The Shutdown Ends and the Insurance Marketplace Rollout Begins

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October 25, 2013
In this issue
» Medical Research, Medicare Rates, SGR and More Affected by Federal Shutdown

» Glitches and Logjams Mar Opening of Health Insurance Marketplaces

» For Many Physicians, Job Satisfaction Hinges on Quality of Care



About this newsletter

The ACP Advocate is an e-newsletter, edited by the College's Washington, DC governmental affairs division, created to provide you, our members, with succinct news about public policy issues affecting internal medicine and patient care. To learn more about ACP's Advocacy and to access the ACP Advocate archives, go to www.acponline.org/advocacy.

Welcome to The ACP Advocate

Our first story for you today is another update on the battle over the budget and the debt ceiling.  As I’m sure you heard, Congress passed legislation last week to both re-open the government and to extend the debt ceiling.  The legislation only extends things through the beginning of next year, check out our article for more about what might happen between now and then and what it may mean for you.

Today’s second story is all about the other big story in Washington, the rollout of the health insurance marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act.  There have been numerous problems with the websites where consumers can access information about health plans and sign up.  HHS and the administration say they’re working on the problem, but we don’t know when we’ll see an improvement.  Read the article for more details and to find out what you may want to say to your frustrated patients.

And, finally, our third story brings to you information about a new study on physician job satisfaction.  As I’m sure a lot of you expect, the study shows that physicians are most satisfied when they’re able to deliver high-quality care to their patients.  Take a look for more details about what they found.

Until our next issue, for more coverage of what's happening in Washington take a look at my award-winning blog, The ACP Advocate Blog by Bob Doherty. You can also follow me on Twitter @BobDohertyACP.

As always, please send your feedback and suggestions on this newsletter to: TheACPAdvocate@acponline.org.

Yours truly,

Bob Doherty
Senior Vice President
Governmental Affairs and Public Policy
American College of Physicians


In the news
» Medical Research, Medicare Rates, SGR and More Affected by Federal Shutdown
  Uncertainty reigns as federal government tries to catch up after closure
 

The 16-day government shutdown may be over, but its effects on the country's health care system will reverberate for weeks and months to come.

Public health programs, research institutions, food a... » Click to read the full article


» Glitches and Logjams Mar Opening of Health Insurance Marketplaces
  ACP leaders express concern but urge physicians to encourage patients to keep trying
 

The government shutdown crisis seemed to serve one purpose Republicans surely did not intend: It obscured what has been a bumpy rollout of the Health Insurance Marketplaces created under the Affordable Care... » Click to read the full article


» For Many Physicians, Job Satisfaction Hinges on Quality of Care
  Frustration with electronic health records also plays a role, new survey finds
 

What makes doctors less than satisfied with their work? Not being able to provide top-notch patient care because of obstacles in their way.

That's one of the main findings of a survey on physician... » Click to read the full article


In focus
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