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Among other things, the law prohibits treatment limits and copayments or deductibles that are more restrictive than a health insurance plan's medical coverage. Now regulations make the specifics clearer.

A likely change in obscure rules governing the Affordable Care Act could save unions a bundle. A fee that starts at $63 for each person covered by union insurance in 2014 would be waived if the administration proceeds as expected.

Plans offering coverage that lasts 364 days can cost half as much as those that are in force for a year. But the savings may be illusory for people who need care for injuries or illnesses because the coverage can be skimpier.

In the past, many psychotherapists ran their own little businesses. But changes in health care coverage mean that many must start accepting insurance and doing paperwork. That's leading some therapists to form group practices or join large medical groups — and may lead to better care for patients.

No one knows for sure right now how many of the estimated 14 million people who buy their own coverage are getting cancellation notices, but the numbers appear to be big. Some insurers report discontinuing 20 percent of their individual business, while other insurers have notified up to 80 percent of policyholders that they will have to change plans.

Running a hospital that scores well on keeping more patients alive or providing extensive charity care doesn't translate into a compensation bump for top executives. Nonprofit hospitals have been under scrutiny for paying high salaries to chief executives while skimping on benefits for their communities.

The California health exchange has focused on drumming up interest in coverage during the first month of operation. Certified enrollment counselors can barely keep up with the requests for assistance that are rolling in.

The Affordable Care Act included a sales tax on medical devices that is supposed to help pay for the expansion of health insurance coverage. But the tax is being levied on some devices, such as ultrasound scanners, that are used to diagnose and treat animals instead of humans.

The state legislature is now mulling a change to allow trained home care aides to administer medications to Medicaid patients while working under a nurse's supervision. If the proposal becomes law, it could save the state a bundle.

Unlike Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and other conservative states in the South, Mississippi is well on its way to having an insurance exchange ready for operation by the 2014 deadline laid out by the health overhaul law.