Weekly Dose of Health News February 13, 2015
Affordable Care Act News:
- About 7.8 million people signed up for healthcare under the ACA or re-enrolled as of February 6th. The week of January 31st – February 6th saw 275,676 sign up for health insurance.
- On September 30th, funding for The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is set to expire. Some are worried that new insurance options under the ACA, along with today’s heated political climate, will spell the end of funding for CHIP. The American Health Line writes that experts are pretty confident about CHIP’s continued funding and reauthorization.
- The New York Times writes that although the ACA has helped improve the insurance system in some ways, such as by slowing the rise in premiums, it has done little to put the brakes on other related healthcare expenses.
- President Obama teams up with Buzzfeed for a very silly video to encourage younger Americans to sign up for health insurance by the deadline.
Mayor de Blasio’s Budget:
- NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio presented his preliminary budget for FY 2016 on Monday. It includes 16.5 million over three years for community health centers in underserved areas, and $1.8 million to improve the health of city’s children.
- According to his budget, the health services sector added 21,400 jobs in 2014.
Energy and Commerce Committee Announce Biomedical Initiative:
- The House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce Committee has announced their “21st Century Cures” They’re searching for ways that Congress can help “accelerate the discovery, development, and delivery of promising new treatments.”
WNYC Hosts 10 Part Series on Cancer
- Radio program WNYC is hosting a 10 part series called “Living Cancer.” It’s a companion to the new Ken Burns Documentary, “Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies” on PBS. It airs from February 9th –13th, and from March 23rd— 27th.