Consumers can switch plans outside of the annual open enrollment period for some specific life changes, but generally not when a doctor falls out of the plan.
Prices for common medical procedures vary widely, and it can be really hard to find out the true cost up front. This crowdsourcing project aims to help draw back the curtain on colonoscopy costs.
Many workers like the programs, and employers say they help hold down health insurance costs. But there are legal questions about how far companies can go to encourage participation.
When the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services sent a memo to insurers saying government audit policies could be relaxed, investors privy to the news pounced, sending shares upward.
Most people are anesthetized during colonoscopy. Federal law mandates that the cancer test itself must be fully covered by insurers, but quite a few of them didn't pay for anesthesia.
The notice to insurers comes after reports found many health plans weren't providing no-cost birth control for all prescription methods, a requirement under the Affordable Care Act.
The Supreme Court may soon rule Obamacare subsidies illegal in about three dozen states. NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Linda Blumberg of the Urban Institute about the options those states would have.
Insurers dispute that notion that the problems are widespread. Consumers and advocates have complained to insurers, and some policies have been changed.
One aim of Obamacare was to ease the financial strain on nonprofit hospitals that provide medical care to people who lack insurance and can't pay their bills. That plan is working, hospitals say.
If marriage is on the horizon, it might be wise to set aside some money for the taxman. An increase in family income after the vows can trigger repayment of a health insurance credit.