(Photo/Wisconsin Dept of Health Services)
By Karen Stokes
On Wednesday, the Biden-Harris Administration took a major step to crack down on junk health insurance for American consumers.
That’s why the Biden-Harris Administration is issuing a final rule that protects consumers from junk health insurance and makes sure Americans aren’t scammed into low-quality coverage that leaves consumers on the hook for thousands of dollars in medical bills or denies life-saving care right before treatment.
“The president really believes the American people do not want to be taken for suckers and junk insurance takes them for suckers,” Neera Tanden, Biden’s domestic policy adviser, said during a call the White House arranged with reporters.
The President is committed to building on the promise of the Affordable Care Act and its critical consumer protections that ensure meaningful coverage for people’s health care needs.
The Affordable Care Act has helped tens of millions of Americans access high-quality, affordable health insurance and protects Americans from being discriminated against because of pre-existing conditions.
With Wednesday’s rules, these actions will eliminate hidden fees and rip offs in every industry across the economy. Additionally reduce scam insurance plans that offer really no insurance at all.
• “Short-term” plans must be truly short-term. Under the new rules, new plans that claim to be “short-term” health insurance are now limited to just 3 months, with renewal for a maximum of 4 months total, if extended– instead of up to 3 years as the previous administration allowed, causing junk health insurance plans to proliferate and confuse consumers that they were real, comprehensive coverage when they in fact provided little to no coverage.
• Plans have to clearly disclose limits. Insurance plans will now be required to provide consumers with a clear disclaimer that explains the limits of what services they cover and how much they cover.
Wednesday’s actions stand in stark contrast with an extreme House Republican budget proposal released last week, which 100% of House Republican leadership and 80% of House Republicans support.
They want to reverse the Administration’s actions to protect consumers from junk health insurance and other insurance plans that evade the Affordable Care Act’s critical consumer protections, and take the country back to the days where consumers think they’re buying quality, comprehensive health insurance, only to find out at the last minute that they’ve purchased coverage that doesn’t cover the care they need or leaves them saddled with huge medical bills.
The House Republican budget calls to cut $4.5 trillion from the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid, which would rip coverage away from over 45 million people, eliminate pre-existing conditions or provide basic benefits like prescription drugs and other consumer protections and coverage for tens of millions more.