Mar 30, 2021
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is the most significant change to health care coverage and access policies since the ACA, according to a report by Manatt on Health. Although all health care coverage provisions of the bill are temporary, many lay the groundwork for policy discussions, with the potential for lasting impact. For example, the bill includes provisions that temporarily make Marketplace subsidies more generous and available to more Americans, including those in middle-income brackets.
HHS estimates that these provisions will reduce costs for existing enrollees and for 14.9 million uninsured Americans who are eligible for financial assistance. The temporary nature of the Marketplace improvements raises the question of whether Congress would seek to modify these policies permanently to avoid a coverage cliff. Other policies could permanently alter the coverage landscape, such as incentivizing states that have not yet expanded Medicaid to do so.
Among the most important health care coverage provisions in the bill are:
- Enhancements to the advance premium tax credits available for individual insurance coverage purchased on the Marketplace, including increased premium and cost-sharing assistance for Americans who receive unemployment insurance in 2021
- Increased subsidies to make COBRA coverage available to people who lose employer-sponsored coverage
- A time-limited Medicaid matching rate increase for states that adopt the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion
- An option for states to extend the period for which postpartum women are eligible for Medicaid/the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
