The CMS late Friday ordered all insurance companies selling plans through insurance exchanges to accept premium payments and copayment assistance from federal programs such as the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program.
But the government continued to urge insurers to reject premium assistance provided by hospitals, drug companies and devicemakers.
Underscoring the CMS' concern, the agency opted to waive the normal public comment period and enforce the rules upon their publication. That should resolve a legal dispute brewing in Louisiana, where the state's largest insurer was sued for rejecting Ryan White funds to cover hundreds of low-income people with HIV or AIDS. The program paid about $400 million in premium assistance last year on behalf of 52,568 people. The money was paid to insurance companies on behalf of the beneficiaries
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