E&C Dems Seek Answers From HHS on Open Enrollment
Energy and Commerce Democratic leaders sent a letter (http://democrats-energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/HHS.2017.09.11.%20Letter%20re%20ACA%20Navigators..pdf) to
The letter was signed by Ranking Member
"We are concerned that the Administration's decision to cut funding for the Navigator program is driven neither by concerns regarding the effectiveness of Navigators nor by a desire to safeguard taxpayer dollars," the members wrote in their letter. "Rather, it appears that the decision fits within a pattern of Administration efforts to depress enrollment and sabotage the ACA, including the decision to pull advertising during the final days of open enrollment in
Last month, the
According to reports, Navigators have yet to receive funding from the Administration and may not receive it until
The Administration also announced plans to slash the open enrollment advertising budget from
As part of their inquiry, the members are requesting answers from the Administration on a series of questions including:
* Did the Administration reverse an earlier decision to fully fund Open Enrollment outreach? If so, who was responsible for reversing this decision and imposing a 40 percent cut on funding for the Navigator program?
* What is the reason for the delay in distributing this year's grants to Navigators?
* When will grant funds become available to Navigators?
* How does CMS intend to use the funds that it is diverting from the Navigator program?
* Please provide a detailed plan of how CMS intends to ensure robust enrollment, despite the shortened open enrollment period, cuts in advertising, and reductions in funding for Navigators.
* Please provide all research and analyses anticipating the impact that cutting funding to Navigators and marketing and advertising will have on Marketplace enrollment for the 2018 open enrollment period, as well as for subsequent open enrollment periods.
* Please provide all research and analyses as to how Administration officials determined that "most Americans are aware of the [ACA] at this point" to justify its decision to cut the marketing budget by 90 percent.
The members are requesting a response from the Administration by
A copy of the members' letter is available here (http://democrats-energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/HHS.2017.09.11.%20Letter%20re%20ACA%20Navigators..pdf).
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