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The Trump administration announced plans to remove nearly 760,000 individuals from Affordable Care Act (ACA) coverage, citing fraudulent enrollments. Vice President JD Vance and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz made the announcement on Tuesday (September 22) from the White House, stating that this move could save the federal government an estimated $2.2 billion.
According to Vance, many of the people being removed either do not exist or were not using the program. He also mentioned that an additional 419,000 enrollments will undergo further verification to ensure eligibility. The administration's crackdown on fraud includes a six-month suspension on new agents or brokers signing up enrollees, as they are believed to be responsible for a significant amount of the fraud uncovered.
Currently, about 19.2 million Americans are enrolled in ACA marketplace health plans. The number of enrollees increased during the COVID-19 pandemic due to enhanced subsidies from the American Rescue Plan Act and Inflation Reduction Act, signed by former President Joe Biden. However, the expiration of these subsidies during Trump's second term has led to higher premiums and a decrease in enrollment.
The administration's decision has drawn criticism from some healthcare policy experts and Democratic lawmakers. Cynthia Cox from the healthcare research nonprofit KFF questioned the process used to identify fraudulent enrollees, expressing concerns about potential errors. Richard E. Neal, a Massachusetts Democrat, criticized the move, stating that it exacerbates the healthcare crisis by making coverage harder to access.
The announcement comes amid rising healthcare costs and inflation, with the Trump administration facing pressure to address affordability issues. The Wall Street Journal first reported the administration's plan to remove ACA enrollees from public exchanges.