The White House is again slashing funds for the “navigators’’ who help enroll people in the Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges. The cuts will almost certainly reduce the in-person assistance provided to Georgians seeking an exchange health plan for next year. Macon-based Community Health Works, which oversees a navigator program in the state, said Wednesday…
Just when the insurance market was looking calmer for the exchange in Georgia and other states, another event has shaken things up. In a weekend announcement, the Trump administration said it’s freezing payments under an Affordable Care Act program aimed at protecting insurers who have sicker patients from financial losses. The Centers for Medicare &…
Stacey Abrams is making health care a central issue of her campaign for Georgia governor. The Democratic nominee this week issued a statement reiterating her call for the state to expand its Medicaid program. Abrams also pointed to gains from the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, especially its protection for people with pre-existing…
With the last legal hurdle now eliminated, the Lee County hospital project has a smooth path ahead. The Dougherty County Commission late Monday dropped its lawsuit against the state for awarding a license, or certificate of need (CON), for the Lee County Medical Center. The suit had been the last barrier to the building of the $120…
The small South Georgia town of Plains currently has no practicing physician. But that’s about to change, thanks in part to advocacy from the town’s most famous resident. Former President Jimmy Carter’s efforts have helped lead Mercer University School of Medicine to open a primary clinic in the town next month, said the dean of…
Joy Kramer was diagnosed with lymphoma 13 years ago. She recovered a year later, and remains cancer-free today at 59. But for years after her treatment, Kramer fought to get affordable insurance. Her premiums and deductibles soared because of her pre-existing medical condition. For a while she gave up, going uninsured for several months. The…
Lauren McShane already had a master’s degree in public health, but wanted to branch out into the clinical side of health care. She considered going to medical school. Another possibility was becoming a physical therapist. But what she chose was taking up assistant programs at a physician assistant school. Her decision, she said, was based on…
How healthy is your city? A newly released “City Health Dashboard’’ tracks 36 measures affecting health for the 500 largest U.S. cities – those with populations of about 66,000 or more. In Georgia, 11 cities were measured on factors ranging from education and poverty to their rates of chronic diseases and their walkability. The report…