Federal court grants insurers class action status over cost-sharing reduction payments
The court order covers all insurers offering qualified health plans in the Affordable Care Act market for the 2017 or 2018 benefit year.
A federal court has granted class action status to insurers that sold plans through the Affordable Care Act and have not gotten cost-sharing reduction payments.
Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative brought the lawsuit against the United States over CSRs and the government program risk corridors in December 2017.
On Tuesday, U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judge Margaret Sweeney granted class action status to all persons and entities offering qualified health plans under the ACA for the 2017 or 2018 benefit year that made CSR payments to eligible beneficiaries, but which did not receive payment from the federal government.
The government has until Friday, May 18 to provide a list of plaintiffs of potential class action members, the court said.
The ACA's cost-sharing reduction payments gave insurers federal dollars to help them subsidize the deductibles and other out-of-pockets costs for qualifying consumers in the market.
Republican leaders under President Barack Obama sued over the CSRs, saying Congress never appropriated the funds. They won their case.
When Donald Trump became president, he was free to end the CSRs at will, and did so in October 2017. But insurers were still required under ACA law to help pay the out-of-pocket costs for lower income beneficiaries. Many increased premiums on exchange plans to help cover the cost.
Maine Community Health Options, an insurance co-op, Sanford Health Plan in South Dakota and the Montana Health co-op all filed lawsuits over the end of the CSRs.
Twitter: @SusanJMorse
Email the writer: susan.morse@himssmedia.com
