On February 20, 2018, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) jointly promulgated a proposed rule on Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance (STLDI) plans. The proposed regulatory changes seek to carry out the directions given in Executive Order 13813, “Promoting Healthcare Choice and Competition Across the United States,” to expand access to STLDI plans. STLDI plans are excluded from the definition of individual health insurance coverage and, therefore, are not required to meet the coverage and consumer protection requirements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

On February 9, 2018, President Trump signed H.R. 1892, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018.  The new law reauthorizes federal funding for many health programs, modifies scheduled reductions in Medicaid disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments to states, tightens third party liability (TPL) billing requirements, and updates requirements affecting Medicare Advantage plans, accountable care organizations (ACOs), and providers’ adoption of telehealth.

On January 24, 2018, a Federal District Court in Tennessee held that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) improperly included a billing threshold requirement in a final rule concerning whether physicians received an enhanced Medicaid rate for primary care services under a provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). 

On Wednesday, January 24th, a lawsuit was filed in the Federal District Court, District of Columbia, challenging the implementation by Kentucky of the nation’s first work requirement in a Medicaid program. The suit was filed by three organizations on behalf of 15 Kentucky citizens claiming to be at risk of losing their Medicaid coverage. They also requested to certify the suit as a class action.