ACA enrollment schedule may lock millions into unwanted health plans
Source: Washington Post
ACA enrollment schedule may lock millions into unwanted health plans
By Amy Goldstein October 20 at 7:15 PM
Millions of Americans with insurance through the Affordable Care Act could find themselves locked into health plans they do not want for the coming year because of the Trump administration’s schedule for the enrollment season that starts in less than two weeks.
The complication arises when people who already have health plans under the law are automatically re-enrolled in the same plan. In the past, a few million consumers each year have been auto-
enrolled and then were sent government notices encouraging them to check whether they could find better or more affordable coverage.
This time, according to a federal document obtained by The Washington Post, the automatic enrollment will take place after it is too late to make any changes. Auto-enrollment will occur immediately after the last day of the ACA sign-up season, which the Trump administration has shortened, leaving the vast majority of such consumers stranded without any way to switch to a plan they might prefer.
That inability is particularly problematic at the moment, health policy specialists say, because political turmoil surrounding the sprawling health-care law has contributed to spikes in 2018 insurance rates that might catch customers by surprise, as well as widespread public confusion about this fifth year’s enrollment season.
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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/aca-enrollment-schedule-may-lock-millions-into-unwanted-health-plans/2017/10/20/c2171008-b5ce-11e7-a908-a3470754bbb9_story.html
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