Obamacare

The federal penalty program finishes its first decade by lowering payments to nearly half the nation’s hospitals for readmitting too many Medicare patients within a month.

Millions are uninsured because 12 states, including Florida, have not accepted Medicaid expansion. Congressional Democrats want to offer coverage in the spending bill being debated, but competition to get into that package is fierce.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services would need to review and finalize those premiums, so that number could change.

The average premium through the ACA marketplace reportedly fell 25% in April due to tax subsidies in the American Rescue Plan. Meantime, Florida's Medicaid enrollment continued to climb in June.

Attorney General Ashley Moody says her office respects “the ruling and authority of the court” but defended her involvement in the suit, saying “my office will always push back on any federal overreach."

The 7-2 decision threw out the challenge to the law, saying Texas and other objecting GOP-dominated states were not required to pay anything under the mandate provision and thus lacked standing.

More than 500,000 people nationally have signed up for Obamacare through March 31 since the special enrollment period began. Of those, more than 146,000 were in Florida.

With 61,737 people enrolling from Feb. 15 to 28, the state accounted for nearly 30 percent of the new enrollment and far outpaced other states.

Job changes caused by the pandemic meant people who normally relied on employer-sponsored insurance needed a new way to get coverage.

Florida leads the nation in enrollment and plan selection. Texas, with more than 471,000 , was second in November, Enrollment will end Dec. 15.

Anyone with lingering effects of COVID-19 should be extra careful in picking a 2021 plan, specialists say. You now have a preexisting condition. We offer some navagating tips.

At least two of the court's conservative justices seemed to suggest the law should stand whether or not the individual mandate is found unconstitutional.