Entrepreneurs starting ventures will qualify for small-group coverage and a tax credit if they pay themselves less than $50,000 a year By Karen E. Klein I enjoyed your article on health-care reform for small business owners.I’m coming out of unemployment into full-fledged self-employment. There are two of us in the company, which is a hosting service for foreign students. Where do I turn to get health insurance through my own company? —E.Q., Bronx, N.Y. Congratulations on starting your business. Since you have two people on the payroll, your company qualifies for small-group health insurance...

Doctor Shortages, Deadly Nursing Strikes Shows New Law’s Short-Term Results Won’t Be Pretty By Ken Terry, BNET Health policy experts and medical societies are concerned about a shortage of primary care physicians, which will be even worse when the Affordable Care Act unleashes an estimated 32 million newly insured patients on the healthcare system. And if you’re wondering what effects that might have on hospitals, a new study of striking hospital nurses suggests that the short-term result won’t be pretty. The study, led by MIT professor Jonathan Gruber (ironically, a cheerleader for reform),...

The just-passed healthcare bill will apparently allow 20-somethings to remain on their parents’ policies. BY JAWEED KALEEM After finishing her degree at Miami Dade College next month, Nialah Summers planned to move to Washington, D.C., take eight months off and then enroll in a philosophy program in the spring. But when Summers realized time off from school would mean no health insurance come fall — as a 22-year-old student, she is covered under her mother’s policy through the summer — she changed her mind. Now, she plans to stick around and take an extra class to stay...

State tells insurers no on 235 plans for small groups By Robert Weisman Making good on Governor Deval Patrick’s promise to reject health insurance rate increases deemed excessive, the state Division of Insurance yesterday denied 235 of 274 increases proposed by insurers for plans covering individuals and small businesses. Read More…

By ERICA WERNER WASHINGTON — The Obama administration took a step Friday toward showing voters concrete benefits from the new health care law, moving to help people with pre-existing health conditions get coverage within months. The law the president signed March 23 provides for creation within 90 days of buying pools to target uninsured people who were denied coverage because of health conditions. Five billion dollars is being spent on the program, which will remain until the sweeping health law is fully implemented in 2014, when insurance companies will have to take all comers. Read More…

Is the IRS going to hunt you down? Will your doc have a waiting line? The sweeping health care overhaul signed into law his month by President Barack Obama is more than 2,000 pages long and has been dissected by analysts, politicians and pundits. It’s no wonder that some consumers are confused – and perhaps frightened – about how the law might affect them. Some concerns were raised during the congressional debate or have been swirling around the Internet. Kaiser Health News checked out some of the most common claims: 1. Comparative effectiveness research will lead to the rationing of care...

Victoria Colliver, Chronicle Staff Writer A flap between the federal government and some health insurers over a provision in the new health care law that will require them to cover children with pre-existing conditions offered an early look into difficulties of interpreting the complex legislation. Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of health and human services, sent a letter Monday to the industry’s main trade group warning insurers that they won’t be able to deny children access to their parents’ coverage starting in September after insurers questioned whether they had to sell...

by Lisa Collier Cool Now that the health care overhaul is law, when will you start to see a difference? Some changes kick in immediately, but the rest trickle out over the next few years, with a few provisions not taking hold until the end of the decade. While you’re probably aware of some of the bill’s major changes, we’ve sorted through the nitty gritty details to help you start planning. Here’s a look at some of the key measures that you can — and should — prepare for in the coming months and beyond. Read More…

By TARA PARKER-POPE Confused by the new health care law? Today’s special section on health reform in Science Times helps you figure out what it might mean for you. What’s in It for Me? by Tara Parker-Pope: Read my Q&A to find out exactly how the new law is going to affect you right now. Read More…

By the CNN Wire Staff Washington (CNN) — President Obama is set to claim final victory on his top domestic priority Tuesday by signing into law a package of changes to the newly enacted health care reform bill. The signing ceremony at a community college in northern Virginia will culminate almost a year of fiercely partisan debate and a tortuous legislative journey on the proposals generated by Democrats and unanimously opposed by Republicans. Read More…