The Trump administration slashed funding for Affordable Care Act navigators, which help people sign up for ObamaCare coverage on the law’s exchanges, by 90 percent.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Friday announced health insurance navigators will receive just $10 million per year over the next four years. Navigators received $98 million in 2024.
CMS said the cut will allow the exchanges to focus on more effective strategies to improve outcomes and to reduce premiums for people who don’t qualify for subsidies.
The health agency justified the cut by noting navigators enrolled only 0.6 percent of plan selections on the federal exchange during the open enrollment period — at a cost of $1,061 per enrollment.
“Overall, Navigator performance data shows that the current level of funding does not represent a reasonable return on investment. These numbers indicate that Navigators are not enrolling nearly enough people to justify the substantial amount of federal dollars previously spent on the program,” CMS officials wrote in the announcement.
But experts pointed to federal data showing that navigators were much more effective in enrolling people in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) last year, as they likely have more ties to lower-income communities. They helped enroll about 290,000 people in Medicaid and the CHIP.
Navigators aren’t private insurance brokers. They are paid through user fees, not by private plans, and don’t recommend specific plans or policies to consumers. The decrease in funding will save a total of $360 million through Aug. 26, 2029, according to CMS.
The Trump administration similarly cut ACA navigator funding every year during his first term and cut advertising to HealthCare.gov by 90 percent. When enrollments dropped, the administration said it was evidence that the law was failing.
The Biden administration subsequently restored navigator grants, and last year said it would spend nearly $500 million on the effort over five years.