Sunday, June 23, 2013

From the Hill: 10 to watch on ObamaCare rollout

The Affordable Care Act is going through the implementation phase of the public policy process.

Time to get caught up. Here's The Hill's look at the major players in the process.

Here's one:
* Andy Allison (Arkansas Medicaid Director)

Allison has been called a visionary for his role in a proposal to use funding from ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion to finance the purchase of private coverage for low-income people on the state’s insurance exchange. The plan is seen as a possible red-state alternative to the expansion and has been approved both by federal health officials and the Arkansas state legislature. It’s also expected that the plan could lower premiums on the exchange and draw in new insurance carriers.

Allison moved the Arkansas Medicaid program away from fee-for-service payments and toward a model that rewards quality and efficiency. He formerly served as head of Medicaid in Kansas, and started his work in the field as a Medicaid analyst at the Office of Management and Budget.