Court decision does not affect NC residents

A Dec. 9, 2024, court decision handed down from a federal judge in North Dakota blocks access to the Health Insurance Marketplace® for DACA recipients living in states that challenged a Biden administration ruling earlier this year making them eligible; the Dec. 9 court decision does not apply to N.C. This means that DACA recipients and other lawfully present immigrants who reside in N.C. can still access affordable health insurance via the HealthCare.gov Marketplace. The Health Insurance Navigators of the NC Navigator Consortium are available to support all N.C. residents by answering questions about HealthCare.gov and helping them select a health plan or enroll in N.C. Medicaid, if they are eligible.

The current HealthCare.gov Open Enrollment period will run through Jan. 15, 2025. However, those looking to start coverage on Jan. 1, 2025, will need to enroll before this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024. More information is available at NCNavigator.org.

"We know that navigating the Health Insurance Marketplace is difficult enough without court rulings that can be confusing, but we're committed to providing clear, unbiased information to help our communities get covered," said Nicholas Riggs, director of the NC Navigator Consortium. "We encourage anyone who needs an affordable health plan to reach out to one of our Navigators to understand all the options they are eligible for."

Here's a timeline that explains how the court ruling affects some, but not all:

On May 3, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a new rule, which clarifies that DACA recipients and other lawfully present immigrants are eligible to purchase health insurance coverage with subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

On Aug. 30, 2024, 19 states filed a Motion for Preliminary Injunction seeking to postpone Open Enrollment for, and effectively deny, 100,000 otherwise eligible individuals access to enroll in a health plan on HealthCare.gov. N.C. was not one of these states.

On Dec. 9, 2024, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor granted the injunction that blocked the Biden administration from requiring the 19 states to comply with the May ruling.

As of the date of this press release, nothing has changed in N.C. and DACA recipients and lawfully present immigrants can still apply for and obtain Marketplace coverage during Open Enrollment.

NC Navigator Consortium consumers often credit their Navigators with helping them save hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars on Marketplace policies and subsidies that they may not have been able to find on their own. Tax credits and subsidies are still in place from the Inflation Reduction Act, meaning 80% of enrollees can get covered for $10 or less each month. Consumers appreciate that their Navigators show them all their options, and check to ensure their providers and prescriptions are covered on the plan they select. Read real consumer stories on the NCNavigator.org website.

Started in 2014, the NC Navigator Consortium is the only federally funded Navigator entity in the state that serves all 100 counties across North Carolina. Learn more at NCNavigator.org, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Members of the Consortium are Access East, Care Ring, CareReach, Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy, Council on Aging of Buncombe County, Cumberland HealthNET, HealthNet Gaston, Kintegra Health, Mountain Projects, NC FIELD and Pisgah Legal Services. The Consortium is led by Legal Aid of North Carolina.

Legal Aid of North Carolina is a statewide, nonprofit law firm that provides free legal services in civil matters to low-income people in order to ensure equal access to justice and to remove legal barriers to economic opportunity. Learn more at legalaidnc.org and follow on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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The project described was supported by Funding Opportunity number CMS-NAV-24-001 from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The contents provided are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of HHS or any of its agencies.