Updated at 1:40 p.m. Friday
The Biden administration has put another roadblock on Governor Brian Kemp’s health agenda.
It asked for more details on Georgia’s plan to stop using Obamacare’s registration website, Healthcare.gov. The proposal, dubbed Georgia Access, would instead lead people to sign up for insurance companies, brokers, and third-party websites.
In a letter to state officials written on Thursday, the US Department of Health and the Treasury say they need a new analysis of the Georgian plan by July 3.
The letter expresses concern that the Affordable Care Act insurance landscape has changed significantly since the Trump administration approved the Georgia plan last year.
“Since that time, health care priorities and policies have changed as well Federal law ”, it says in the letter.
This is in large part due to the efforts of the Biden administration to strengthen the ACA by expanding enrollment options and providing more financial support for coverage.
Authorities argue that Georgia’s plan now “requires further evaluation because recent changes to federal law and other circumstances” could mean that it is now in violation of federal guidelines.
Kemp has made Healthcare.gov an important part of its healthcare agenda. In a statement on Friday, a spokesman said his office was reviewing the letter.
“The Biden government has the right to request more information about the Georgia Access Plan,” said Laura Colbert of the Georgians for a Healthy Future consumer group, which has long-standing concerns about the proposal.
“If Georgia cuts ties with Healthcare.gov, Georgians and their families would have a much higher risk of not being insured or being underinsured. This is especially true for colored people, rural dwellers, Georgians with chronic health problems and people on low incomes, ”she continued.
Proponents of the state registration website have long said that it offers a transparent one-stop shop for people buying Obamacare insurance. You have raised concerns that it is becoming more difficult for people to choose the coverage that fully meets their needs.
There are several ways this could play out, says Colbert: federal officials could have the Georgia Access plan go into effect in 2022 as originally approved; they could work with the state to optimize the proposal; or the permit could be revoked, which Colbert said could lead to legal action by the state.
Georgia’s plan is already the subject of a federal lawsuit, Brought by two local health care providers earlier this year.
Earlier this year, the Biden government paused on another important part of Kemp’s health agenda, a limited Medicaid extension with work requirements. The fate of this proposal is unknown.
Obamacare’s insurance market in Georgia is stronger than it has been in years.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, more than 517,000 people selected plans during the final open enrollment phase.
Adding in the more than 67,000 people who signed up during an ongoing pandemic-inspired special enrollment period, Georgia has almost passed its 2016 enrollment high, according to the letter.
