Some people wrongly removed from Affordable Care Act health plans have regained coverage after the Trump administration's anti-fraud sweep, according to an October 15 KFF Health News report published by WUSF. Insurance industry sources told the newsroom that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services had reinstated a small number of people whose plans should not have been canceled.
David Merritt of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association confirmed that some Blue Cross Blue Shield enrollees were among those restored. He said CMS had an expedited review process for improper cancellations, but the administration had not disclosed the total reinstated or how long the process takes.
The administration announced late in September that it had removed 760,000 people from ACA coverage, citing fraud and improper enrollments. The cancellations targeted states using Healthcare.gov, the federal marketplace. The reporting does not establish how many of the 760,000 removals were mistakes.
During the review, CMS instructed insurers to try at least two ways of contacting targeted enrollees, such as a phone call and a letter. Policyholders were given 30 days to respond with missing information, and CMS removed those who did not respond, according to KFF.
A second phase is examining another 419,000 sign-ups. Asked for a breakdown of cancellation reasons, CMS told KFF it had no additional data to share.
