Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Harris: Subpoenas sent in Maryland health exchange probe
A Maryland congressman announced Tuesday the Health and Human Services Department's inspector general has issued subpoenas to get to the bottom of what went wrong with his state's Obamacare exchange. Published August 26, 2014
Connecticut exec to lead federal Obamacare website
The Obama administration has tapped a health reform leader from Connecticut to be the new CEO of the federal Obamacare marketplace known as HealthCare.gov. Published August 26, 2014
Obamacare contracts soar past estimates, audit finds
At least a third of the contracts the administration inked to help implement Obamacare are over budget, an inspector general's audit reported Tuesday, highlighting the health program's potential to inflate costs. Published August 26, 2014
Obama admin. forges new ways for objecting employers to cope with contraception mandate
Religious groups rejected the Obama administration's latest changes to a mandate requiring employers to insure birth control in their health plans, a sign that legal battles will persist after a pair of Supreme Court decrees thrust religious liberty into the spotlight this summer. Published August 22, 2014
Obamacare challengers to D.C. Circuit: Let Supreme Court decide where subsidies should flow
Obamacare challengers have asked a federal appeals court to stand down and let the Supreme Court decide whether the government may give subsidies to people who used the federal health exchange, a standoff that threatens to upend the health overhaul. Published August 21, 2014
Obamacare tax forms may pose challenge for enrollees, exchanges
Obamacare customers won't be able to file their tax returns next year until the government sends them a form detailing their coverage and tax credits, and if those forms are late some taxpayers could face a delay in seeking their refunds. Published August 20, 2014
Sen. Mark Pryor releases a rare pro-Obamacare ad
Sen. Mark Pryor's re-election campaign released an ad Wednesday that touts a part of Obamacare — a rarity among Democrats hoping to stave off attacks derived from the law's negative headlines and poor polling numbers. Published August 20, 2014
Grimes takes heat over family discount on bus
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's campaign is hitting Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes for renting a bus acquired by her father's company for less than what other similar services would charge — a discrepancy legal experts say could be considered an illegal in-kind contribution. Published August 19, 2014
Obamacare suffers bad news on cost, tax fronts
The Obamacare program got a double dose of bad news Tuesday as a federal watchdog reported its tax on medical devices is bringing in less money than expected, while a Federal Reserve study warned that many private companies expect to see their health costs soar because of the president's signature health law. Published August 19, 2014
Chris Christie is lone GOP presidential prospect to expand Medicaid
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's decision to expand Medicaid under Obamacare puts him alone among Republican governors vying for the 2016 presidential nomination, and could come back to haunt him among primary voters. Published August 18, 2014
Democrats ignore gains in coverage under Obamacare
Arkansas and Kentucky have been Southern pioneers in rolling out Obamacare and getting their residents covered this year, but Democratic Senate candidates in those states aren't boasting about it in their campaign ads. Published August 18, 2014
Top Dem vows review of police access to military equipment
The top Senate Democrat overseeing the military said Friday that Congress will reexamine the programs that allow state and local authorities to buy or borrow military equipment, as the backlash against heavily armed and armored police grows. Published August 15, 2014
New Idaho exchange will grab its 76K Obamacare customers without feds’ help
Idaho officials say they're tired of waiting on files from the federal government and have figured out a way to transfer the state's 76,000 Obamacare customers from the federal marketplace to its state-run portal this fall. Published August 14, 2014
Administration urges Obamacare customers to update citizenship data
The Obama administration pleaded with more than 300,000 Obamacare customers Tuesday to fix inconsistent citizenship or immigration data they submitted to the government or else risk losing their health coverage by the end of next month. Published August 12, 2014
Partisan divide seen in federal judges’ Obamacare votes
Predicting whether Obamacare survives its latest battery of court challenges could be as easy as looking at the judges making the decisions — and the presidents who appointed them. Published August 10, 2014
Kentucky, Arkansas tops in trimming uninsured rate under Obamacare
Two southern states with key Senate contests have seen the sharpest drops in their uninsured rates since Obamacare's rule requiring Americans to hold health insurance took effect at the start of this year, according to Gallup. Published August 5, 2014
Treasury IG: IRS is reporting accurate data to Obamacare system
The IRS generally is reporting accurate income and family size information to the Obamacare's new insurance exchanges, according to a Treasury audit Tuesday that offers good news to an Obama administration dogged by questions about whether its health care law's systems actually work. Published August 5, 2014
Obama administration asked whole D.C. Circuit to take on major Obamacare case
The Obama administration has asked the second-most powerful court in America to take a second look at a ruling that, if upheld, would blow a huge hole in its signature health care law. Published August 1, 2014
John Kerry condemns attack on Israeli soldiers, kidnapping
Secretary of State John Kerry condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the Friday attack that killed two Israeli soldiers and led to the apparent capture of a third, saying it was an "outrageous violation of the cease-fire" negotiated in recent days. Published August 1, 2014
U.S. starts to evacuate American Ebola patients from West Africa: Report
American health officials are transferring an American patient infected with the Ebola virus from West Africa to the U.S. for treatment in Atlanta. Published August 1, 2014
