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Online insurance broker gauging Obamacare’s chances in Cong
USINFO | 2013-11-13 10:37
One look at the recent share movement of EHealth Inc. and you might get a clue into which way Congress was headed on the sticky issue of Obamacare and whether it would fund it.
EHealth EHTH shares have shot up 20% since Thursday, including a 7% jump on Monday and nearly 9% on Tuesday. Shares jumped $2.72 in recent action to $34.26.
Buyers of the online medical insurance broker may not be that prescient, but for now they seem to be when it comes to President Obama’s health-care overhaul. It was in doubt on Thursday when EHealth shares started to make their move whether the law, formally known as the Affordable Care Act, would be funded but now it seems that efforts by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas to sweep the legs out from under the divisive measure will be defeated.
By many accounts, Cruz pushed the GOP-led House of Representatives into approving what some in Congress see as an ill-advised resolution to defund Obamacare and shut down the government if need be. Cruz needs 41 votes to block a counter-measure from Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to push through a spending plan that keeps Obamacare monies intact but it appears that even Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Whip John Cornyn won’t vote to defund the health act.
Funding of Obamacare is good news for EHealth, which rose precipitously in late Julywhen it won a contract with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to help enroll those eligible for subsidies in 36 states. Those are the states where the federal government will help set up health exchanges.
Since last hitting a peak on Aug. 1, when EHealth shares topped the $31 mark, they have been bumping along in the $27 to $29 range. They’re now trading at a new 52-week high and are approaching an all-time closing high of $35.99, reached in late 2007.
Some analysts say privately they believe that EHealth may also benefit from private exchanges, which employers can set up to encourage greater competition among insurers and to bring down premiums.
EHealth EHTH shares have shot up 20% since Thursday, including a 7% jump on Monday and nearly 9% on Tuesday. Shares jumped $2.72 in recent action to $34.26.
By many accounts, Cruz pushed the GOP-led House of Representatives into approving what some in Congress see as an ill-advised resolution to defund Obamacare and shut down the government if need be. Cruz needs 41 votes to block a counter-measure from Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to push through a spending plan that keeps Obamacare monies intact but it appears that even Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Whip John Cornyn won’t vote to defund the health act.
Funding of Obamacare is good news for EHealth, which rose precipitously in late Julywhen it won a contract with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to help enroll those eligible for subsidies in 36 states. Those are the states where the federal government will help set up health exchanges.
Since last hitting a peak on Aug. 1, when EHealth shares topped the $31 mark, they have been bumping along in the $27 to $29 range. They’re now trading at a new 52-week high and are approaching an all-time closing high of $35.99, reached in late 2007.
Some analysts say privately they believe that EHealth may also benefit from private exchanges, which employers can set up to encourage greater competition among insurers and to bring down premiums.
