Vox Sentences - Why is health care enrollment a mess?

Monday, October 16, 2023

Hey readers,

Today, we’re spotlighting the mess that is our health care system. We’re also diving into the logistical and political reasons why a humanitarian corridor hasn’t opened yet for Gaza.

—Izzie Ramirez, Future Perfect deputy editor

Introducing the Vox guide to open enrollment

Sebastian König for Vox

Picking out a health insurance plan is a hellish endeavor no one enjoys. The whole annual ordeal raises a bigger question: Why is all of this so complicated? 

“We saw it last year in our own office, when people were lamenting how hard it was to figure out what they should do during our open enrollment last year,” said health care reporter Dylan Scott. “We spotted an opportunity for some classic explanatory journalism.”

The lowdown: We have six stories that aim to provide clarity about how to navigate picking your health care plan — and  how the American health care system became such a mess in the first place. Check them out:

• Why the US is the only country that ties your health insurance to your job
  
  
• Dental insurance isn’t a scam — but it’s also not insurance
  
  
• Who thought flexible spending accounts were a good idea?
  
  
• 4 questions to ask yourself when picking a health plan
  
  
• The subtle privatization of Medicare
  
  
• Fixing open enrollment starts with staying mad about it

The stakes: One’s health and well-being are reliant on having accessible and affordable care, but our current system, time and time again, leaves so many people without either. Not to mention, confusing bureaucracy obfuscates the true nature of so many insurance plans. 

“We want people to come away from these stories with a clearer idea of the historical and political reasons we are subjected to this bizarre ritual every year, the consequences of structuring a health system in this way, and hopefully a better idea of what their best options would be for their own open enrollment,” Scott added.

Medicare's open enrollment just started, ACA enrollment begins in a couple weeks, and if you get coverage through your job, you're probably starting to hear from your HR team about your window to sign up for health insurance and other benefits for next year. Check out the full package here as you sift through your options. 

What’s the deal with getting humanitarian aid into Gaza?

Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images

On Friday, Israel called for an evacuation of more than a million people from northern Gaza — a move that will likely make an already bad humanitarian crisis worse. But no humanitarian aid has been able to get into Gaza, where there is no access to water, electricity, or fuel. Here’s what you need to know: 

• Gazans are running out of supplies — and time. As medical supplies dwindle, a logistic nightmare unfolds: There’s no safe way to evacuate patients from hospitals to the south. [Vox]
   
• Efforts to open a humanitarian corridor through Egypt are underway, with little success. A humanitarian corridor is a demilitarized area where all parties suspend hostilities to allow civilians to access aid and escape routes, as defined by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Egypt appears reluctant to open a corridor for Gazans out of fear of getting further sucked into the conflict. [Vox]
   
• Mexico, Ukraine, and the Pope have called on Israel to open such a corridor. Israel dismissed rumors that it was allowing aid into Gaza from Egypt, according to the New York Times. “Israel has not agreed to give any humanitarian aid to Hamas,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement. [Reuters and the Times of Israel]
  
  
• In the meantime, aid flights are bringing supplies to Egypt. But with no corridor or agreement, the supplies are stuck there. [Guardian]

Do you have any questions about what happens next in the war? Let us know here.

• More than 90 percent of people killed in Afghanistan quakes were women and children. According to the United Nations, last weekend’s two earthquakes disproportionately impacted women and children, who are more likely to be home during the daytime. [Associated Press] 
   

• Rite Aid files for bankruptcy. The pharmacy — with more than 2,000 stores in 17 states — was hit with a barrage of lawsuits, alleging culpability in the opioid crisis. [Guardian]
  
  

• Why climate change toppled some civilizations and not others. This is my Roman empire. I really enjoyed reporter Kate Yoder’s piece on the link between environmental disaster and societal collapse. [Grist]
  

Basic income is less radical than you think

It’s not just Paris. There’s a “global resurgence” of bedbugs.

Elon Musk wants to merge humans with AI. How many brains will be damaged along the way?

My in-laws are terrible with money. What should I do?

Today’s crossword

Enjoying the Sentences newsletter? Forward it to a friend, they can sign up for it right here. 

As always, we want to know what you think. We recently changed the format of this newsletter. Any questions, comments, or ideas? Write us at newsletter@vox.com or just reply to this email. 

This email was sent to you. Manage your email preferences or unsubscribe. If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring contribution.

View our Privacy Notice and our Terms of Service.

Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 12, Washington, DC 20036.
Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved.