On May 15, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS] issued the HHS Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2027, introducing a broad set of changes to the federal ACA Health Insuracne Marketplace.
These changes lower marketplace user fees; eliminate the requirement for marketplace insurers to offer standardized plan options; and grant states greater authority over plan oversight.
The CMS notice also sets out to combat ACA enrollment fraud. To this end, pre-enrollment verification for Special Enrollment Periods [SEP] are introduced, requiring applicants to provide definitive proof of eligibility before enrolling.
The update also implements OBBBA mandates, narrowing tax credit eligibility to US citizens and a limited set of lawful immigrants.
_______________________
THE KEY TAKEAWAY FOR EMPLOYERS
These CMS updates are a further instance of the heightened scrutiny being placed on ACA Compliance by the current administration. Meanwhile, AI goes on strengthening the power of the IRS to analyze corporate tax filings — see ACA-To-Z Blog, Regtech Transforming IRS Powers.
This make rigorous ACA Eligibility and Affordability Management more critical than ever. And that’s true for the 2026 tax year as well as these CMS changes finalized for 2027 health plans. See ACA-To-Z, Time To Get Ahead of ACA Changes.
That’s where BENEFITSCAPE comes in! Since our foundation in 2014 we have become the leading specialist of ACA Compliance services, including our intelligent and system-agnostic ACA_RegTech. The increase use of AI by the IRS demands a corresponding use of specialist RegTech to support the ACA process, including hours tracking and smart, proactive data diagnostics.
BENEFITSCAPE deliver streamlined, accurate, and penalty-free ACA Reporting & Compliance for thousands of leading employers of all sizes, on all major data management systems, and across all states and sectors.
You can learn more about these ACA services here.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any ACA questions or would like us to help you review your current ACA set-up. Email info@benefitscape.com, call +1 508-655-3307, or use the contact form on benefitscape.com.
