Princess Health and Supreme Court upholds Obamacare subsides in all states; ruling has no direct effect on Kentucky, but focuses political debate.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Supreme Court upholds Obamacare subsides in all states; ruling has no direct effect on Kentucky, but focuses political debate.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act federal government governor's race health care law health insurance insurance coverage insurance exchange obamacare Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act U.S. Supreme Court

Gusty 15:40 Add Comment

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the tax subsidies provided under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are legal in every state.

While the ruling has no effect on Kentucky, and would have had no direct effect if it had gone the other way, it sets the table for continued political debate about health policy in Congress and in Kentucky's race for governor.

"Congress passed the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the 6-3 majority opinion. "If at all possible, we must interpret the Act in a way that is consistent with the former, and avoids the latter."

The law says the federal government can pay subsidies to help people afford insurance bought through �an Exchange established by the State.� The lawsuit argued that Americans in the 34 states using the federal exchanges were not eligible for the subsidies, which are crucial to the law's success, helping to make health insurance more affordable, reducing the number of uninsured Americans. Proponents of the law say not providing subsidies to individuals in those 34 states relying on the federal exchange would have upended the law, notes CNN.

President Obama called on critics to accept the law as permanent, saying after the ruling, "The Affordable Care Act is here to stay."

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called Obamacare �a rolling disaster for the American people,� with a �multitude of broken promises, including the one that resulted in millions of Americans losing the coverage they had and wanted to keep. Today�s ruling won�t change the skyrocketing costs in premiums, deductibles, and co-pays that have hit the middle class so hard over the last few years.�

Maps: Percentage uninsured in 2012, above, and 2014, below

Obama countered, "The setbacks I remember clearly. But as the dust has settled, there can be no doubt that this law is working. It has changed, and in some cases saved, American lives. It set this country on a smarter, stronger course." He added, "The law has helped hold the price of health care to its slowest growth in 50 years" and "Nearly one in three Americans who was uninsured a few years ago is insured today. The uninsured rate in America is the lowest since we began to keep records."

A White House fact sheet noted that the law also expanded "access to preventive care, including immunizations, well-child visits, certain cancer screenings, and contraceptive services, with no additional out-of-pocket costs as well as no more annual caps on essential benefit coverage and new annual limits on out-of-pocket costs."

Since Kentucky established its own exchange, Kynect, for buying subsidized health insurance or signing up for Medicaid, the ruling may seem moot for Kentuckians. However, it establishes some of the facts for a health-care policy debate in the governor's race between Republican Matt Bevin and Democratic Attorney General Jack Conway.

The exchanges and the expansion of the federal-state Medicaid program are choices for the states, and Bevin has said that if elected he would shut down Kynect and end the Medicaid expansion, which has covered about 430,000 Kentuckians. The federal government is paying their entire cost through next year; in 2017 the state would start picking up a small share, rising to the law's limit of 10 percent in 2020.

Conway has acknowledged questions about whether the state can afford to pay its share, but to �say you�re going to kick a half a million people off of health insurance based on what we may or may not be able to afford in 2021 is irresponsible.� A Conway spokesman said he "appreciates the court's careful consideration of this case and agrees with today's decision," reports the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The Herald-Leader's Mary Meehan interviewed officials and experts for a package of questions and answers about the law and Kentucky. It is published at http://www.kentucky.com/2015/06/25/3917832_in-light-of-the-supreme-court.html.

Outgoing Gov. Steve Beshear, a Democrat who expanded Medicaid, said in a statement that the decision �reaffirms that, from the very start, we did the right thing for the more than 500,000 Kentuckians who have qualified for health-care coverage through Kynect since January 1, 2014.�

Susan Zepeda, president and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said in a release, "While many have been awaiting this important decision, we must remember that much remains to be done to assure that all Kentuckians � and all Americans � have timely access to safe, effective and affordable quality care." Zepeda said Kentuckians continue to work on ways to improve and protect Kentuckians' health, such as reforming the way we pay for care and making health care cost and pricing more transparent.

"As people who have forgone care too long because of its expense now gain access to care, it will place a larger short-term burden on the health-care system, which approaches like these can help to address," said Zepeda. "The Affordable Care Act permits � and incentivizes � local health care innovation. We can and must shape Kentucky solutions to Kentucky�s health challenges."

Princess Health and Princess Health andKentucky does well in national comparison of premiums and tax credits in new health-insurance system.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andKentucky does well in national comparison of premiums and tax credits in new health-insurance system.Princessiccia

health care costs health care law obamacare Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act rural-urban disparities

Gusty 14:22 Add Comment

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, health-insurance costs vary from region to region and state to state, and federal subsidies won't remove all of the differences, Christopher Snowbeck and MaryJo Webster write for the St. Paul Pioneer Press. According to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and state-run health insurance exchanges, Kentucky's cost of coverage compares favorably; most areas in the state have prices that are between 2.63 and 8.68 percent of annual income. Of course, the lower prices in Kentucky�and in other states�might be correlated to narrower networks of health-care providers, which insurers are using to limit costs. Here's a screen grab of an interactive map showing costs of coverage for different ages and incomes; for the actual interactive map, click here.

In more urbanized areas, where insurance competition is greater and prices are lower, smaller tax credits are needed, but more subsidy is needed in places with higher premiums�such as rural areas of the South. "Because there is so much geographic variation in cost, the government does have to pitch in a larger portion of premium in higher-cost areas to make coverage affordable," said Cynthia Cox, a researcher at the California-based Kaiser Family Foundation.

Though some people feel that the law is unfair and that they don't receive the tax credits as high as in other areas, the PPACA exists to ensure that "people at certain income levels pay no more than a set share of income to buy the midlevel 'benchmark' health plan where they live," Snowbeck and Webster write. Some variation in price disappeared, though, because insurance companies can no longer refuse to cover people who have pre-existing health conditions, said Jonathan Gruber, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist who helped craft the law.

Coverage prices differ because of factors such as health status, cost of living and competition among insurance companies. However, though the same plan sells for $170 per month in Pittsburgh and $450 in areas of Georgia, federal subsidies based on income brign the latter cost below $300. "The tax credits can help us bring that premium cost down and say to people: 'It's now in the achievable range,'" said Tracy Brosius of the Wyoming Institute of Population Health.

Sometimes the tax-credit system actually allows people in higher-cost cities to pay less than those from lower-cost cities. "Assessing which consumers wind up with the 'better deals' can be complicated, policy experts say, because the lowest-cost silver plans available in different regions likely have different coverage details, such as deductibles and networks of doctors and hospitals," Snowbeck and Webster write. Though some argue that the new system doesn't offer incentives for regions that more provide more effective health care, Cox said "Insurers still have a financial incentive to keep premiums low to attract enrollees, particularly young enrollees who might not be tax-credit eligible." (Read more)

Princess Health and Bankruptcy filing by mental-health agency is a loser for Kentucky, where such services can be scarce and little used.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Bankruptcy filing by mental-health agency is a loser for Kentucky, where such services can be scarce and little used.Princessiccia

alcohol alcohol abuse depression drug abuse health care law legislature Medicaid mental health mental illness prevention state government

Gusty 14:15 Add Comment

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

The decision of Seven Counties Services Inc. to file bankruptcy to avoid paying into the Kentucky Employee Retirement System has created a "no win" situation for the state, and the issue may add yet another obstacle for Kentuckians to get the mental health care they need.

Louisville-based Seven Counties is one of the state's largest mental-health agencies, serving more than 30,000 adults and children with mental-health services, alcohol and drug-abuse treatment, developmental-disabilities services and preventive programs, according to its website.

And while Kentucky's mental-health system has received an F grade for its funding, the state pension system needs agencies like Seven Counties to pay in more because the system is just 27 percent funded. "Employers will have to ante up around 38 percent of annual payroll, compared with the 23 percent now required," Mike Wynn notes in The Courier-Journal.

Kentucky's need for mental health services is much greater than the supply, and an estimated 1.7 million Kentuckians live in areas designated as a "mental health professional shortage area," which means almost 40 percent of Kentucky residents lack proper access to such professionals, says a report by the Kaiser Family Foundation. About 24 percent of residents' mental-health care needs are under-served, and this situation could be worsened by federal health reform, which will expand mental-health and substance-abuse treatment benefits to more Kentuckians without adding to the number of providers.

Bankruptcy for Seven Counties is a lose-lose proposition: It could close its doors in 2014 and stop providing services to 30,000 Kentuckians or, if the bankruptcy goes through, the state's retirement system wouldn't get anticipated agency payments into the system, reports Ryan Alessi of cn|2, a news service of the Time Warner and Insight cable-TV companies.

�The only two paths this can go is we could stay in KERS until we have given them our last nickel, which is a year (or) year-and-a-half from now � (and) we close the doors and go out of business and KERS gets no more money because we�re out of business,� Dr. Tony Zipple, president of Seven Counties, told Alessi.

In addition to funding problems for mental-health services, many people with mental-health issues don't seek treatment because of its stigma, said Sheila Schuster, executive director of the Kentucky Mental Health Coalition, in a recent opinion piece sent to Kentucky newspapers.  Shuster calls on elected leaders to increase funding of mental health services and highlights the prevalence of mental health illness.

"At least one-fourth of us will experience a behavioral health issues (mental illness or substance use disorder) in a given year," Schuster writes. That number, and the number of people needing treatment, will continue to grow, she says.

Schuster also writes about the societal impact of not treating mental illness: "Depression is rated as the #1 cause of disability in this country, and is a leading cause of absenteeism and decreased productivity in the work force." Because some people avoid treatment due to stigma, they may self-medicate with drugs or alcohol, and "the effects of stigma and failure to treat the whole person can have catastrophic results," she writes.

In addition to calling for more mental health funding, Schuster asks all Kentuckians to get educated about mental illness so that its stigma can be erased. Click here to read more from Schuster about mental health and resources for help. For a PDF of her op-ed, click here; for a text version, here.

Princess Health and Confused or concerned about the impact of health reform on Kentucky businesses? There's a seminar for that..Princessiccia

Princess Health and Confused or concerned about the impact of health reform on Kentucky businesses? There's a seminar for that..Princessiccia

health care health care access health care costs health care law health care reform health reform insurance insurance exchange

Gusty 11:13 Add Comment

To address possible confusion or concern of business people and the public about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or "Obamacare," health-care reform experts will address its impact on small and large companies across Kentucky at half-day seminars in Lexington and Louisville on May 8 and 9.

The Kentucky Health Care Reform Seminar will include specific discussions about expected cost increases and tax implications for businesses once reform is implemented, including the role of the health insurance exchange and the changing ways that coverage premiums will be determined. The seminar will be presented by The Iasis Group Inc., The Lane Report and the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, says a chamber release.  

Guidance to employers will be provided on complying with the new rules surrounding insurance reforms and insight to whether Kentucky companies can truly afford it. The seminar is part of a statewide partnership that includes Commerce Lexington, Greater Louisville Inc., the Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management and the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce (Click here for more details or to advance register)

Princess Health and Essential-benefits rule expands mental-health and substance-abuse coverage; Ky. needs more facilities to treat newly eligible.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Essential-benefits rule expands mental-health and substance-abuse coverage; Ky. needs more facilities to treat newly eligible.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act health care law health insurance insurance insurance exchange KCHIP mental health mental illness Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act substance abuse

Gusty 12:02 Add Comment

The Department of Health and Human Services has defined the 10 "essential health benefits" insurance plans must provide, and it included benefits for mental health and treatment of substance-abuse disorders..

Nearly 20 percent of Americans don't have access to mental-health services and over 30 percent have no coverage for substance-abuse treatment. This rule will expand mental health and substance-abuse treatment benefits to 62 million Americans, according to HHS.

Expanded coverage for mental health and substance abuse treatment programs in Kentucky could bring about a dramatic shift in the delivery of these services. There is already a shortage of treatment options and centers for Kentuckians, and those suffering from addiction have not had coverage for such treatment; the proposed rule will change that.

Recovery Kentucky, a public-private partnership with residential facilities, was created to help Kentuckians recover from substance abuse. It has 10 centers, in Campbellsville, Erlanger, Florence, Harlan, Henderson, Hopkinsville, Morehead, Owensboro, Paducah, and Richmond, according to the 2012 Justice & Public Safety Cabinet report, which included the map below. 

Health-insurance plans must cover the 10 essential benefits beginning in 2014, so the state must prepare for the newly insured in addition to newly covered services. The rule defines what must be covered in insurance plans and bans discrimination based on age or pre-existing conditions. Among the core package of items and services, known as �essential health benefits" are items and services in the following categories:

1. Ambulatory patient services
2. Emergency services
3. Hospitalization
4. Maternity and newborn care
5. Mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment
6. Prescription drugs
7. Rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices
8. Laboratory services
9. Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management
10. Pediatric services, including oral and vision care

States are given flexibility in implementing the federal health-care reform law with a benchmark approach. The Kentucky Department of Insurance has recommended that the Anthem Preferred Provider Organization plan serve as the �benchmark� plan for the Kentucky Health Benefit Exchange. HHS will review the recommendation and accept public comments prior to making a final decision. (Read more)

Princess Health and Medicaid expansion brings primary care access to the forefront.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Medicaid expansion brings primary care access to the forefront.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act health care health care access health care law Medicaid Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act primary care state government

Gusty 08:00 Add Comment

The federal health reform law will usher at least seven million more Americans into Medicaid, and as states like Kentucky debate Medicaid expansion, policymakers are struggling with the question of whether there will even be enough primary care doctors to provide care, reports Michael Ollove of Stateline.

The country is already short of primary-care doctors. Although many primary-care physicians would take on new Medicare or privately-insured patients, only two out of three primary-care physicians surveyed in 2011 were willing to accept new Medicaid patients.

Why? Poor compensation is one reason; on average, Medicaid pays physicians 59 percent of the amount Medicare pays for primary care services, reports Ollove. Many Kentucky primary-care providers are also deterred by existing Medciaid problems. Providers report being burdened by a lack of or delayed payments from the new managed-care system.

Congress hopes to lure practitioners to primary care with a provision that raises primary-care providers' Medicaid fees to Medicare levels. This is only a temporary fix, which went into effect at the beginning of the year and will remain in effect for two years, reports Ollove.

The impact in Kentucky remains uncertain. Lawrence Kissner, Kentucky's commissioner for health and family services, says the state�s Medicaid pay raise in 2005 resulted in a 36 percent increase in the number of primary care doctors accepting Medicaid patients, reports Ollove. This is precisely what the health-law authors hope will happen now.

Kentucky is addressing the health coverage issue in other ways.  The General Assembly is considering a bill that would repeal a burdensome supervision requirement and encourage more independent physician assistants to remain in Kentucky to serve medically underserved areas.

Although Kentucky already allows nurse practitioners to practice independently, the Medicaid rate increase applies only to physicians who provide primary care services. It does not apply to nurse practitioners, who have been touted as a potential solution to the primary care problem and often provide care in underserved areas of the state. (Read more)

Princess Health and Frontier Nursing University in Hyden helps bring better family health care to rural America with distance learning.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Frontier Nursing University in Hyden helps bring better family health care to rural America with distance learning.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act health care access health care law health reform medical education midwifery nurse practitioners nurses Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act rural health rural medicine

Gusty 06:20 Add Comment

Midwives and nurse practitioners who recently graduated from Frontier Nursing University in Hyden address the unique challenges of rural areas, including shortages of health care providers, by bringing local health care to rural communities across the country. FNU was featured in a recent report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

FNU, a graduate program that offers distance education to nurses with an interest in nurse-midwifery and family nurse practitioner and women�s health specialties, aims to build a pipeline of highly educated nurses serving in rural or underserved areas, reports RWJF, one of its funders.  Many scholars and grantees sponsored by RWJF go on to spearhead projects to improve access to high quality nursing care in remote areas, the foundation says.

�We�re trying to introduce primary care providers into rural areas in such a way that they can provide high quality care and preventive services too,� says Suzan Ulrich, associate dean of midwifery and women�s health at FNU and an RWJF executive nurse fellow.

Demand for health care is rising nationwide because of an aging population that is living longer, but sicker, with multiple chronic conditions. The need for health care providers will intensify next year, when millions of new patients will become eligible for health insurance under the health-reform law.

Rural parts of the country face unique challenges and shortages of health providers, including nurses, can be particularly acute in rural areas, said Alan Morgan, CEO of the National Rural Health Association. These nurses and other providers have less access to education programs, which tend to be located in more densely populated areas. Programs that offer advanced degrees, from the baccalaureate to the doctorate, can be especially difficult to access for students living in rural areas, according to RWJF.

Identifying and educating nurses from rural areas is a key goal of FNU, which offers distance education programs that enable students to remain in their home communities and a �bridge� program that allows nurses with associate�s degrees to move more easily into master�s and doctorate programs. �These students really love where they live,� Ulrich said. �If we can educate them to stay within their communities, then those communities are going to have a provider who�s going to be there a long time." (Read more)

Princess Health and Invisible health panel could help Ky., if it had money and met.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Invisible health panel could help Ky., if it had money and met.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act Barack Obama Congress health care health care access health care law primary care rural health

Gusty 11:32 Add Comment

A panel charged with helping devise solutions to the nation�s health-care workforce crisis, which includes ensuring rural areas have enough health-care providers, is having a workforce crisis of its own: It hasn�t been funded, and it�s never met, writesKyle Cheney of Politico. 

The National Health Care Workforce Commission was created by Congress nearly three years ago under the Affordable Care Act, the panelists were appointed, but that�s about it. The lack of action was noted at a hearing Tuesday of a subcommittee of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, convened by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging.

Sanders issued a report estimating that 57 million Americans lack ready access to primary care. Since  millions are expected to gain coverage when the reform law goes into full effect next year, there is a looming concern over whether there are enough doctors, physicians' assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses and so on. Most of the worry relates to the lack of primary-care providers in underserved areas, which could be a huge problem for Kentucky.

In addition to exploring the health workforce needs in rural and �medically underserved� settings, the commission was supposed to address the capacity of the nursing workforce, graduate medical education policies, education and loan programs for health-care professionals and the �mental and behavioral health care workforce capacity,� writes Cheney.

Since the 15-member panel was appointed in September 2010 by the U.S. comptroller general, 10 members� terms have expired, and they�ve been reappointed for another three years each, Cheney reports. No funding has been approved, although both Senate Democrats and President Barack Obama have proposed $3 million funding packages.

�In order for the promise of expanded coverage passed into law by ACA to become a reality, the provisions designed to reach those goals must be fully funded and implemented,� Sanders said. �We need to make sure that our health care system has the infrastructure in place to provide the care necessary to prevent diseases and improve the health of all Americans.� (Read more)

Princess Health and Feds plan to let states impose co-payments on Medicaid patients above poverty level to encourage them to expand the program.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Feds plan to let states impose co-payments on Medicaid patients above poverty level to encourage them to expand the program.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act federal government health care access health care costs health care law legislation Medicaid Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act poverty state government

Gusty 18:22 Add Comment

By Molly Burchett and Al Cross
Kentucky Health News

If Kentucky expands its Medicaid program, it will probably be able to reduce the cost by requiring patients whose incomes are above the federal poverty level to help pay for their care. That could make it more feasible for the state to expand the program to people with incomes up to 138 percent of the poverty line.

A proposed federal policy will let states charge co-payments and increased premiums for doctor visits and some prescription drugs and hospital care. Robert Pear of The New York Times reports that the policy is designed to encourage states to expand Medicaid under the federal health-care reform law, with generous federal help. By shifting costs to patients, the state and federal governments would pay less.

That adds a new perspective to the cost consideration in Kentucky's debate over expansion of Medicaid. It could influence the state's decision, Republican state Sen. Julie Denton of Louisville said Friday during a legislative panel at the Kentucky Press Association convention.

Denton cautioned that the state needs to fix its problems with Medicaid managed care before it expands the program. Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear has said he wants to expand Medicaid if the state can afford it, and since there is no deadline for deciding whether to participate in the expansion, the debate may carry over into 2014.

Some Republicans have said Kentucky can't afford the expansion. If the state expands Medicaid eligibility to 138 percent of poverty from its current threshold of 70 percent, the federal government would pay all the cost of the expansion until 2017, when the state would begin helping out, with its share reaching 10 percent in 2020. The federal share of the state's current program is 72 percent.

This proposed rule could have important implications not just for state finances, but for Medicaid patients. It means that a family of three with an annual income of $30,000 could be required to pay $1,500 in premiums and co-payments, Pear reports in the Times.

As published in the Federal Register last week, the rule proposes to "update and simplify Medicaid premium and cost sharing requirements, to promote the most effective use of services and to assist states in identifying cost-sharing flexibilities." It proposes "new options for states to establish higher cost sharing for nonpreferred drugs and to propose higher cost sharing for non-emergency use" of emergency rooms.

Barbara K. Tomar, director of federal affairs at the American College of Emergency Physicians, told Pear that the administration had not adequately defined the �nonemergency services� for which the poor might have to pay. "In many cases, she said, patients legitimately believe they need emergency care, but the final diagnosis does not bear that out," Pear writes.

The proposed rule has no limit on emergency department charges for "non-emergency use." It says the hospital will have responsibility to assess the individual clinically and ensure access to other sources of care before requiring payment, which could pose problems for hospitals.

The public has until Feb. 13 to comment on the proposed rule, which can be submitted at www.regulations.gov.

Princess Health and Health departments prepare for challenges posed by health-care reform law.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Health departments prepare for challenges posed by health-care reform law.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act county health departments grants health care law health care reform health departments health insurance

Gusty 07:14 Add Comment

No one really has a clue what changes from the health-care reform law will mean to Kentuckians and public health departments are preparing for the uncertainty, reports Kristy Cox of Business Lexington.

"The Affordable Care Act will have an impact on health departments.  It is going to put a whole lot more people out there on the street on health insurance" of one kind or another, Dr. Rice Leach, head of the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, told Cox.

"I think how health departments are impacted is going to look a little different depending on what part of the state they're in," Rice said. "The United States has passed a law that creates an entitlement for 30 or 40 million people, and here in Lexington, for 10,000 or 20,000 more people to have health insurance. Now, who is going to take care of them?"

If the private sector can't handle the increased patient load, Leach said, the stress goes onto the health departments, meaning they may be expected to provide a broad "continuum" of care for acute medical needs, including doctors and laboratory services. Leach said he hopes other systems will step up to provide care so health departments can continue to focus on preventative services.

Many factors determine what health departments can and can't do as well as their ability to generate dollars. Leach called  the services mandates by state and federal governments as "mission critical activities," which include preventive health, communicable disease control, public health education, emergency response, sanitary code and restaurant inspection and public health policy, writes Cox. 

Despite the challenging economic environment created by budget cuts and managed-care non-payment issues, Kentucky health departments are trying to stay focused on their big-picture mission.  Some departments are writing grants and others, like the Lincoln Trail District Health Department, has sent nurses into school systems in attempt to increase revenue through expanded clinical services, Cox reports.

Princess Health and What health reform changes to expect in 2012 � assuming the Supreme Court doesn't strike down the entire law.Princessiccia

Princess Health and What health reform changes to expect in 2012 � assuming the Supreme Court doesn't strike down the entire law.Princessiccia

accountable care organizations health care law health care reform Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Gusty 22:10 Add Comment

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments later this month about the federal health care-reform law, and is expected to decide the law's future this summer. While the court mulls the constitutionality of an individual mandate to buy health insurance, "implementation marches on, and a number of notable changes will take effect for consumers this year," writes Michelle Andrews for Kaiser Health News.

If the high court strikes down the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, "all bets are off," Andrews writes. Popular provisions, such as allowing children to stay on their parents' insurance until age 26 and the 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs for seniors under the prescription drug doughnut hole, could be eliminated � and provisions set to take effect this year could be cancelled. But, if the Supreme Court does not invalidate the entire law, here's a list of new provisions consumers can expect this year:

Free contraception coverage: "Women in a new health plan or in an existing one that has changed its benefits enough to not be considered grandfathered under the law will be able to receive contraceptives without an out-of-pocket charge," Andrews writes. Insurance plans will also have to provide basic health services for women, including screening for gestational diabetes; HPV testing; STD counseling; screening and testing for HIV; and screening and counseling for interpersonal and domestic violence. Religious employers such as churches are exempt from the new regulation, but colleges, hospitals and other employers that are religiously affiliated are not � though they do have a one-year grace period to implement it. Employees of those institutions will receive their free benefit from their employer's insurance.

Consumer rebates: Under the law, insurance companies have to spend at least 80 to 85 of their premium revenues on medical claims and quality improvement. If they don't, they have to pay the difference to policyholders, which, in most plans, means the employer. If the provision had been in place in 2010, an analysis by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners estimated that would have meant $2 billion going to consumers. In December, the Obama administration said that about 9 million Americans could receive rebates that added up to $1.4 billion.

Clearer descriptions: Starting in September, all health plans will have to give consumers benefits information that is easy to understand. "Every plan will be required to give people a short summary of coverage and a uniform glossary of terms," Andrews reports. "It will also have to provide examples of how much the plan would cover if someone had a baby or was managing Type 2 diabetes � two common situations that should make it easier for people to compare plans."

Smaller doughnut hole: "This is the break in Medicare prescription drug benefits that, in a standard plan, begins after total drug spending by the beneficiary and the health plan exceeds $2,930 and continues until the beneficiary has hit the $4,700 out-of-pocket limit," Andrews reports. Last year, people on Medicare with high drug costs got a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs once they reached the doughnut hole. This year, they'll also get a 14 percent discount on generic drugs. (Read more)