Brief 33 Policy Summary: There are many legislation proposals that are suggesting further limitations placed on those that are mentally ill and their access to guns. However, there are several loopholes which allow those with documented mental illnesses to purchase...
In the past year, Trump and his administration have championed actions that threaten the right to adequate healthcare for women and LGBTQIA+ populations. The latest actions in the past month were found primarily in a report last week detailing the elimination of online resources for lesbian and bisexual health on the Department of Health and Human Services website.
Since Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency in October of 2017, there has been very little successful action on preventative measures and combatting the effects of the crisis. The medication assistance “waiver” program suggested by HHS Secretary Alzar has only been filed by five different governors. This is due…
On Tuesday, February 20th, Secretary of Health and Human services, Alex Alzar announced a proposed rule to offer more “short term, limited duration health insurance.” This proposed rule would shorten the maximum time period of all Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care insurance plans from 12 to 3 months. This would…
On Monday, February 12, President Trump released a 2019 budget proposal. The proposal calls for massive cuts to social welfare programs such as food stamps, housing subsidies, and health insurance. Trump’s proposal would cut food stamp funding by almost 30% over the next decade. Part of these cost savings would come…
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a letter on January 11th allowing states to impose work requirements for Medicaid eligibility. Eight states, (AR, AZ, IN, KS, ME, NH, UT, and WI) have pending requests for work requirements as a condition for Medicaid eligibility and CMS has already approved Kentucky’s…
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Department of Justice would reestablish federal marijuana laws as a priority. His announcement goes against the Obama-era Cole Memo guidelines that deprioritized enforcing federal marijuana laws and gave states the freedom to establish their own legislation. The new memo stirred…
In a tweet the day after Christmas, President Donald Trump announced that the Tax Cut Bill essentially repeals the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and forces Democrats and Republicans to collaborate to create new health law. The bill eliminates the ACA’s tax penalty for not having insurance, allowing low-risk individuals…
On Friday, Pennsylvania Federal Judge Wendy Beetlestone temporarily blocked the Trump Administration’s rules that allowed employers to deny contraceptive coverage to employees based on moral or religious objections. The administration drafted the rules early this summer and officially issued them in early October. Other states have…
The tax bill that passed in the Senate early Saturday changes a crucial component of the American healthcare system: the tax penalties enforcing the individual mandate. The individual mandate is a critical to the success of the Affordable Care Act because it requires that all Americans have insurance or pay a tax penalty. Without these…
On Thursday, October 12th, President Trump scrapped subsidies to health insurance companies and signed an executive order that changed insurance market regulations. The subsidies, called cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments, help pay out-of-pocket costs for low-income people. In this desperate effort to ditch Obamacare…
On Friday, October 6, the Trump administration expanded the rights of employers with religious or moral convictions to deny contraceptive insurance coverage to their employees. Employers can now opt out of including birth control in their health insurance plans, rolling back Obama-era requirements. While Obama was president…