What Americans Think of the New Insurance Marketplaces and Medicaid Expansion: Findings from the Commonwealth Fund Health Insurance Marketplace Survey, 2013

The Affordable Care Act's health insurance marketplaces are opening for enrollment on October 1, 2013. The Commonwealth Fund Health Insurance Marketplace Survey, 2013, finds that only two of five adults are aware of the marketplaces or of potential financial help that may be available to them to pay for plans purchased though the marketplaces. However, three of five adults who might be eligible for these new options said they were likely to take advantage of them. The survey also finds broad support for state expansion of the Medicaid program, even in states that have not yet decided to expand their programs. While outreach and education are critical to ensuring that those eligible for the new coverage options will enroll, the survey results suggest that eligible Americans will likely take advantage of the law's insurance reforms in the months and years to come

Women at Risk: Why Many Women Are Forgoing Needed Health Care

Based on Commonwealth Fund 2007 Biennial Health Insurance Survey data, compares women's rates of uninsurance or underinsurance, sources of coverage, out-of-pocket and premium expenses, access to care, medical debt, and unmet needs, with those of men

Realizing Health Reform's Potential: Women and the Affordable Care Act of 2010

Outlines the 2010 healthcare reform provisions that will benefit women, including subsidized and improved coverage and bans on lifetime caps, rescissions, and rating on gender. Analyzes how each will address women's growing exposure to healthcare costs

Choose Your Words Wisely: Affirmative Representation as a Limit on § 230 Immunity

Since its enactment in 1996, § 230 of the Communications Decency Act has shielded Web site operators from liability arising out of third-party content. The statute preempts any claim that would treat the defendant as a “publisher” or “speaker” of that content, but recent cases suggest that a defendant’s own statements may constitute an independent source of liability beyond the scope of § 230. In Mazur v. eBay, a federal district court held that § 230 does not bar claims of fraudulent misrepresentation when a defendant has described a third party’s auctioning procedures as “safe.” More recently, the Ninth Circuit in Barnes v. Yahoo! allowed a promissory estoppel claim to proceed against a defendant that failed to remove defamatory material from its Web site after assuring the plaintiff it would do so. A third case, Goddard v. Google, suggests that the Barnes decision could support claims by third-party beneficiaries as well. This Article analyzes these recent developments, discusses their potential impact on representations in marketing and terms of use, and assesses the willingness of courts to consider more expansive fraud- and contract-based limitations on § 230 immunity

Wages, Health Benefits, and Workers' Health

Examines the divide in the U.S. labor market between higher wage earners with health insurance, and lower wage earners who often lack coverage and access to essential health care

Gaps in Health Insurance: Why So Many Americans Experience Breaks in Coverage and How the Affordable Care Act Will Help

Presents findings from the Health Insurance Tracking Survey of U.S. Adults, including the percentage of those who were uninsured during 2011, reasons for gaps in coverage, access to regular and preventive care, and the impact of federal healthcare reform