The Trump administration is making $8.6 million in leftover funds available to states to help develop their Obamacare markets.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services awarded the grants to 30 states and the District of Columbia so they can meet the requirements set under Obamacare to make sure that plans cover a range of services. The funds are used for hiring, reviewing policies, developing studies, or expanding the number of health plans residents have available to them.
“These grants build on CMS’s ongoing efforts to give states the tools and flexibility they need to help people struggling to afford the year over year premium increases caused by Obamacare regulations,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement. “We recognize that states are in the best position to assess the needs of their consumers and develop innovative measures to ensure access to affordable health coverage. These grants make yet another down payment on our work to enhance states’ ability to stabilize and improve their respective health insurance markets.”
The Trump administration has run Obamacare differently than the Obama administration did, often leading to speculation about whether, or to what extent, certain funding will be allocated or programs carried out.
The funding comes from a part of Obamacare that sets aside $250 million to help states review health insurance proposals. The latest announcement uses funds that were unspent in previous years.
All states that applied for the grants received them. The Trump administration encouraged states to create more options for health plans and to review coverage for mental health and substance abuse disorder.
