Changes coming to health care act

As enrollment nears, here’s what you need to know

The Trump Administration’s efforts to sunset the Affordable Care Act have sewn confusion among many Americans who rely on the socalled Obamacare marketplace for health coverage.

Critics assert the confusion is deliberate. President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to “repeal and replace” former President Barack Obama’s signature policy achievement and Congress’ inability thus far to finish the job prompted Trump to issue executive orders on Oct. 12. Those orders stopped federal payments for some subsidies and encouraged the expansion of low-cost health plans that lack basic coverage guarantees under the act.

Other moves, such as reducing the enrollment period from three months to six weeks, slashing the budget for advertising and assistance “navigators” and shutting down Healthcare.gov for 12 hours each week during the enrollment period are intended to reduce the number of people who sign up for coverage, Trump’s critics say.

Despite those efforts, the act still exists and insurance companies will offer coverage plans starting Nov. 1.

A majority of the 1.4 million Affordable Care Act consumers in Florida will continue to qualify for government subsidies and will pay no more for premiums and out-of-pocket costs than they paid in 2017, according to state and industry officials. Some might pay less, they said.

Others will continue to receive subsidies to help reduce premium costs even if they aren’t eligible for help for out-of-pocket costs. That group will see modest premium increases.

A third group — about 7 percent of on-exchange Silver plan purchasers — will see premiums jump sharply because they are not eligible for government subsidies. When the enrollment period begins, insurers offering plans in Florida for 2018 will encourage those consumers to switch to comparable plans with lower price increases.

The changes are not impossible to understand. Here are some questions and answers that can help:

Q: First, some basics. What is the Affordable Care Act?

A: The ACA is a comprehensive health care law enacted in March 2010 intended to ensure all Americans have health insurance. It barred health insurers from refusing to cover consumers with pre-existing conditions and from raising