Federal judge halts new CMS rule on ACA marketplaces

A federal judge has temporarily halted provisions of a rule from the Trump administration meant to reshape the Affordable Care Act marketplaces days before they were scheduled to go into effect (Source: “Judge stays Trump administration policies set to shrink ACA marketplaces,” Healthcare Dive, July 17).
 
This spring, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid finalized a rule expanding bare-bones catastrophic coverage and tightening verification of enrollees’ eligibility for subsidies.
 
On Thursday, a Maryland district court determined the coalition of cities (including the City of Columbus) and provider groups that filed a lawsuit challenging the rule.
 
The stay is a victory for insurers, given it staves off further disruption to the already destabilized ACA marketplaces. However, the relief may be short-lived, as some of the policies codified in the GOP’s “Big Beautiful Bill” will be enacted in 2028.
 
Last week, HPIO released a new data snapshot on updated Ohio enrollment in the federal ACA marketplace. The snapshot follows new analysis from the Associated Press that found that Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace enrollment has fallen more sharply in Ohio this year than in any other state.