CMS streamlined the ACA enrollment process to allow consumers applying for coverage through direct enrollment partners to complete their application on a single website.
Here's what you should know.
1. CMS made the change to "reduce needless regulatory burden."
2. CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a release the move will help stabilize the insurance market.
She said, "It is common sense to make it as simple and easy as possible for consumers to shop for and access health coverage. It is time to get the federal government out of the way and give patients the best tools to make their own healthcare decisions. We look forward to continuing to work with private partners to make sure these streamlined enrollment pathways are available, secure, and ensure a high degree of program integrity."
3. Before the revision, consumers who signed up through a third party completed several steps on different websites to sign up. Consumer feedback said the process was confusing.
4. CMS said the move is part of a large effort "to stabilize the health insurance market by providing more ways for consumers to access coverage."