Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Administration Loosens Restrictions On Short-Term Plans, But The Coverage Comes With A Lot Of Fine Print
The Associated Press: Officials Are Promoting Lower-Cost, Short-Term Health Plans
The Trump administration is clearing the way for insurers to sell short-term health plans as a bargain alternative to pricey Obama-law policies for people struggling with high premiums. But the policies don’t have to cover existing medical conditions and offer limited benefits. It’s not certain if that’s going to translate into broad consumer appeal among people who need an individual policy. Officials say the plans can now last up to 12 months and be renewed for up to 36 months. But there’s no federal guarantee of renewability. Plans will carry a disclaimer that they don’t meet the Affordable Care Act’s requirements and safeguards. More details were expected Wednesday. “We make no representation that it’s equivalent coverage,” said Jim Parker, a senior adviser at the Health and Human Services Department. “But what we do know is that there are individuals today who have been priced out of coverage.” (Alonso-Zaldivar, 8/1)
The New York Times: ‘Short Term’ Health Insurance? Up To 3 Years Under New Trump Policy
The new plans will provide “much less expensive health care at a much lower price,” Mr. Trump said. The prices may be lower because the benefits will be fewer, and insurers do not have to cover pre-existing conditions or the people who have them. (Pear, 8/1)
Kaiser Health News: Trump Administration Loosens Restrictions On Short-Term Health Plans
The rule will “help increase choices for Americans faced with escalating premiums and dwindling options in the individual market, said James Parker, a senior adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. But the plans could also raise premiums for those who remain in the Affordable Care Act marketplace — and the short-term coverage is far more limited. (Appleby, 8/1)
The Washington Post: Trump Administration Widens Availability Of Skimpy, Short-Term Health Plans
The new rules are the second tool the administration has devised lately to foster low-price insurance that circumvents the Affordable Care Act’s coverage requirements and consumer protections. In June, the Labor Department issued rules that will make it easier for small companies to buy a type of insurance known as association health plans and, for the first time, allow them to be sold to people who are self-employed. The pair of new rules carries out an executive order President Trump signed in October, directing agencies to broaden access to these two small niches in the insurance market to promote “a health-care system that provides high-quality care at affordable prices for the American people.” (Goldstein, 8/1)
Modern Healthcare: Trump Administration To Allow Renewable, Short-Term Insurance That Lasts Up To A Year
After the administration issued the proposed rule to expand short-term limited-duration insurance back in February, many insurers, provider groups, and consumer advocates said plans could harm consumers who don't understand the limitations of the coverage they are buying. Critics also argued that premiums in the individual market would rise as young, healthy people leave exchanges that need those young people to balance out the risk pool. The final rule largely ignores their concerns. (Livingston, 8/1)
The Wall Street Journal: Cheaper Health Plans With Less Coverage Move Forward
Health analysts say the short-term plans that would be allowed under the new proposal would likely appeal to healthier customers seeking inexpensive alternatives to ACA plans, while higher-risk consumers would remain in traditional insurance coverage. That could cause their premiums to rise, because healthier consumers are needed on the ACA’s individual market exchanges to offset costs of older and sicker people, analysts say. (Armour, 8/1)
Politico: Trump Whacks Obamacare By Boosting Short-Term Health Plans
The new rules take effect in 60 days, before the next Obamacare enrollment season opens Nov. 1. CMS, which oversees the ACA insurance marketplaces, expects Obamacare enrollment to shrink by 500,000 next year — and by 1.3 million over a decade — because of the increased availability of short-term plans. (Demko, 8/1)
And in other news —
The Hill: Individual Market Enrollment Dropping Amid Premium Increases
Enrollment in the individual health insurance market — the market for people who don't get coverage through work — has declined 12 percent in the first quarter of 2018, compared to the same period last year, according to a new analysis released Tuesday. The analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation showed enrollment in the individual market grew substantially after the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and remained steady in 2016, before dropping by 12 percent in 2017. (Hellmann, 7/31)
The Associated Press: NC's Blue Cross Cutting 'Obamacare' Prices Despite Changes
North Carolina's largest health insurer said Tuesday it's cutting some individual premiums for the first time in over a quarter century, but next year's savings on subsidized "Obamacare" coverage would have been much larger if Washington had left the law alone. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina said it proposed prices to state insurance regulators that could lower rates for next year's Affordable Care Act policies by 4.1 percent on average. North Carolina has one of the country's highest enrollment levels in ACA policies and Blue Cross has more than 475,000 customers in the plans offered in all 100 counties. (7/31)
