New Jersey attorney general joins multistate challenge to proposed ACA insurance rule
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport has joined a coalition of attorneys general urging the federal government to withdraw a proposed rule that would change how health insurance plans are structured under the Affordable Care Act marketplace.
Davenport joined attorneys general from California, Massachusetts and 16 other states in submitting a letter opposing the proposal issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Feb. 11, 2026.
The rule is intended to guide preparations for the 2027 plan year under the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces.
State officials argue the proposal could increase costs for consumers and introduce changes to the structure of marketplace plans, including adjustments to catastrophic health insurance plans and enrollment rules.
“The proposed rule creates a health care regime that is unaffordable for most everyday New Jerseyans, creates a byzantine process for enrolling in health insurance, and imposes costly burdens on the states to comply with new requirements,” said Attorney General Davenport. “In addition, it is audacious, and a waste of government resources, to include in this payment proposal provisions from last year that were successfully stayed by a court and which New Jersey and other states are continuing to challenge. We all deserve better and more affordable health care, so I will keep demanding it.”
According to the letter from the states, the proposal would increase the maximum out-of-pocket limits for certain catastrophic health plans. Under the proposal, the maximum out-of-pocket costs for those plans could rise to $15,600 for an individual and $31,200 for a family by the 2027 plan year.
Supporters of the challenge say the changes could affect enrollment and create operational challenges for state-based insurance marketplaces, including GetCoveredNJ, New Jersey’s state health insurance exchange.
“This rule runs counter to every health insurance goal we have for New Jerseyans – it would put consumers at risk, push them into inadequate coverage, make enrolling harder and open to fewer people, increase opportunities for fraud against consumers, and destabilize the operations of the NJ’s State-based Health Insurance Marketplace, which continues to serve nearly half a million consumers,” said Susan Ochs, acting commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance.
Health officials also expressed concern about the potential impact on access to preventive care.
“Getting routine, preventive medical care is essential to maintaining good health – and already too many New Jerseyans go without because they can’t afford it,” said Dr. Raynard E. Washington, acting commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Health. “The proposed rules would make the situation worse, making people less healthy, driving up health care costs and medical debt, and pushing patients off of health insurance.”
In a separate statement, Gov. Mikie Sherrill criticized the proposal and broader changes to federal health programs.
“Instead of lowering health insurance costs and widening access to high-quality health care, the Trump Administration’s big idea is to expand access to skimpy plans that cost more—shockingly more—and give you less for your money,” Sherrill said.
The states’ letter also raises concerns about provisions related to enrollment periods, standardized health plans, and new marketplace models involving private web brokers.
Attorneys general from Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin joined the letter, along with those from New Jersey, California and Massachusetts.
