Trump Administration Removes 760,000 From ACA Coverage, Citing Fraud
The Trump administration said it has removed 760,000 people from Affordable Care Act health coverage, citing fraud and improper enrollments. NPR
The disenrollments affect people in states that use Healthcare.gov, the federal enrollment website, to buy health insurance under the law. Those Affordable Care Act plans help pay for doctor visits, hospital care and other medical services, so losing a plan can leave people without that help paying for care. Coverage helps people see a doctor or get hospital care when they need it.
Federal officials described the removals as part of an anti-fraud effort to screen enrollments. That work is continuing, with an additional 419,000 sign-ups now being scrutinized, or checked further, in a second phase of the effort to determine whether those sign-ups meet enrollment rules.
Not all of the 760,000 people who lost coverage were fraudulently enrolled. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that oversees Healthcare.gov, has reinstated, or returned to coverage, a small number of people whose coverage should not have been canceled.
David Merritt, an executive with the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, confirmed that some Blue Cross Blue Shield members were among those who have been reinstated after an improper disenrollment. His statement gives an insurer's view of how the federal checks have affected some members.
CMS also has an expedited review process, a faster check, for people who discover they were improperly disenrolled. The process is available to those seeking to have their Affordable Care Act coverage restored after an error.
