CMS is telling individuals with subsidized marketplace health plans who are nearing Medicare eligibility age and individuals simultaneously enrolled in Medicare and marketplace coverage that they should abandon their marketplace plans, Kaiser Health News reports.
Every month, about 15,000 individuals with subsidized health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace are contacted by CMS via email before they gain Medicare eligibility on their 65th birthday. The email reminds recipients tax credits on their marketplace plans will end and to avoid double coverage through marketplace and Medicare plans, they should end their marketplace plans.
CMS also started mailing federally required letters to individuals receiving Medicare and subsidized marketplace coverage, according to the report. The letters encourage recipients to avoid dual coverage and drop their marketplace plan, as it often mirrors their Medicare coverage. If those contacted do not respond, federal officials may end subsidies associated with the marketplace plans.
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