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Back in January, we reported on Idaho's decision to circumvent the #ACA by allowing carriers "to sell cheap policies that ditch key provisions of the Affordable Care Act."

At the time, we wondered how that would play out from DC's perspective.

Well, now we know:

"CMS Rejects Idaho Proposal for non-Affordable Care Act Plans"

Ooops.

CMS honcho Seema Verma [ed: which would be a great name for a rock band] points out (correctly) that ObamaCare "remains the law, and we have a duty to enforce and uphold [it]."

So that's that.

For now, anyway.

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Yesterday, I had the distinct privilege of meeting longtime Friend of InsureBlog Bob Graboyes, Senior Research Fellow and Health Care Scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, and esteemed co-blogger Patrick Paule. Bob was in Columbus for a speaking engagement, and so Patrick and I drove in so that we could all meet, break bread, and shmooze:

[click to embiggen]

It never fails to amaze me that one can develop such string bonds over these electronic tubes, and what a delight it is to actually meet "in the real world." Our conversation ranged from family, to background, to policy (of course!), and it was just a great opportunity to share ideas and get to know one another on a more personal level.

Thanks, Gents!

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For certain values of "triumph," of course.

First up, the caring, compassionate folks at the Much Vaunted National Health Service© seem to really enjoy killing newborns:

"The parents of a seriously ill toddler have lost their appeal against a High Court decision to end his life support."

Alfie Evans, a 21-month old Brit, has been fighting hard for his young life. But the Powers That Be at the MVNHS© are (literally) pulling his plug, even though his parents have requested to send him abroad for treatment.

And I'm sure that there's no irony ion the fact that the hospital he's being treated at, well, was being treated at, is in Liverpool.

Interesting Pathway, nyet?

But we really shouldn't be that surprised, since we see similar results here in our own version of government-run healthcare:

"Obamacare Medicaid expansion is causing more disabled people to die on waitlists."

Shades of the VA, no?

Again, what good is having "insurance" if you can't actually access care?

Inquiring minds....

[Hat Tip for Baby Alfie story:  NDH]

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■ Last time we checked, Blue Cross/Shield of North Carolina had just "filed for a 22.9 percent rate increase."

So how'd that work out?

Well, FoIB Jeff M alerts us that the carrier - the largest in The Tar Heel State - appears to have done okay for itself, as it:

"[H]as reported a higher than anticipated net income margin in 2017 at 7.8 cents for every dollar of revenue."

I bet.

■ Over on The Twitter, Dr Ari Friedman warns us about the dangers of ObamaCare's Medicaid expansion:

"Declining Medicaid Fees and Primary Care Appointment Availability for New Medicaid Patients"

To be fair: someone has to pay the piper.

■ Finally, longtime FoIB Holly R tips us to this bit of non-helpful rhetoric from the anti-ACA side:

"Sen. Orrin Hatch calls Obamacare supporters 'stupidest, dumbass people'

The Senator may not be wrong, but this kind of inartful, divisive and insulting characterization does not help out the good guys. In fact, it cheapens and denigrates the anti-ObamaCare argument.

Respectfully: Zip it, sir.

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Free health care rocks!

Wait, what?

The Much Vaunted National Health System© strikes again:

"The conditions are so bad in U.K. hospitals that, in a letter to the nation's government, 68 British emergency room physicians recently complained about patients "dying prematurely in corridors" as a result of overcrowding." via @DCexaminer https://t.co/LuYgiU8Qyc pic.twitter.com/dabRFFe0HB

— Sally Pipes (@sallypipes) March 2, 2018

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I've been working with a referral over the past few days. This young man works for a regional retail store, and thought he'd enrolled for the group health insurance during their most recent Open Enrollment period (he was a relatively new hire at the time), but found out unexpectedly (at the provider, natch) that he had not, and was currently uninsured.

So he went to HR to try to get back on-board, but his appeal was denied. Ken was told that he'd have to find another health insurance plan, "any plan," in fact, and then cancel it to be eligible (yeah, didn't track for me, either, but there it was).

Over the course of several email and phone calls, Ken shared with me this little tidbit that seemed to confirm what he was being told:

[click to embiggen]

Eagle-eyed readers will note the two rather glaring problems here. First, does no one use spell-check any longer? Second - even more egregiously - as I pointed out to Ken, "Credible" coverage would mean any ID card I successfully PhotoShopped together. And it's not like "Creditable" coverage is a new term, it's been around for at least 20 years.

In the event, we still had to get him something for a month, but with ObamaCare's Open Enrollment in the rear-view, and no Special Open Enrollment triggers available, what to do?

Of course, this is a perfect use of Short Term Medical (I mean, how much shorter of a term could there be?), so we got Ken signed up for March, and we'll cancel it at the end of the month so he can qualify for group coverage.

What's that? "Playing chicken, you say?"

Yup:

My concern is that we'll get to the end of the month, cancel the STM, and then find out that it wasn't "Credible" coverage, after all. All we could do then, of course, would be to look at another STM, or perhaps explore other options for the balance of the year.

I'm not happy about this, but at least we've bought him some time.

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Our friend Peter Shulteis at Global Underwriters wants folks to be aware of some critical issues related to working in distant lands:

"The number of people driving and flying for business purposes each year is astounding. The Global Business Travel Association counts over 488 million trips taken annually. Each year business travelers take an average of 12 trips, typically lasting at least 5 days. An estimated 1.3 million business trips occur daily in the U.S. alone. These figures are expected to grow another 7% this year.

Even with video conferencing, webinars, and daily conference calls business travel continues to increases and is vital to the success of your clients company. Hectic schedules, missed flights, transportation issues, and hotel problems are the least of employees' worries. Many employees are citing concerns related to personal security, terrorism, political unrest and infectious disease epidemics.

It's crucial that companies and organizations embrace Duty of Care obligations [ed: about which we've previously posted] and take the necessary steps to reduce potential dangers or problems that could occur while employees travel. Employers need to have a well communicated plan in place and part of this plan is providing Business Travel Accident (BTA) insurance for their employees. BTA insurance is an inexpensive benefit that supplements any employee benefit program. This World Class Protection is designed to offset the risk and potential loss of a key employee(s) and to compensate families of employees for their loss of income due to accidental death or permanent disability of a loved one."

So, what is Business Travel Accident (BTA) insurance? Basically, it "provides protection for employees who travel on business domestically and / or internationally."

By the way, this is available both for American companies sending folks abroad, and for business travelers coming to our fair shores.

Peter goes on to note:

"Most companies and organizations are innocently unaware of potential hazards that exist for employees that travel on behalf of the company or organization. Employers need to know how a Business Travel Accident (BTA) policy can mitigate risk for both the company and employee(s). Serious consequences can be levied against companies or organizations that neglect to properly insure or protect their employees when they travel."

Thanks, Peter!

And readers interested in more detailed info on BTA should click here.

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