth suicide.
Additionally, the stigma associated with suicide has resulted in the misclassification and underreporting of suicide and suicide attempts and has reduced opportunities for successful intervention. The five-member panel included experts in the fields of clinical psychology, statistics, health education, prevention and community health research, methods research, and epidemiology.