Biden to reopen ACA marketplaces, lower barriers for joining Medicaid
Amy Goldstein, The Washington Post
Jan. 25, 2021
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President Joe Biden speaks during a signing ceremony on Friday, Jan 22, 2021.Washington Post photo by Jabin Botsford
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden is scheduled to take executive actions as early as Thursday to reopen federal marketplaces selling Affordable Care Act health plans and to lower recently imposed barriers to joining Medicaid.
The orders will be Biden s first steps since taking office to help Americans gain health insurance, a prominent campaign goal that has assumed escalating significance as the pandemic has highlighted desire for affordable health care - and deprived millions of Americans coverage as they have lost jobs in the economic fallout.
Acupuncture: Does It Work and Is It Covered by Medicare?
Jim Miller,
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Dear Savvy Senior,
Is acupuncture a viable treatment for pain and is it covered by Medicare? Since the pandemic hit, I have a lot of lower back and neck pain and am wondering if it’s worth trying. What can you tell me?
Looking for Solutions
Dear Looking,
Many studies over the years – funded by the National Institutes of Health – have found acupuncture to be very effective in easing pain and can help with a variety of other ailments too. Here’s what you should know.
Acupuncture Treatment
Credit Screenshot from Gov. Andy Beshear
Governor Andy Beshear in a Tuesday press conference on the coronavirus announced Kentucky hospitals will receive an additional $800 million to $1 billion annually to help advance the quality of care of Medicaid members and to provide a stable financial base for hospitals that plans to extend beyond the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cabinet For Health And Family Services Secretary Eric Friedlander commented on the approval from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the new directed payment initiative that increases in-patient medicaid payments for Kentucky hospitals. He said this program would improve the quality of care Kentucky hospitals will be able to offer, which would not be possible without the partnership with the Kentucky Hospital Association.
On Dec. 22, 2020, a Cayuga County nursing home in Auburn, New York started injecting Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines into residents. Exactly a week later, three residents died because of [.]
Biden chooses former FDA commissioner Kessler to head nation s vaccine effort
Laurie McGinley and Amy Goldstein, The Washington Post
Jan. 15, 2021
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President-elect Joe Biden during a covid-19 briefing in October by health advisers Celine Gounder, David Kessler, Marcella Nunez-Smith and Vivek Murthy.Washington Post photo by Demetrius Freeman
President-elect Joe Biden has selected David Kessler, a close adviser on the covid-19 crisis, to lead the next administration s efforts to accelerate the manufacture, distribution and administration of coronavirus vaccines, the Biden transition team announced Friday morning.
His appointment comes at a pivotal moment - as the president-elect has begun spelling out plans to speed up the Trump administration s sluggish effort on vaccinations to protect against covid-19, the disease caused by the deadly virus. Biden, in a speech Thursday night, said he would ask Congress for $20 billion - part of a larger package targeting t