The Trump administration today proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act’s individual insurance market that insurers welcomed as a good start but that others pointed out could raise out-of-pocket costs for consumers.
Reuters reports the proposed new rule, issued by a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, sets out changes that are meant to shore up the system developed by former President Barack Obama.
The changes would tighten enrollment processes and allow insurers to collect unpaid premium payments, making it tougher for people to move in and out of insurance plans. Insurers say “gaming the system” has created an unprofitable mix of healthy and sick customers.
The rule does not address changes that must be made by law, such as for Obamacare’s income-based subsidies.
President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have promised to scrap the 2010 health care law that is a key legacy of Obama’s presidency. But they are struggling to agree on a replacement for the law, which extended health insurance to 20 million Americans.
