Thanks to President Biden, More Than One Million Americans Will Gain Coverage or Save Money on Their Health Care
Yesterday, the Biden administration issued a final rule to fix the “family glitch,” which has blocked working families from accessing affordable coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces. The Biden administration’s rule will expand coverage to an estimated 200,000 uninsured people and lower health care costs for more than one million Americans.
Of the estimated 5.1 million Americans stuck in the family glitch, 2.8 million are children who are not eligible for CHIP. Lack of affordability continues to be a significant barrier to health coverage and an obstacle that must be addressed to reduce health inequities. Fixing the family glitch will especially help people of color, rural Americans, and low-income families access the health care they need.
COVERAGE:
The Hill: New Rule Opens ObamaCare Subsidies To More Families Seeking Coverage. “Nearly one million additional Americans will have access to ObamaCare subsidies next year under a final rule issued Tuesday by the Biden administration. The rule fixes the so-called “family glitch,” a loophole in the health law that prevents family members from receiving ObamaCare subsidies if a household member has access to an affordable employer-sponsored health plan.” [The Hill, 10/11/22]
CNN: Biden Finalizes Plan To Open Up Obamacare Subsidies To More Families. “More families will be able to access Affordable Care Act subsidies next year, under a final rule issued by the Biden administration Tuesday. The announcement comes less than a month before the start of open enrollment for 2023 coverage on the Obamacare exchanges. Americans can start signing up on November 1. The final rule aims to address a longstanding problem with Obamacare’s regulations pertaining to the affordability of employer coverage, known as the “family glitch.”” [CNN, 10/11/22]
Fierce Healthcare: Biden Administration Finalizes Rule To Get Rid Of ACA’s ‘Family Glitch.’ “The Biden administration finalized on Tuesday a rule that fixes a glitch in the Affordable Care Act that can inadvertently raise insurance costs on certain families. The Treasury Department released a final rule on Tuesday that targets a lingering issue that has led some low-income families to not receive premium assistance. The new rule will go into effect next month. “About one million Americans will either gain coverage or see their insurance become more affordable as a result of the new rule,” said President Joe Biden in a statement Tuesday. “It builds on our progress so far, which has brought the rate of uninsured Americans to a record-low eight percent.”” [Fierce Healthcare, 10/11/22]
Reuters: Biden Administration Finalizes Obamacare ‘Family Glitch’ Fix. “The Biden administration on Tuesday finalized a rule it said would fix the so-called family glitch in the Affordable Care Act that priced many people out of health insurance and would help over a million Americans. The fix, first proposed by the U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service in April, addresses an element of the healthcare law that left family members of those with access to employer-provided health plans ineligible for certain subsidies.” [Reuters, 10/11/22]
Modern Healthcare: New Rules Fix ‘Flaw’ For Families Seeking Obamacare Coverage. “Families who get expensive health insurance through employers could see a price break if they sign up instead for coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace this fall. The Treasury Department on Tuesday announced new rules that determine the tax breaks for certain families when they buy private health insurance plans through the Affordable Care Act. The new interpretation of the Obama-era health law aims to fix the ” family glitch, ” which determines a family’s eligibility for ACA tax credits based on the cost of an individual’s work-sponsored health insurance plan rather than the cost of the plan for the whole family.” [Modern Healthcare, 10/11/22]
REACTIONS:
President Biden: “I’ve got progress to report – today, @USTreasury finalized the rule to fix the “family glitch” once and for all. Starting November 1st, thousands of families impacted can go to https://Healthcare.gov to take advantage of this change.” [@POTUS, 10/11/22]
Vice President Harris: “We’re making sure families, not only employees, can access affordable health care coverage. By fixing the “family glitch,” about 1 million Americans will gain coverage or receive more affordable coverage in November.” [@VP, 10/11/22]
Secretary Becerra: “Today, we issued a final rule to strengthen implementation of the Affordable Care Act by fixing the ‘family glitch.’ This is the most significant administrative action to implement the ACA since the law was enacted & brings more affordable health care to around 1M Americans.” [@SecBecerra, 10/11/22]
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer: “MAGA Republicans have spent years trying to strip away health care coverage from American families. Today, Democrats are building on the ACA to deliver cheaper, more reliable health care for families.” [@SenSchumer, 10/11/22]
Speaker Nancy Pelosi: “In April, @POTUS took a powerful step to make health care more affordable and accessible by ending the “family glitch” in the Affordable Care Act — strengthening the law so that it functions as Congress intended.” [@SpeakerPelosi, 10/11/22]
Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee: “Fixing the “family glitch” is going to help so many families across Washington state save hundreds of dollars a month on their health care coverage. This is another big win for WA state families!” [@PattyMurray, 10/11/22]
House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer: “With the release of today’s final rule from the Treasury Department, we finally have a fix for the so-called ‘family glitch’ in the Affordable Care Act… This rule is yet another step Democrats have taken to improve upon the ACA and make health care more accessible and affordable… In the face of Republicans’ universal rejection of both the American Rescue Plan and Inflation Reduction Act, as well as their threats to cut Medicare and other programs, House Democrats will continue fighting to make make access to affordable health care a reality for all Americans.” [Statement, 10/11/22]
Rep. Frank Pallone, Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee: “I strongly support @POTUS’s final rule to fix the ‘family glitch.’ This change will help approximately 1 million Americans either gain coverage or see their monthly health insurance premiums go down when open enrollment begins on November 1st. #PeopleOverPolitics” [@FrankPallone, 10/11/22]
Rep. Katie Porter: “Earlier this year, I called out a loophole that makes ACA insurance more expensive for certain families. I’m glad that a fix for this ‘family glitch’ was finalized today, which will bring down health care costs for a million Americans.” [@RepKatiePorter, 10/11/22]
Rep. Susan Wild: “Great news! Today, @USTreasury finalized the rule to close the ‘family glitch’ once and for all. I worked on this issue since 2019, and I’m so glad to see it resolved so nearly one million Americans can get more affordable health coverage when Open Enrollment begins next month.” [@RepSusanWild, 10/11/22]
Rep. Cindy Axne: “I applaud the Biden Administration for taking action to end the “family glitch” that has long excluded family members, including children, from accessing high-quality, affordable health care coverage,” said Rep. Axne. “The final rule issued today will allow more Iowans to save money and get the affordable coverage that they deserve through the Affordable Care Act, just in time for the November 1st open enrollment period. I’d encourage all uninsured Iowans to head to healthcare.gov on November 1st to learn about the plans available to them.” [Statement, 10/11/22]