New standards issued by the government are set to require both drug and medical device companies to disclose payments they make to doctors for consulting work, research, lectures, and the like.

After the Affordable Care Act goes fully into effect in 2014, all individual and small-group plans will have to start covering a set of “essential health benefits” that are only partially spelled out in the law. The law left the job of filling out the details to regulators in the Department of Health and Human Services, and we’ve just found out how they’re going to do it.

Medicare beneficiaries in 2012 will pay less than expected for their Part B premiums, which cover doctor bills and other outpatient treatments. The standard premium will be $99.90 a month, $6.70 less than Medicare had forecast earlier this year.

For the first time ever, thanks to the health reform law, we will soon have a standard definition of the “essential benefits” that insurance plans must cover. But how, exactly, should those benefits be chosen and defined? An expert panel of the Institute of Medicine just tackled that question at the behest of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Q. I’ve just been told that my Medicare Advantage PPO won’t be offered in 2012. How can I find out which carrier is offering the best PPO coverage?

New figures released today by the U.S. Census Bureau show that in 2010, young adults aged 18 to 24 were the only group whose rate of health insurance coverage actually increased. Compared to 2009, a full 2 percentage points more people in this age bracket had health insurance, representing about 500,000 individuals.

Consumers dread shopping for health insurance and deciphering health insurance documents. We know, because Consumers Union conducted several studies in which we asked consumers how they shop for health insurance, and they told us so.

Nope. Earlier today a federal appeals court in Atlanta struck down the most contentious part of the Affordable Care Act—the “individual mandate” requirement that everyone must have health insurance or pay a penalty. But it has no immediate impact on consumers. Here’s why.

A new form required by the health-reform law will help millions of consumers better understand how their insurance works, according to a report from Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports magazine and this web site.

Starting next year, all new health plans must cover 100 percent of the cost of contraception and a list of other women’s preventive services, with no deductibles or copays, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Q: I have Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune condition that has attacked my salivary glands. As a result, my teeth have been destroyed by the lack of saliva. Dentists say a bridge of false teeth will not stay in place because there is no saliva to form a suction lock. I must have implants instead. Can I get any help from Medicare with this expense, as it is a medical condition that caused the loss of my teeth?

Q. I am considering changing jobs but am concerned about insurance coverage for pre-existing conditions. My son had a transplant, I had a pituitary tumor, and my husband had open-heart surgery. If I change jobs and insurance, is the new insurance required to cover us?

Increases in your health-insurance premiums will soon be reviewed by state or federal government agencies, the Obama administration announced late last week. Starting in September, increases of 10 percent or more in either individual or small business plans will trigger an automatic review to gauge the “reasonableness” of the increase.

Q. My husband and I are self-employed, with a two-year old son. We are considering joining the Samaritan Ministries health-care sharing ministry, which is a faith-based non-profit in which members help each other pay medical bills. Is that a good idea?

Q. I may have to change insurance companies soon, and I will also likely enter menopause. Will my new insurer consider that a pre-existing condition?