Hemophilia Federation of America is a national nonprofit organization that assists, educates and advocates for the bleeding disorders community.
COVID relief legislation makes health coverage more accessible and affordable On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act into law. This sweeping measure provides economic relief to individuals, families, businesses, schools, and state and local governments. The law offers new incentives for holdout states to expand their Medicaid programs […]
Responding to the ongoing pandemic, the federal government has opened a special enrollment period (SEP) in the Healthcare.gov insurance marketplaces. This enrollment opportunity will run from Feb. 15聽to May 15聽in the 36 states that use the Healthcare.gov enrollment platform (most of the remaining states have already announced that they, too, will open a new 2021 […]
The 2021 federal health policy outlook started to come into sharper focus in early January, when runoff elections for both of Georgia鈥檚 Senate seats were decided. The election of Democratic Sens. Warnock and Ossoff means that the U.S. Senate is split 50-50 between the parties, with the Democrats holding the slimmest of majorities (Vice President […]
As we enter the new year, there are good reasons to hope the U.S. may soon round the corner on COVID-19. In the meantime, though, we all still need to follow the guidelines of our public health authorities: stay home if sick, practice social distancing, avoid indoor settings, wear masks, and wash our hands. Please […]
HFA鈥檚 virtual 2020 Patient Fly-in took place over the week of Nov. 16.聽 Sixteen community members connected with their lawmakers via phone and Zoom to describe what it鈥檚 like to live with a bleeding disorder 鈥 and to explain what people in this community need in terms of quality, affordable health coverage. Fly-in participants also […]
Open Enrollment begins for 2021 insurance plans Open Enrollment聽is a time frame each year when health insurance plans聽are required by law to accept applications from聽new plan聽enrollees regardless of their health history. This also is the time when you can choose to stay with your existing health plan if it is the right one for you. […]
Update on ACA lawsuit The death of eminent Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on September 18th brought renewed attention to the fate of the Affordable Care Act. As previously reported, a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the ACA (California v. Texas) is pending in the Supreme Court. Because Justice Ginsburg was considered a likely […]
Policy and advocacy sessions sparked robust discussions at HFA鈥檚 recently concluded 2020 Symposium! Thank you to all who attended 鈥 it was wonderful to 鈥渟ee鈥 you at our virtual event. For those who couldn鈥檛 join us in real time, you can still view the recorded sessions on your own schedule for the next few months […]
Click Below to Translate Page to Spanish. Product recall announced On July 21, CSL Behring and Ferring Pharmaceuticals announced a聽recall聽of multiple lots of Stimate (desmopressin),聽in the United States and in other countries around the world. The recall was prompted by the manufacturer鈥檚 discovery of out-of-specification levels of the active ingredient in the marketed product. This聽announcement […]
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services releases rule paring back anti-discrimination provisions On June 12th, the HHS Office of Civil Rights released a final rule聽re-interpreting anti-discrimination provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The new rule removes explicit patient protections against discrimination by health care providers and insurers. HFA joined with twenty-eight other patient and […]
Click Below to Translate Page to Spanish. Federal rule allows health plans to discount manufacturer copay assistance. On May 7, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services finalized a rule that affects individuals who rely on聽patient copay assistance programs. The HHS rule (the 鈥2021 Notice of Benefits and Payment Parameters,鈥 or NBPP) allows […]
Durante el mes de abril, la emergencia de COVID-19 continu贸 dominando las vidas de los estadounidenses y las agendas de los legisladores. Estas son algunas de las novedades del mes. Un cuarto proyecto de ley de alivio de COVID se convirti贸 en ley el 24 de abril. R. 266 repone el Programa de Protecci贸n de […]
Over the month of April, the COVID-19 emergency continued to dominate Americans鈥 lives 鈥 and lawmakers鈥 agendas. Here are some of the month鈥檚 developments. A fourth COVID relief bill was signed into law on April 24th. R. 266 replenishes the Paycheck Protection Program (established in the March CARES Act but quickly depleted) with an additional […]
COVID-19 cambi贸 la vida de pr谩cticamente todos en el transcurso del 煤ltimo mes, y parece probable que las interrupciones en el trabajo, la escuela, la atenci贸n m茅dica y la vida cotidiana en todo el pa铆s contin煤en por un tiempo m谩s. En medio de esta perturbaci贸n, HFA quiere asegurarle que continuaremos sirvi茅ndole y apoy谩ndole. Estamos trabajando […]
COVID-19 upended the lives of virtually everyone over the course of the last month 鈥 and it appears likely that nationwide disruptions to work, school, healthcare, and everyday life will continue for some time longer. Amidst this upheaval, HFA wants to reassure you that we will continue to serve and support you. We are working […]
Click Below to Translate Page to Spanish. Federal insurance rules proposed for 2021 Plan Year. Every year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publishes a federal rule (the 鈥淣otice of Benefits and Payment Parameters,鈥 or NBPP) to govern operations of the ACA marketplaces and ACA health plans for the coming year. The 2021 […]
Click Below to Translate Page to Spanish. HFA and NHF co-hosted a Safety Summit in Washington, D.C., over three days at the end of January. The summit was convened in recognition and response to community concerns arising from a series of drug safety reports in 2019. Those safety incidents rocked the hemophilia community 鈥 and […]
On December 18, 2019, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its long-awaited ruling in Texas v. United States, a case challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. The 5th Circuit ruling upholds (in part) an earlier lower court decision that declared the ACA to be unconstitutional, due to Congress鈥 2017 enactment of […]
Open Enrollment for 2020 insurance plans ends soon 鈥 don鈥檛 miss out! The Open Enrollment Period聽for 2020 insurance plans ends soon for Medicare plans, for individual insurance plans (in most states), and for many employer health insurance programs. It is important to take action during this timeframe to assure you have health coverage for 2020. […]
Open Enrollment begins for 2020 insurance plans. The Open Enrollment Period聽is a time frame each year when health insurance plans聽are required by law to accept applications from聽new plan聽enrollees regardless of their health history. This also is the time when you can choose to stay with your existing health plan if it is the right one […]
The drug pricing debate聽in Washington resumed when Congress returned from its summer recess 鈥 though many observers question whether Congress will be able to pass legislation this year, due to policy disagreements between the majority and minority parties; the short period of time available before the 2020 elections; and the spillover effects of the impeachment […]
New rule causes concern over legal immigrants鈥 use of Medicaid and certain other public benefits En Espa帽ol Patient groups聽representing millions of Americans with serious health conditions voiced strong concern about a U.S. Department of Homeland Security final rule released on August 12, 2019. The new rule directs DHS to broadly expand the 鈥減ublic charge鈥 evaluation […]
UNA REGLA NUEVA CAUSA PREOCUPACI脫N SABRE EL USO DE MEDICAID Y CIERTOS OTROS BENEFICIOS P脷BLICOS POR INMIGRANTES LEGALES Grupos de pacientes que representan a millones de estadounidenses con condiciones de salud grave expresaron una gran preocupaci贸n por una reglamentaci贸n final emitida el pasado 12 de agosto de 2019 por el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional de […]
FEATURED STORIES Product recall announced; patient organizations are in ongoing communications with manufacturer Bayer announced the recall of two lots of Kogenate庐聽FS antihemophilic factor (recombinant) 2000 I.U. vials on July 19, 2019. Bayer announced that 3000 I.U. of one product (Jivi), past its expiration date, had been mislabeled as another product (2000 I.U. of Kogenate […]
Featured Stories: HFA held a Patient Fly-in and Virtual Hill Day聽on June 10, 2019. Twenty-four community members from 14 different states came to Washington, D.C. to tell their lawmakers about living with bleeding disorders 鈥 and to explain what people in our community need in terms of quality, affordable health coverage. Fly-in participants also urged […]
Featured Story: CMS decides against allowing Medicare plans to limit coverage of 鈥減rotected class鈥 drugs. This past month brought some welcome news from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. On May 16, CMS released a final rule on drug pricing in the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D programs. In that final rule, […]
Featured Story: Some relief ahead from accumulator adjusters. Finally some good news regarding accumulator adjusters! Patient advocates, including HFA, have been warning lawmakers that accumulator adjuster programs threaten access to care for people with chronic health conditions. In recent weeks, state and federal lawmakers signaled they have heard this message and took steps to rein […]
Protections for people with pre-existing conditions. You may recall that last December, a federal district court ruled in Texas v. United Statesthat the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional in its entirety. This ruling, if upheld, would: eliminate important protections for people with pre-existing conditions; end the ACA鈥檚 Medicaid expansion; abolish the requirement that health plans […]
Featured Story: State Legislative Sessions Pick Up Steam In last month鈥檚 edition of the Washington Wire, we wrote about steps some states are taking with respect to their Medicaid programs. Here is a brief update on some of the Medicaid-related developments that have happened since then. Utah: the state legislature and Governor acted to override […]
FEATURED STORY What to Watch in the States in 2019 鈥 State Medicaid Trends Legislative sessions have begun in all but four states (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Nevada begin sessions in the months ahead).聽 As lawmakers begin to tackle the numerous issues they need to address in the coming months, let鈥檚 look at what to […]
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