Clarity on essential benefits, federal exchanges needed

The Democrats have expanded the program under the Affordable Care Act. Republicans have proposed cuts in federal funding and work requirements.

In this episode of the "Meet the Board" podcast series, Briana Contreras, Managed Healthcare Executive editor, speaks with Ateev Mehrotra, a member of the MHE editorial advisory board and a professor of healthcare policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School. Mehtrotra is also a hospitalist at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. In the discussion, Contreras gets to know Mehrotra more on a personal level and picks his brain on some of his research interests including telehealth, alternative payment models and price transparency.

Pharmacy benefit managers aren't getting mentioned on the campaign trail, but there are some signs Congress could enact reform legislation after the Nov. 5 election.

Reproductive rights and abortion: The hottest healthcare issue

Projections calculated for AARP show that 8.4% of Part D enrollees will benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act's $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket costs that goes into effect in 2025.

Perceptions of affordability don't show an advantage to Medicare Advantage, say former and current Commonwealth Fund leaders.