Obama Administration extends renewal opportunities for substandard health insurance policies

America's health insurance plan

Government continues to attempt to fix problems associated with cancelled insurance policies

As the Obama Administration continues to face harsh criticism concerning health care reform, it is working to resolve the issues that are associated with the cancelation of health insurance policies. Many policies have been cancelled due to the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The federal law requires insurers to cancel policies that are considered substandard. Cancellations have left many people throughout the country without insurance coverage and this has caused a great deal of frustration to be directed at the federal government.

Consumers now have more time to work with insurance providers when it comes to cancelled policies

health insurance exchange problemsIn an effort to appease those that have lost their insurance coverage, the Obama Administration allowed insurers to revive policies that they had already cancelled. The President left the matter chiefly to states and insurance companies. In many states, lawmakers have determined that insurance companies should decide whether or not to revoke cancellations and many of these companies have opted not to do so. Now, however, the Obama Administration has announced that consumers that have had their insurance policies cancelled can renew their policies for the next two years.

Cancelled policies can still be renewed due to federal measures

The measure is meant to allow consumers and insurance providers more time to work together in order to ensure that coverage is accessible to people that have had their policies cancelled in the past. Many of these people have not enrolled into insurance exchanges because they had seen no need to do so. Even as policies were being cancelled, many people opted to avoid exchanges because of their association with federal health care reform.

Those without insurance coverage could face penalties from the federal government

Exchanges will close to the public on March 31, but consumers will still be able to find coverage through the private market. Those that have had their substandard policies cancelled can continue working with their insurance providers to renew their old policies. In some states, lawmakers are beginning to consider measures that would encourage insurers to renew cancelled policies in order to help people avoid federal penalties associated with being uninsured.

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