Trump administration removes 760,000 people from ACA marketplace over fraud allegations

The Trump administration is removing 760,000 people enrolled in the Affordable Care Act marketplace, citing allegations of fraud, officials said at a press conference. The move adds to a series of actions by the administration affecting federally subsidized health insurance programs.

Officials said the government is also investigating approximately 420,000 additional people it suspects of fraudulent enrollment, and is implementing a six-month moratorium on new agents and brokers selling ACA, or Obamacare, policies during the review period.

Differing views on impact

Administration officials frame the actions as necessary steps to address fraud within the ACA marketplace enrollment system. Some experts, however, have said the removals and broker moratorium could cause some lower-income Americans to lose access to healthcare coverage, particularly if legitimate enrollees are affected by the fraud review process.

The ACA marketplace has been a recurring target of policy changes under the current administration, which has pursued multiple efforts to scale back aspects of the federally subsidized insurance system since taking office. Friday's announcement follows previous actions affecting enrollment and subsidy structures.

The scope of the fraud allegations underlying the removals, including how officials identified affected enrollees, was not fully detailed in the announcement. The six-month broker moratorium is expected to remain in effect while the investigation into the additional 420,000 suspected cases continues.