Medicare & Medicaid
The decision is separate from an HHS OCR final rule that ends nondiscrimination practices based on gender identity.
In 2016, the Obama administration redefined sex discrimination to include termination of pregnancy and gender identity.
The flexibility will permit insurers to prepay to enrollees a portion or all of the estimated MLR rebate for the 2019 MLR reporting year.
HHS is working on an additional allocation to distribute relief broadly to dentists.
Urban Institute analysis shows there may be an expansion of health insurance options in 2021, as national insurers are reportedly reentering market.
CMS also announced changes to other alternative payment models to adjust for the COVID-19 pandemic.
HHS is providing an additional $250 million, while giving hospitals until the end of the day to submit their revenue information.
The additional funds that are required are "substantial," the AHA said, and should be distributed in a quick and equitable manner.
Facilities with a one-star quality rating are more likely to have large numbers of COVID-19 cases than facilities with a five-star rating, CMS says.
Insurers will be issuing a total of about $2.7 billion in refunds, estimates the Kaiser Family Foundation.