WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL-14) released a statement applauding the Biden Administration’s actions to crack down on the sale of Short-Term, Limited Duration Health Insurance (STLDI) plans, also known as “junk plans.” Originally intended as short-term coverage, junk plans do not provide the same critical consumer protections as comprehensive plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Junk plans can systematically discriminate against individuals with pre-existing conditions, are subject to annual or lifetime limits, and fail to cover needed benefits and basic medical services while leaving Americans on the hook for costly medical services. A harmful Trump expansion of junk plans in 2018, combined with deceptive marketing and consumer confusion, has led individuals to purchase these plans with disastrous consequences for their health and their pocketbooks. 

“For years, I fought the Trump Administration’s expansion of junk plans that left unknowing American families with insufficient coverage and costly surprise medical bills,” said Rep. Castor. “Junk plans are no substitute for meaningful health insurance and consumer protections provided under the ACA. I applaud the Biden Administration for taking steps today to protect our neighbors and ensure they can receive the comprehensive health care coverage they need and deserve.

Castor has led been leading the fight in Congress to eliminate junk plans from the ACA Marketplace following the Trump Administration’s aggressive efforts to expand their use through deceptive and discriminatory practices. This year, Castor reintroduced H.R. 711, the “Throw Away Junk Plans Act,” legislation that would eliminate the exemption for junk plans from the ACA’s consumer protections. She also wrote to the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Labor, and Department of the Treasury with fellow Energy & Commerce Democratic leaders urging immediate action to roll back the Trump administration’s troubling expansion of Short-Term, Limited Duration Health Insurance (STLDI) plans, also known as “junk plans.”

In addition to the announcement of the new rule that would reverse action by the previous administration to expand junk plans, today, the Biden-Harris Administration also took action to lower health care costs with new guidance to crack down on surprise medical bills, took steps to protect consumers from unfair medical debt, and released a new report detailing how the Biden-Harris Administration has saved millions of seniors money on their prescription drugs in partnership with congressional Democrats.