WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the Affordable Care Act program has helped 22 Kansas employers and unions cover early retirees. Those businesses and groups will begin to receive reimbursements for employee claims this fall, she said. The early retiree program provides $5 billion in financial assistance to employers and unions nationally to help them maintain coverage for early retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare, she said. The new program has attracted tremendous interest from businesses and organizations, Sebelius. She said her department is still going through all the applications. The six-month-old law also closes the “doughnut hole” in prescription drug costs for Medicare recipients, she said. Although the Affordable Care Act has become more popular with those who are familiar with it, support for it has slipped among many Americans. “I think, unfortunately, there’s still a great deal of confusion about what’s in the Affordable Care Act and what isn’t,” Sebelius said. “And for 18 months there was a lot of misinformation given on a 24/7 basis and followed up with about $200 million worth of paid advertisements.”
Wednesday, Sept. 1, 6:30 a.m.
