Obama tells insurers his 'fix' may cost them

Nov 20 2013

President Barack Obama acknowledged to insurance executives that reinstating millions of insurance policies might cost them, according to Politico. Other media outlets report that brokers are worried about their role in the insurance marketplace and how one company is forecasting that a failure to enroll the uninsured could cut prescription drug sales by 30 percent in 2017.

Politico: President Obama To Insurers: No Bailout
President Barack Obama had some bad news for the insurance company CEOs who met him at the White House: His "fix" might cost them. Obama asked the CEOs to reinstate millions of Americans' health insurance plans that were cancelled because they fell short of coverage requirements under the law, according to two executives who attended the session Friday (Cheney and Haberkorn, 11/19).

Politico: Brokers Feel Pain Of Obamacare
Add insurance brokers to the list of people stymied by HealthCare.gov. And it's not just a headache. It's their income. Some brokers are waiting for the site to be fixed before they deal with clients using it. But those that are sticking with the arduous online enrollment journey are facing a new question: Will I get paid for this? (Villacorta, 11/19).

Bloomberg: Obamacare Failure May Shave 30% From U.S. Drug Sales
Potential shortfalls in enrollment for President Barack Obama's health care overhaul would put a 30 percent dent in projections for U.S. prescription-drug sales in 2017, a report from IMS Health Inc. shows. That worst-case scenario would translate to $320 billion in drug spending, according to the report. The best case is supposed to be $460 billion, boosted by demand from the health law's expansion of insurance coverage and medical screenings, and removal of restrictions on pre-existing conditions (Edney, 11/19).

Reuters: Insight: Health Site Woes Show Washington Misses Out On Cutting Edge Technology
One part of the Obama administration's technically flawed Healthcare.gov website is actually working as promised. Unfortunately, the company that built it does not intend to seek more government business (Sullivan, 11/19).

The Texas Tribune: Dewhurst Wants Closure Of High-Risk Insurance Pool Postponed
Amid ongoing technical issues with the federal health insurance marketplace created under the Affordable Care Act, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is urging state officials to postpone the planned Jan. 1 cancellation of the state's high-risk insurance pool, which provides health coverage to some of the state's sickest residents (Maly, 11/18).