Affordable Care Act Anniversary -- Iowa by the Numbers

To: HPCI and IHBA members and others

Fact sheet on how Iowa is benefiting from the Affordable Care Act on the second anniversary of its signing: http://www.healthcare.gov/law/resources/ia.html

Among other benefits, Iowa is receiving millions of dollars from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. These include:

  • $8.7 million to establish the Iowa Health Insurance Exchange - This includes a $1 million planning grant and $7.7 million to establish an Affordable Insurance Exchange. The grant awards are for "Creating a New Competitive Marketplace: Health Insurance Exchange". In 2014, individuals and small businesses will have access to coverage through these new state based competitive private health insurance markets. Exchanges are to bring new transparency to the market so consumers will be able to compare plans on price and quality.
  • $113 million in federal loans to create an Iowa – Nebraska co-op health insurance company -The federal funds will be used to pay for startup costs and provide initial financial backing of the co-op. The co-op, tentatively named Midwest Members Health Inc., will sell health insurance policies in Nebraska and Iowa. The organization will be owned by its members and led by a board they elect. It will target individual consumers and small businesses buying policies via a new insurance exchange. The new co-op has a goal of of 50,000 to 80,000 members by 2017.
  • $218 million awarded to 26 organizations including the Iowa Health Collaborative (about $5 plus million each) – The Iowa Health Collaborative along with 25 others were awarded a total of $218 million to serve as Hospital Engagement Networks to help health providers improve care. Each network will help identify solutions already working to reduce healthcare acquired conditions and work to spread them to other hospitals and health care providers The awards are part of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Partnership for Patients initiative to keep patients from being harmed while in the hospital and heal without complication once they are discharged. An innovation center was established by the Affordable Care Act to identify and develop promising new models of care delivery to reduce costs and increase quality.

Paul M. Pietzsch, MPH
 HPCI - IHBA Office
4430 Ashley Park Drive
West Des Moines, Iowa 50265
(515) 778-6300