Affordable Care Act Insurance Research Articles

Is the Affordable Care Act Moving the Needle for Advanced Heart Failure Therapies for Black Patients?

Is the Affordable Care Act Moving the Needle for Advanced Heart Failure Therapies for Black Patients?

Effects of Cost Sharing on Ophthalmic Care Utilization in the Affordable Care Act Marketplace

ABSTRACT Purpose To determine the distribution and quantity of ophthalmic care consumed on Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans, the demographics of the population utilizing these services, and the relationship between ACA insurance coverage plan tier, cost sharing, and total cost of ophthalmic care consumed. Methods This cross-sectional study analyzed ACA individual and small group market claims data from the Wakely Affordable Care Act (WACA) 2018 dataset, which contains detailed claims, enrollment, and premium data from Edge Servers for 3.9 million individual and small group market lives. We identified all enrollees with ophthalmology-specific billing, procedure, and national drug codes. We then analyzed the claims by plan type and calculated the total cost and out-of-pocket (OOP) cost. Results Among 3.9 million enrollees in the WACA 2018 dataset, 538,169 (13.7%) had claims related to ophthalmology procedures, medications, and/or diagnoses. A total of $203 million was generated in ophthalmology-related claims, with $54 million in general services, $42 million in medications, $20 million in diagnostics and imaging, and $86 million in procedures. Average annual OOP costs were $116 per member, or 30.9% of the total cost, and were lowest for members with platinum plans (16% OOP) and income-driven cost sharing reduction (ICSR) subsidies (17% OOP). Despite stable ocular disease distribution across plan types, beneficiaries with silver ICSR subsidies consumed more total care than any other plan, higher than platinum plan enrollees and almost 1.5× the cost of bronze plan enrollees. Conclusions Ophthalmic care for enrollees on ACA plans generated substantial costs in 2018. Plans with higher OOP cost sharing may result in lower utilization of ophthalmic care.

The effects of the Affordable Care Act on seasonal agricultural workers

AbstractThis study investigates the effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) policies (Medicaid expansion, health insurance premium subsidy, and tax penalty) on farmworkers' health insurance coverage and healthcare utilization. Using the National Agricultural Worker Survey, we find that the ACA policies substantially raised the share of seasonal farmworkers with medical insurance. It significantly increased workers' use of preventive medical services and decreased the use of hospitals, including emergency rooms, which was a goal of the law's proponents. These effects did not significantly differ between workers with and without a pre‐existing medical condition.

Rates of Medicare Enrollment Among Dialysis Patients After Implementation of Medicare Payment Reform and the Affordable Care Act Marketplace

Medicare finances health care for most US patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), regardless of age. The 2011 Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for dialysis reduced reimbursement for hemodialysis, and the 2014 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace increased patient access to new private insurance options, potentially influencing organizations that provide health care, such as hospitals, nursing homes, and dialysis facilities, to adjust their payer mix away from Medicare sources. To describe Medicare enrollment trends among patients with incident ESKD in 2006 to 2016. This retrospective cohort study involved US patients aged 18 to 64 years who were not enrolled in Medicare at dialysis initiation in 2006 to 2016, with 1-year follow-up through 2017. Data analysis was conducted April 2021 to June 2022. The exposure of interest was a 3-category indicator of time, whether patients initiated dialysis before policies were enacted (2006-2010), in the first years of the Medicare ESKD PPS (2011-2013), or during the Medicare ESKD PPS and implementation of the ACA Marketplace (2014-2016). Patient-level Medicare enrollment through the first year of dialysis. Logistic regression and Cox models were used to examine associations of time, patient characteristics, and Medicare enrollment, adjusting for patient demographic, clinical, and market-level characteristics. Of 335 157 patients aged 18 to 64 years with ESKD not actively enrolled in Medicare when they initiated dialysis in 2006 to 2016, the mean (SD) age was 49.9 (10.8) years, 198 164 (59.1%) were men, 188 290 (56.2%) were White, and 313 622 (93.6%) received in-center hemodialysis. New Medicare enrollment was higher in 2006 to 2010 (110 582 patients [73.1%]) than after the Medicare ESKD PPS and ACA Marketplace in 2014 to 2016 (55 382 patients [58.5%]). In adjusted analyses, declining Medicare enrollment was associated with implementation of 2011 Medicare ESKD PPS and 2014 ACA policies and was disproportionately lower among younger, racially minoritized, and ethnically Hispanic patients. There was declining Medicare enrollment among new dialysis patients associated with the 2011 Medicare ESKD PPS and 2014 ACA Marketplace that raise concerns about benefits and harms to patients and payers and continued disparities in kidney care. As the dialysis payer mix moves toward higher proportions of patients not covered by Medicare, it will be important to understand the implications for health care system and patient outcomes.

How Did the Affordable Care Act Affect Risky Health Behaviors?

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) expanded insurance coverage in the USA through Medicaid expansions, insurance marketplaces, subsidies, and mandates in 2014. Insurance coverage at such a large scale may affect individuals' risky health behaviors such as smoking, excessive drinking, overeating, not exercising, and illicit substance use. Those effects are not easy to predict, and they may be positive or negative. On one hand, as more people have access to health care, they may improve their health behaviors with advice from medical professionals, educational materials, tobacco cessation treatments, and healthy behavior incentive programs provided by Medicaid. On the other hand, this increase in access can also lead to moral hazard where reduced costs of health care through insurance can make individuals choose less healthy behaviors. In this study, I asked whether the ACA changed risky health behaviors. I used a difference-in-difference-in-differences regression model where time, state Medicaid expansion status, and local area pre-ACA uninsured rate together constituted my identification strategy. In all my models, I controlled for a large set of individual-level and area-specific variables. I did not find any statistically significant negative effects on risky health behaviors that would have supported the existence of moral hazard that dominates other effects. On the other hand, I found significant improvements in smoking and excessive drinking in 2017 and 2018. These results are robust to using only the subsamples of poor childless adults and the newly insured. Early effects of the ACA's insurance coverage expansions did not lead to any significant changes in risky health behaviors except for improvements in smoking and excessive drinking in 2017 and 2018. Further research is needed for the later years as more individuals became aware of these benefits.

The Impact of the Affordable Care Act Insurance Expansions on Opioid‐Related Emergency Department Visits

Research ObjectiveAmid rising opioid‐related deaths and hospital use, the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law, with the central coverage provisions implemented in 2014. Because lack of health insurance is a barrier to opioid use disorder treatment, and because opioid use disorder treatment can prevent opioid‐related emergency department (ED) visits, we explore the impact of ACA Medicaid expansion and ACA marketplace insurance expansions on opioid‐related ED visits.Study DesignWe use ZIP Code‐level ED utilization data from the 2010–2018 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) State Inpatient Databases (SID) and State Emergency Department Databases (SEDD) for 29 states, while also accounting for the implementation of relevant state‐level policies using information from sources such as the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Prescription Drug Abuse Policy System. We control for area‐level sociodemographic information using from sources such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Census. We use a difference‐in‐differences (DD) estimation strategy as well as a within‐state dose–response, difference‐in‐differences‐in‐differences (DDD) model based on pre‐ACA uninsurance levels to estimate impacts of the ACA in each of the five years following the 2014 insurance expansions.Population StudiedWe use data on ED visits among nonelderly adults from 2010–2018 for 17 states that adopted Medicaid expansion on January 1, 2014 (Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont) and 12 states that did not implement Medicaid expansion during the study period (Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Maine, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin).Principal FindingsWe find that ACA coverage expansions reduced opioid‐related ED visits, but the effect varies over time. Relative to non‐expansion states, opioid‐related ED visit rates in expansion states remain the same or decrease slightly in the first three years after Medicaid expansion (2014–2016). A more marked decline emerges in the fourth and fifth years (2017–2018) after Medicaid expansion. Both DD and DDD results show strong evidence that the impact of ACA insurance expansions on opioid‐related ED visits grew over time.ConclusionsWe find that ACA insurance expansions reduced opioid‐related ED visit rates, with an effect that grows over time. As time from ACA implementation increases, aggregate effects of lower out‐of‐pocket prices, improved access to care, and supply responses would most likely produce reductions in opioid‐related ED visits, which we find in the fourth and fifth year after ACA implementation. These dynamics help explain why studies examining shorter post‐ACA periods or that were unable to estimate time‐varying impacts did not detect significant impacts of coverage expansions on opioid‐related ED visits.Implications for Policy or PracticeThere are likely to be lags between the time when an individual with substance use disorder (or at risk of developing the disorder) gains coverage, the time when the individual accesses treatment, and consequent reductions in ED visits. Our findings suggest that there are similarly important dynamics in the impact of insurance expansion on opioid‐related ED visits.

Utilization and cost sharing for preventive cancer screenings

ObjectiveThe Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) eliminated cost sharing for certain preventive cancer screenings beginning in September 2010. This paper examines the policy change’s impact on three preventive screenings, mammography, colonoscopy, and cervical screening, among commercially insured individuals. MethodsA retrospective longitudinal quasi-experimental design was utilized. Individuals in grandfathered plans were used as a comparison group because grandfathered plans are not subject to the preventive cost sharing benefit changes of the ACA. A multivariate logistic regression model matched individuals in treatment and comparison groups via propensity scoring. Monthly prevalence rates over the study period (2007–2014) were calculated as well as prevalence rates for the proportion of procedures with greater than 0 cost sharing. An interrupted time series regression analysis was conducted with the primary outcome variable the rate of preventive service utilization per person per month. ResultsThe overall trend in utilization of preventive mammography and cervical cancer screening slightly decreased as a result of the ACA cost sharing benefit policy change. There was a non-significant decrease for colonoscopy utilization as a result of the ACA policy change. ConclusionThe ACA’s cost benefit policy change is not having the desired impact of increasing preventive screening utilization. Further research is needed to determine whether providing educational materials covering the cost sharing benefit at policy enrollment might increase procedure uptake.

Threats to the Affordable Care Act and surgical care: What has been gained, and what could be lost

Eleven years after the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010, it remains under attack from its political opponents and defended by its supporters. As the most sweeping health reform legislation since Medicare and Medicaid were enacted in 1965, the ACA had 3 primary goals, namely (1) increasing access to affordable health insurance, (2) reducing the cost of health care, and (3) improving health care quality. Although some ACA policies have garnered bipartisan support (eg, the dependent coverage provision enabling young adults to remain on their parents’ health insurance plans until age 26), other policies have been met with numerous legislative and judicial challenges and claims of unconstitutionality (eg, the individual mandate which financially penalized anyone who did not have health insurance).

Associations between insurance-related affordable care act policy changes with HPV vaccine completion

BackgroundAlthough all 11- or 12-year-olds in the US were recommended to receive a 3-dose series of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine within a 12-month period prior to 2016, rates of completion of the HPV vaccine series remained suboptimal. The effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including private insurance coverage with no cost-sharing and health insurance expansions, on HPV vaccine completion are largely unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between the ACA’s 2010 provisions and 2014 insurance expansions with HPV vaccine completion by sex and health insurance type.MethodsUsing 2009–2015 public and private health insurance claims from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts, we identified 9-to-26-year-olds who had at least one HPV vaccine dose. We conducted a logistic regression model to examine the associations between the ACA policy changes with HPV vaccine completion (defined as receiving a 3-dose series within 12 months from the date of initiation) as well as interactions by sex and health insurance type.ResultsOver the study period, among females and males who initiated the HPV vaccine, 27.6 and 28.0%, respectively, completed the series within 12 months. Among females, the 2010 ACA provision was associated with a 4.3 percentage point increases in HPV vaccine completion for the privately-insured (0.043; 95% CI: 0.036–0.061) and a 5.7 percentage point increase for Medicaid enrollees (0.057; 95% CI: 0.032–0.081). The 2014 health insurance expansions were associated with a 9.4 percentage point increase in vaccine completion for females with private insurance (0.094; 95% CI: 0.082–0.107) and a 8.5 percentage point increase for Medicaid enrollees (0.085; 95% CI: 0.068–0.102). Among males, the 2014 ACA reforms were associated with a 5.1 percentage point increase in HPV vaccine completion for the privately-insured (0.051; 95% CI: 0.039–0.063) and a 3.4 percentage point increase for Medicaid enrollees (0.034; 95% CI: 0.017–0.050). In a sensitivity analysis, findings were similar with HPV vaccine completion within 18 months.ConclusionsDespite low HPV vaccine completion overall, both sets of ACA provisions were associated with increases in completion among females and males. Our results suggest that expanding Medicaid across the remaining states could increase HPV vaccine completion among publicly-insured youth and prevent HPV-related cancers.

Highly vulnerable communities and the Affordable Care Act: Health insurance coverage effects, 2010-2018.

Initially implemented in 2014 in some U.S. states, the Medicaid expansions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) aimed to make health insurance coverage more accessible to the low-income population. This paper aims to quantify the impact of the ACA Medicaid expansions on insurance coverage among racial/ethnic minorities, immigrants, single mothers, veterans, and low-education whites-i.e., the sectors of the population identified with some of the highest healthcare needs. We focus on individuals 18-64 years of age earning 138% or less of the federal poverty level from the American Community Survey, 2010-2018 (n=2,927,402). We use difference-in-differences (DD) and difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) approaches with propensity scores matched comparison groups to estimate pre-post ACA insurance coverage differences between individuals living in states that participated in the ACA Medicaid expansions and those living in non-participating states, and to estimate if such differences vary across subgroups. We find that insurance coverage rates increased for all subgroups; yet, the ACA benefits have not been evenly distributed across them. Low-education whites, non-Hispanic whites, females, and non-Hispanic Native Americans exhibited the highest improvements in insurance coverage. Our results contribute to the understanding of recent trends in racial and socioeconomic disparities in healthcare and the appropriate policy prescriptions to ameliorate them.

Changes in Health Care–Related Financial Burden for US Families With Children Associated With the Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) sought to improve access and affordability of health insurance. Although most ACA policies targeted childless adults, the extent to which these policies also impacted families with children remains unclear. To examine changes in health care-related financial burden for US families with children before and after the ACA was implemented based on income eligibility for ACA policies. Data used for this cohort study were obtained from the 2000-2017 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, a nationally representative, population-based survey. Multivariable regression with a difference-in-differences estimator was used to examine changes in family financial burden before and after ACA implementation according to income-based ACA eligibility groups (≤138% [lowest-income], 139%-250% [low-income], 251%-400% [middle-income], and >400% [high-income] federal poverty level). The cohort included 92 165 families with 1 or more children (age ≤18 years) and 1 or more adult parents/guardians. Income-based eligibility groups during post-ACA years (calendar years 2014-2017) vs pre-ACA years (calendar years 2000-2013). Family annual out-of-pocket (OOP) health care and premium cost burden relative to income. High OOP burden was determined based on a previously validated algorithm with relative cost thresholds that vary across incomes, and extreme OOP burden was defined as costs exceeding 10% of income. Premiums exceeding 9.5% of income were classified as burdensome and premiums relative to median household income defined an unaffordability index. Compared with high-income families who experienced a lesser change post-ACA implementation (high OOP burden, 1.1% pre-ACA vs 0.9% post-ACA), the lowest-income families saw the greatest reduction in high OOP burden (35.6% pre-ACA vs 23.7% post-ACA; difference-in-differences: -11.4%; 95% CI, -13.2% to -9.5%) followed by low-income families (24.6% pre-ACA vs 17.3% post-ACA, difference-in-differences: -6.8%; 95% CI, -8.7% to -4.9%) and middle-income families (6.1% pre-ACA vs 4.6% post-ACA, difference-in-differences: -1.2%; 95% CI, -2.3% to -0.01%). Although premiums rose for all groups, premium unaffordability was the least exacerbated for the lowest-, low-, and middle-income families compared with higher-income families. The findings of this study suggest that low- and middle-income families with children who were eligible for ACA Medicaid expansions and Marketplace subsidies experienced greater reductions in health care-related financial burden after the ACA was implemented compared with families with higher incomes. However, despite ACA policies, many low- and middle-income families with children appear to continue to face considerable financial burden from premiums and OOP costs.

African American online newspapers’ coverage of policy debate on the Affordable Care Act in 2017

Using content analysis, this study examined the coverage on the repeal and replace efforts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2017 in three African American online newspapers—Afro.Com, AtlantaBlackStar.Com, and PhillyTrib.com. Top three news frames across the news coverage by these online newspapers reflected political contention and political maneuverings around the ACA and potential policy implications of the Republicans’ proposed bills to replace the ACA.

Did the Affordable Care Act Decrease Veteran Enrollment in the Veterans Health Administration?

Provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provided nonelderly individuals, including Veterans, with additional health care coverage options. This may impact enrollment for health care through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). National enrollment data was used to: (1) compare characteristics of enrollees at 3 time points in relation to the implementation of ACA insurance provisions (2012); and (2) examine enrollment trends. The study population included a 10% sample of Veterans under age 65 who were VHA enrollees between January 2012 and September 2015. Demographic and baseline characteristics were compared between 3 enrollment groups: pre-2012, pre-ACA (2012-2013), and post-ACA (2014-2015). Using an interrupted time series approach, we employed pooled logistic regression to assess trends in new VHA enrollment, overall, and by select enrollee characteristics. A total of 429,833 enrollees were identified. Compared with pre-ACA enrollees, post-ACA enrollees were more likely to be older, have a service-connected disability, live further away from a VHA medical center, but less likely to use primary care within 6 months. The post-ACA quarterly trend in the odds of being a new enrollee was 3% lower (95% confidence interval: 0.96, 0.98) as compared with the pre-ACA trend. This decline was consistent across sex, geography, (all but 1) priority group, and state Medicaid-expansion subgroups. The ACA appears to have contributed to a decline in new VHA enrollment. In addition, the profile of newer enrollees differs from that of pre-ACA enrollees. The VHA must continue to monitor trends in demand in order to continue delivering high-quality, efficient care.

Do Narrow Networks Affect the Delivery of Outpatient Care in Neurosurgery?: A Statewide Analysis of Marketplace Plans in New Jersey

The aftermath of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) witnessed the rise of narrow networks, which feature fewer providers in exchange for lower premiums. Debate still continues on whether narrow networks provide adequate access to health care, especially in specialty care services such as neurosurgery. The objective of this article was to analyze the 2019 Marketplace plans' impact on delivering outpatient neurosurgical care in New Jersey. The 2019 Marketplace Public Use Files were queried for "silver" plans, identifying a total of 11 plans across 3 insurance companies. Online search engines were used to identify the number of in-network neurosurgeons within 20-25 miles of ZIP codes at the center of each county. The primary outcome was the number of neurosurgeon-deficient plans, defined as those having no in-network neurosurgeons within the assigned mile radius. Of all individuals who purchased an insurance plan, 73% (185,797/255,246) opted for a silver plan. Out of 111 active neurosurgeons in New Jersey, 25% (28/111) did not participate in any of the silver plans. Analysis showed 8 plans as neurosurgeon-deficient in Sussex and Warren. Meanwhile, most of the silver plans provided access to >5 neurosurgeons within 20-25 miles of most (17/21) county centers. In more densely populated states such as New Jersey, the impact of narrow networks on neurosurgical coverage is less apparent. However, frustrations regarding access to care still exist because nearly 25% of neurosurgeons do not participate in the standard ACA insurance product. Furthermore, guidelines that define network adequacy in neurosurgery remain elusive, which calls for more robust parameters to monitor and ensure adequate access to health care.

Impact of the Affordable Care Act Insurance Marketplaces on Out-of-Pocket Spending Among Surgical Patients.

To evaluate the association between the introduction of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Health Insurance Marketplaces ("Marketplaces") and financial protection for patients undergoing surgery. The ACA established Marketplaces through which individuals could purchase subsidized insurance coverage. However, the effect of these Marketplaces on surgical patients' healthcare spending remains largely unknown. We analyzed a nationally representative sample of adults aged 19-64 who underwent surgery in 2010-2017, using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Low-income patients eligible for cost-sharing and premium subsidies in the Marketplaces [income 139%-250% federal poverty level (FPL)] and middle-income patients eligible only for premium subsidies (251%-400% FPL) were compared to high-income controls ineligible for subsidies (>400% FPL) using a quasi-experimental difference-in-differences approach. We evaluated 3 main outcomes: (1) out-of-pocket spending, (2) premium contributions, and (3) likelihood of experiencing catastrophic expenditures, defined as out-of-pocket plus premium spending exceeding 19.5% of family income. Our sample included 5450 patients undergoing surgery, representing approximately 69 million US adults. Among low-income patients, Marketplace implementation was associated with $601 lower [95% confidence interval (CI): -$1169 to -$33; P = 0.04) out-of-pocket spending; $968 lower (95% CI: -$1652 to -$285; P = 0.006) premium spending; and 34.6% lower probability (absolute change: -8.3 percentage points; 95% CI: -14.9 to -1.7; P = 0.01) of catastrophic expenditures. We found no evidence that health expenditures changed for middle-income surgical patients. The ACA's insurance Marketplaces were associated with improved financial protection among low-income surgical patients eligible for both cost-sharing and premium subsidies, but not in middle-income patients eligible for only premium subsidies.

Health Insurance Coverage of Permanent Hair Removal in Transgender and Gender-Minority Patients

Hair removal can be an essential component of the gender affirmation process for gender-minority (GM) patients whose outward appearance does not align with their gender identity. To examine the health insurance policies in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace and Medicaid policies for coverage of permanent hair removal for transgender and GM patients and to correlate the policies in each state with statewide protections of coverage for gender-affirming care. Private health insurance policies available on the ACA marketplace and statewide Medicaid policies were examined in a cross-sectional study from September 1 to October 31, 2019, and January 17 to 30, 2020. Policies were assessed for coverage of permanent hair removal. Language concerning hair removal was found in each policy's medical or clinical coverage guidelines and separated into general categories. Logistic regression analyses were performed to compare Medicaid policies and ACA policies in states with and without transgender protections. A total of 174 policies were analyzed, including 123 private insurance policies and 51 statewide Medicaid policies. Of these policies, 8 (4.6%) permitted the coverage of permanent hair removal without explicit restrictions. The remaining 166 policies (95.4%) broadly excluded or did not mention gender-affirming care; prohibited coverage of hair removal or did not mention it; or only permitted coverage of hair removal preoperatively for genital surgery. The ACA marketplace policies in states without transgender care protections were less likely to cover hair removal without restrictions than ACA policies in states with protections (2 of 85 policies [2.4%] in states without transgender care protections vs 5 of 38 policies [13.2%] in states with transgender care protections), and Medicaid policies were less likely to cover preoperative or nonsurgical hair removal compared with ACA policies (6 of 51 Medicaid policies [11.8%] vs 47 of 123 ACA policies [38.2%]). Despite adoption of statewide restrictions on GM health care exclusions by several states, most Medicaid and ACA policies examined in this study did not cover permanent hair removal for transgender patients. Many GM patients seeking hair removal may be required to pay out-of-pocket costs, which could be a barrier for gender-affirming care.

How Have ACA Insurance Expansions Affected Health Outcomes? Findings From The Literature.

A growing body of literature examining the effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on nonelderly adults provides promising evidence of improvements in health outcomes through insurance expansions. Our review of forty-three studies that employed a quasi-experimental research design found encouraging evidence of improvements in health status, chronic disease, maternal and neonatal health, and mortality, with some findings corroborated by multiple studies. Some studies further suggested that the beneficial effects have grown over time and thus may continue to grow if the ACA insurance expansions remain in force. However, not all studies reported a significant positive relationship between ACA provisions that expanded insurance coverage and health status. We highlight the challenges facing researchers, including the importance of nonmedical factors in determining individual health and the use of outcome data predominantly drawn from self-reports. In closing, we identify opportunities to enhance researchers' understanding of the relationship between the ACA insurance expansions and health outcomes using new data sources, including electronic health records.

High Health Care Premiums in Charlottesville: Who Is to Blame? And What Should Be Done?

When Karl Quist, a resident of Charlottesville, Virginia, looks at the rate increases in his unsubsidized, individual-market Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care insurance premiums in November 2017, he realizes that they have nearly tripled from the year before and that he will have to spend over $35,000 during the year in premiums for coverage that will entitle him to a benefit only after he has spent another $14,400 in deductible payments. Astonished, Quist starts asking questions. He connects with others experiencing the same situation and reaches out for meetings with the Virginia Commissioner of Insurance and Board of Insurance to understand and explore possible solutions. This case covers the basic history of the ACA; explains how pricing is set for both ACA and non-ACA policies; and discusses risk pools, medical loss ratios, area rate factors, allowable adjustments, and self-insured employer plans. It provides a deep dive into the continued rise in cost of health care premiums and asks, Who is to blame? This case is suitable for graduate or undergraduate business classes with a focus on the health care industry, leading health care organizations, ethics, government and public policy, or industry regulation. Excerpt UVA-E-0439 Mar. 16, 2020 High Health Care Premiums in Charlottesville: Who Is to Blame? And What Should Be Done? November 2017: Sticker Shock Karl Quist, a resident and local business owner in Charlottesville, Virginia, recalled his incredulity when he logged on during the health insurance open enrollment period in November 2017 to find out what his monthly premium bill would be the following year. Quist was an entrepreneur and a sole proprietor without the minimum number of full-time employees that might qualify him for small-group insurance rates. So, for nearly 10 years, he had purchased an individual health insurance policy to cover himself, his wife, and his growing family. Prior to the 2010 introduction of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the associated open market for ACA-compliant health care plans (launched in 2014), he had purchased his individual policy directly from an insurance company such as Anthem. He had accepted and learned to absorb the astonishing increase in premium rates that he inevitably saw from year to year—which usually landed somewhere in the range of 10% to 30%. . . .

Association of Ambulance Use in New York City With the Implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Expanding insurance coverage may be associated with overuse of medical care because newly insured patients are insulated from having to pay the full cost. To examine the use of ambulance transport before and after the rollout of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) in New York City (NYC), New York. In this case-control study, the volume of ambulance dispatches in NYC for minor injuries before and after the rollout of the ACA was examined. Data were drawn from a census of all ambulance dispatches in NYC between January 1, 2013, and July 31, 2016. Ambulance dispatches for more severe injuries, which are more difficult to characterize as unnecessary, were used as the control group. Analyses were conducted from August 17, 2017, to May, 10, 2019. The main outcome was the number of ambulance dispatches for minor injuries, defined per month per dispatch zone. The implementation of the ACA was measured using an indicator variable of 1 for dispatches starting January 1, 2014, and 0 for dispatches before January 1, 2014. The number of ambulance dispatches for injuries and major injuries was used to account for secular trends. Injury severity was classified by the dispatchers based on information from the 911 callers with a severity score on a scale of 1 to 8, where 1 is the most severe; minor injuries had a score of 7; injuries, 5; and major injuries, 3. There were 4 787 180 ambulance dispatches in NYC during the study. After the 2014 expansion of insurance coverage under the ACA, there was an increase in ambulance dispatches for minor injuries compared with dispatches for more severe injuries. Compared with the preimplementation mean (SD) of 20.75 (14.24) minor injury dispatches per dispatch zone per month, there were 7.71 (95% CI, 1.23-14.19) additional minor injury dispatches per dispatch zone per month compared with dispatches for other types of injuries, an increase of 37.2%. Given that NYC has 31 dispatch zones, this increase is equivalent to approximately 239 additional dispatches per month or 2868 additional dispatches per year for minor injuries. There was a significant increase in use of ambulance transport for minor injuries in NYC after the ACA insurance expansion, suggesting that the change in health insurance structure was associated with increased use of emergency medical services in nonemergent situations. Future reforms to the US health insurance system should take into account the potential for increased use of emergency medical services in nonemergent situations, which the literature suggests may lead to congestion and slower response times.

The effect of the Affordable Care Act on patient out-of-pocket cost and use of preventive cancer screenings in Massachusetts.

In an effort to increase use of preventive health care, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) eliminated cost-sharing for preventive cancer screening services for the privately insured. The impact on patient spending and use of these screenings is still poorly understood.We used an interrupted time series analysis with the Massachusetts All-Payer Claims Database (2009–2012) to assess changes in trends in costs and use of breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screenings after the ACA policy. We find that the ACA was associated with a 0.024 (95% CI: −0.031, −0.017, p < 0.001) and 0.424 (95% CI: −0.481, −0.368, p < 0.001) percentage point decrease in the likelihood of a copayment each week for preventive breast and cervical cancer screenings respectively. The likelihood of copayment for colon cancer screening declined throughout the study period, with the rate of decline slowing following the ACA (trend in percent of screenings with copayment −0.130 before vs −0.071 after ACA, p = 0.014). Overall, we find only weak evidence that the ACA policy increased screenings. We find no significant effect on utilization for cervical cancer or colon cancer screening. For breast cancer screening, we find a small immediate increase in the utilization rate in the month after the policy change, with no change in trend after the ACA policy. Policy makers may need to consider other complementary policy options to increase screening rates.