The Trump administration’s proposed regulations encouraging the sale of inexpensive, bare-bones health plans that do not comply with Affordable Care Act (ACA) benefit requirements or consumer protections could siphon healthy enrollees from the insurance marketplaces, leaving them with a smaller, sicker group of enrollees. And this could mean higher premiums and fewer plan options for people remaining in the individual market. A new Commonwealth Fund report by Kevin Lucia and colleagues at Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute examines these “alternative coverage arrangements” — including short-term plans, association health plans, and health care sharing ministries — and the actions states have taken to regulate them.
Administration Push for Alternative Coverage Options Will Mean Higher Marketplace Premiums and Fewer Consumer Protections
