President Biden on Thursday ordered government health insurance markets to reopen for a special sign-up window, offering uninsured Americans a haven as the spread of COVID-19 remains dangerously high and vaccines aren’t yet widely available. AdvertisementThe most concrete short-term effect of Biden’s orders will come from reopening HealthCare.gov insurance markets as coverage has shrunk in the economic turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Biden administration has ample resources for marketing, said Karen Pollitz, a health insurance expert with the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation. He cited a Trump policy that allows employers to provide tax-free money for workers to buy individual plans. AdvertisementThe idea of reopening Obamacare’s health insurance markets in the pandemic has had broad support from consumer, medical and business organizations.

Source: Los Angeles Times January 28, 2021 14:33 UTC