Starting in 2023, the Affordable Care Act is going to undergo some key changes. The ACA was created to provide affordable health care. The Act achieves this goal by introducing comprehensive health insurance reforms.
For people who are interested in enrolling under the ACA, Up North News, a Courier Newsroom publication, published a guide that highlights all the recent changes that prospective enrollees need to know about.
Enrollment
Coverage shall only be available to those who register by Jan. 15, 2023. Coverage for 2023 will only be available to those people that have registered by the deadline. This does not apply to people who are eligible for the Special Enrollment Period. You would qualify for this if, for instance, you were impacted by COVID-19, causing you to miss the registration period.
You can enroll through the link here, and more information about plans and prices is available here.
Key Changes
According to the statistics released by the White House, due to the changes introduced by the Biden Administration, up to 1 million can now get coverage under the ACA or benefit from reduced premiums in their healthcare plans.
The American Rescue Plan introduced by the Biden administration will ensure that premiums stay low for enrollees of the ACA. This has been made possible due to federal subsidization, and these subsidies shall continue to be in place for longer, due to the Inflation Reduction Act.
According to the Department of Health and Human Services, Americans enrolled in the benchmark silver plan will see their monthly premiums rise by 4% on average. This only applies to the state enrolled in the federal program, other states’ premiums may vary.
However, the subsidies ensure that 80% of the enrollees have to only spend less than $10 a month, saving them up to $800 in premiums annually. The Inflation Reduction Act further ensures enrollees don’t have to pay more than 8.5% of their income, down from 10%, reported Up North News, a Courier Newsroom publication.
The changes have also extended financial help to those Americans that are earning 400% more than the federal poverty level, therefore extending coverage to most Americans.
In addition to subsidized premiums, enrollees in the ACA can also choose from an extended list of insurers. In 2023, 220 insurers are participating in the program, up from 213 in 2022. Each insurance provider is now also required to provide a standardized plan at every level (Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Premium).
The standardization means that these plans will have prescribed out-of-pocket maximums and deductibles. They will also offer coinsurance or copay, allowing prospective enrollees to compare the offerings with other plans. It is worthwhile to note that the premiums on standardized plans will be higher than non-standardized plans, reported the Courier Newsroom publication. However, the additional benefits, such as primary and urgent care, offset the increased cost.
The Biden administration has also introduced a rule which will extend health coverage to additional American families. These are families whose members were previously eligible for affordable individual plans but not affordable family plans. Such families too, in 2023, will be eligible for subsidized protection under the ACA.