Hospitals
Hospitals have faced their own issues, as for-profit chains HCA Holdings Inc. and Tenet Healthcare Corp. have said they’re seeing an increase in uninsured patients. HCA said the number of uninsured people admitted to its hospitals climbed 13.6 percent in the third quarter, compared with a year earlier, while Tenet said its uninsured and charity admissions rose 3.7 percent. Those reports sparked investors worriesthat the law’s gains in covering the uninsured are slowing.
Burwell said that while the U.S. had predicted only a modest increase in Obamacare sign-ups for next year, much of that was because people were keeping coverage they had through their jobs, helped by an improving economy.
“What we want to focus on is the reduction of the number of uninsured,” Burwell said in an interview on Bloomberg Television Monday. “Whether that happens because people enroll in the marketplace or because we have lower unemployment in the nation, those are both positive ways to impact and affect that uninsured number.”
The U.S. is rolling out other tools as well for the health law’s third enrollment season. Insurers are increasingly narrowing the networks of doctors and hospitals that they’re offering on the exchanges, which can help lower the cost of a plan. To help individuals figure out what’s included in the coverage they’re buying, the U.S. is developing a feature that shows whether a particular doctor or hospital is covered, Burwell said.
While that may mean fewer choices for care, that may not be a bad thing if consumers know what they’re getting up front, Burwell said. “Narrow isn’t bad if it’s what you want and need.”