While Congress has been discussing new directions for healthcare reform from the Affordable Care Act, President Trump has been talking about the death of that current healthcare law. However, as we have seen, Trump offers mixed messages keeping his critics guessing, perhaps signaling an openness to various options. Perhaps this is why the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) since early June has been seeking comments on a number of healthcare reform issues, including stabilization and affordability of health insurance markets. HHS is seeking comments to “create a more patient-centered health care system that adheres to the key principles of affordability, accessibility, quality, innovation, and empowerment.”
Per the Federal Register, HHS is seeking comments in four areas:
1. Empowering patients and promoting consumer choice.
What activities would best inform consumers and help them choose a plan that best meets their needs? Which regulations currently reduce consumer choices of how to finance their health care and health insurance needs? Choice includes the freedom to choose how to finance one’s healthcare, which insurer to use, and which provider to use.
2. Stabilizing the individual, small group, and non-traditional health insurance markets.
What changes would bring stability to the risk pool, promote continuous coverage, increase the number of younger and healthier consumers purchasing plans, reduce uncertainty and volatility, and encourage uninsured individuals to buy coverage?
3. Enhancing affordability.
What steps can HHS take to enhance the affordability of coverage for individual consumers and small businesses?
4. Affirming the traditional regulatory authority of the States in regulating the business of health insurance.
Which HHS regulations or policies have impeded or unnecessarily interfered with States’ primary role in regulating the health insurance markets they know best?
So despite what some have read as a reluctance of the President to wade into the Senate health care discussions, the Trump Administration is seeking opinions about ways to improve the U.S. healthcare insurance coverage system. What will be done with this information, and whether it may lay the foundation for new, bi-partisan legislation, remains to be seen.
The deadline to submit comments is July 12, and can be submitted in one of three ways: electronically, by regular mail, or express/overnight mail. For more information click here.
