Trump Administration Ends ACA Subsidies for 189,000 Deceased or Overlapping Enrollees

The Trump administration is ending ACA marketplace subsidies for about 189,000 people identified as deceased or having overlapping Medicaid, Medicare or CHIP coverage, CMS officials said at a press conference. Officials project $738 million in improper payments prevented this year and more than $1.5 billion annualized, with another 3,500 removals planned by month’s end. About 120,000 cases were overlapping Medicaid, 58,000 duplicate Medicare, and 11,000 deceased enrollees. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz said no one is losing health insurance coverage from the action and “what we are doing is saving a lot of money.” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said some cases begin with an error and others reveal deliberate abuse, that the government has an obligation to check whether a healthcare.gov subsidy payment is owed, and “we certainly can’t keep paying for people who are deceased.” Affected people or estates have 30 days to dispute; other government coverage is retained. The step follows last year’s revocation of subsidies for about 551,000 enrollees with duplicate Medicaid coverage and late-month termination of ACA coverage for more than 760,000 people for unauthorized enrollment. Officials expect more than 1 million months of improperly subsidized coverage prevented by year’s end.