ver since the Affordable Care Act's health insurance marketplaces opened for business in 2014, the Obama administration has worked hard to make sure Americans sign up. Yet officials now are telling some older people they might have too much insurance and they should cancel their marketplace policies.
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is targeting two groups. First the agency is sending emails each month to about 15,000 people with subsidized marketplace coverage. The messages arrive a few weeks before their 65th birthday, which is also the age most people become eligible for Medicare. The email reminders will go to enrollees in the 38 states that use the federal marketplace.
“In most cases you won't want to keep your Marketplace plan because once your Medicare coverage starts, you'll no longer be eligible for any premium tax credits or other cost savings you may be getting for your Marketplace plan,” the notice says. “To avoid an unwanted overlap in Marketplace and Medicare coverage … tell us you want to end your Marketplace plan.”
