Hoosier State Today

On December 9, 2024, the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota issued a preliminary injunction in Kansas v. United States of America (Case No. 1:24-cv-00150). This injunction partially blocked the implementation of a final rule that allowed Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and individuals in certain other noncitizen groups to enroll in a qualified health plan (QHP) through the Health Insurance Marketplace, effective November 1, 2024.

Subsequently, on December 23, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals in the Eighth Circuit lifted a temporary administrative stay of this preliminary injunction. The stay was initially issued following an appeal filed by the Department of Justice (No. 24-3521). As a result, DACA recipients and certain other noncitizen groups will not be able to enroll in Marketplace coverage within the 19 states involved in this lawsuit. These states include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. All these states except Idaho, Kentucky and Virginia are served by Marketplaces on the Federal Platform.

According to this court order: "DACA recipients and other noncitizens covered by the rule who reside in the following 19 plaintiff states shouldn’t attest to having eligible immigration status in applications for Marketplace coverage."

To comply with this order further: "On the evening of December 26th," Marketplaces on the Federal platform implemented technical changes so that DACA recipients and those other noncitizens covered by this rule who attest to lawful presence will be found ineligible for QHP coverage across these specified states. Following these technical adjustments: "The Marketplaces on Federal platform will proceed with canceling any enrollments for 2025 Marketplace coverage selected by DACA recipients" along with others affected under this ruling within those regions.

Consumers impacted by these changes will receive notifications from their respective Marketplaces regarding any refunds due or enrollment cancellations effective at year-end December 2024 transitioning into no Marketplace coverages beginning January next year if enrolled previously during calendar year twenty-four under qualified health plans without updated lawful statuses confirmed accordingly per new rulings applied retroactively upon review as needed via https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/immigration-status/.

For inquiries related directly concerning updates please contact Jenny Walden.