TheTrump administration has promoted short-term health plans asless-expensive alternatives to ACA coverage, though the plans donot have to provide the same level of benefits. (Image:Shutterstock)

House Democrats sent letters to 12 insurance companies seekinginformation about health coverage they sell that critics refer toas “junk plans.”

President Donald Trump's administration last year expanded the availability of short-term,limited-duration health plans. Companies that received lettersWednesday from House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman FrankPallone of New Jersey and other committee leaders include AnthemInc., UnitedHealth Group Inc., Health Insurance Innovations Inc.and closely held Cambia Health Solutions.

Health Insurance Innovations, an insurance brokerage that toutsa cloud-based technology platform, saw its shares plunge 17percent, giving it a market value of roughly $458 million. Anthemand UnitedHealth, who rank among the largest health insurers in theU.S., were each higher by more than 2 percent in afternoontrading.

Related: Consumers' online searches for ACA plans led moreoften to short-term plans

“Many consumers are being misled to believe that these planscomply with the patient protections of the Affordable Care Act,”Pallone said at a conference of health-insurance plans onWednesday.

Representatives of the companies couldn't immediately be reachedfor comment.

The lawmakers want to know how companies market the short-termplans, what percentage of applicants are denied coverage, and whatbrokers who sell the insurance are paid. They also asked for planapplications and underwriting documents.

The Trump administration has promoted short-term health plans asless-expensive alternatives to coverage purchased through theAffordable Care Act, though the plans do not have to provide thesame level of benefits as those that comply with the 2010 healthlaw. ACA proponents fear short-term plans will pull healthierpeople out of the law's markets, leaving a higher proportion ofsick people in those markets and leading to higher premiums.

An Urban Institute study earlier this year foundthat brokers received higher commissions when selling short-termplans than ACA-compliant plans.

“Obamacare is only for sick people,” one broker told thereport's authors.

Brokers selling these plans often decline to provide writteninformation when asked by potential consumers to do so, the reportfound.

Read more: 

• Affordability of short-term health plans a draw forolder enrollees
• Two bills propose better short-term healthdisclosure standards
• What are consumers really getting in short-termhealth plans?

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