There should be little doubt that these access problems will be exacerbated as the state has essentially handed out 500,000 Medicaid cards without providing any additional capacity for patient care.

There is clearly no lack of commitment aimed at supporting those in need here in Illinois. The question is how to do a better job of it.

Health-care access and affordability are important goals. But they will never be achieved with a single-payer system – and that isn’t bad news.

If lawmakers begin to enter the ObamaCare exchanges themselves, it will certainly draw attention to the hypocrisy of some lawmakers who have imposed this costly law on Americans. But perhaps more importantly, it could serve as an important lever to force lawmakers to re-examine the most damaging aspects of the law.

The new federal spending bill, dubbed the “CRomnibus,” codifies that the ACA payments to insurers are budget-neutral, as the revenue to fund them will come from fees already assessed on health-insurance plans. This is not the blank check that insurers were hoping for.

Despite Illinois’ precarious financial situation, some lawmakers are continuing their efforts to establish an expensive state-based ObamaCare exchange.

A Supreme Court ruling striking down the IRS subsidies in all 50 states would provide an important opportunity for reform.

A recent report from the Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, confirms that it will likely become harder to get access to care through Medicaid’s managed care program – a program that Illinois is using to provide care to an increasing number of Medicaid enrollees. With Medicaid enrollment...

A recent piece in the Chicago Tribune shows that some in Illinois remain very interested in establishing a state-based health insurance exchange. Under the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, states have the option of applying for federal dollars to establish a state-based health insurance exchange instead of using the federal exchange, healthcare.gov. But not only...

Illinois is already facing a shortfall of more than $56 billion in retiree health insurance debt. But today, many state workers retire in their 50s with full health-insurance benefits and then supplemental coverage once they are eligible for Medicare. State retirees pay a small portion of that total cost, but taxpayers are footing the bill...