Health Care Reinsurance Program Awaits Federal Approval

Governor Mark Dayton and senior officials called a press conference Wednesday, September 20, to express their frustration over the Trump Administration's delay in approving Minnesota's health care reinsurance program passed during the 2017 legislative session. According to state officials, time is running out for the federal waiver to authorize the reinsurance program, which would reduce rates by as much as twenty percent for individuals who fail to qualify for federal tax credits. Five percent of Minnesotans, or about 100,000 people, purchase health care coverage in the individual market.

In addition to awaiting federal approval to institute the reinsurance program, state officials also said that the Trump Administration plans to cut federal funding for MinnesotaCare, a state-run health care program for Minnesota’s working poor. The state potentially faces a loss of approximately $369 million dollars over the next two years. Minnesota has designated the MinnesotaCare program as the state's Basic Health Plan, as was required under the Affordable Care Act.

“We followed their [Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services] instructions exactly how to word the reinsurance legislation so that it would not cause a reduction in our funding for the Basic Health Plan. And then we find out, literally last week, that it’s going to be a $369 million dollar reduction, which is still on paper, and of course all of this is still up in the air because if they repeal the ACA, all bets are off of everything,” Governor Dayton said.