President Trump issued an executive order on October 12, 2017 to encourage the expansion of association health plans (AHPs) for small businesses and the self-employed. On June 19, 2018 the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) released a final regulation to implement that order. The final rule is similar to a draft version that the administration issued in January 2018. The new AHP policy raises numerous issues affecting state regulators, insurance markets, and the consumers and small businesses who buy coverage.

On April 9, 2018, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) released its final Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2019, referred to here as the Payment Notice. This is an annual rule that includes a wide range of policy and operational changes for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces, insurance market reforms, and premium stabilization programs. Concurrent with the 2019 Payment Notice, HHS also released sub-regulatory guidance, including the final annual letter to issuers, key dates for health plans participating in the individual and small-group markets in 2019, and an expansion of the circumstances under which individuals can qualify for exemptions to the ACA’s individual mandate. This expert perspective focuses on major provisions of the Payment Notice and accompanying guidance documents that require state decision-making or have other significant implications for states.

In response to President Trump’s October 12 executive order (EO), the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor (DOL) and Treasury have published proposed rules to expand the availability of health coverage sold through short-term, limited duration insurance (STDLI). The public has until April 23, 2018 to submit comments on these proposed rules; the new standards are slated to be effective 60 days after publication of the final rules.