The Easy Enrollment in Health Care Act streamlines health insurance enrollment by allowing taxpayers to use their federal income tax returns to check eligibility for subsidies and automatically enroll in zero-premium plans if qualified.
Ami Bera
Representative
CA-6
The Easy Enrollment in Health Care Act aims to streamline health insurance enrollment by allowing taxpayers to use their federal income tax returns, starting in 2027, to check eligibility for subsidized coverage like Medicaid or Marketplace plans. If eligible for a zero-premium plan, individuals can be automatically enrolled unless they opt out during a special enrollment period. The bill also modernizes eligibility verification by requiring greater use of existing government data sources, such as SNAP findings and new hire information, to reduce applicant burden. Finally, it establishes funding and an advisory committee to oversee the development and implementation of these new data-sharing and enrollment systems.
New Easy Enrollment Act to Offer Zero-Premium Health Coverage Via 2027 Tax Returns
The Easy Enrollment in Health Care Act is setting up a major new system to get uninsured people into health coverage starting with the 2027 tax filing season (for the 2026 tax year). Essentially, if you or someone in your household doesn't have minimum essential coverage, you can consent on your federal tax return to have the IRS share your income data with the Health Insurance Marketplace (Exchange). If that data shows you qualify for a health plan that has a zero net premium—meaning it costs you nothing out of pocket after subsidies—you can be automatically enrolled. This is a huge shift, aiming to catch the millions of people who qualify for free coverage but never sign up because the application process is too complicated or they simply don't know they are eligible (Sec. 3).
The Zero-Cost Catch: Enrollment by Default
For busy people, the idea of getting free health insurance just by checking a box on your tax form sounds like a dream. But there’s a critical detail: if you consent and are found eligible for a zero-net-premium plan, the Exchange will pick the best option for you—the one with the highest actuarial value—and enroll you automatically. You cannot opt out of that specific zero-premium plan or choose a different one during this enrollment period unless you actively use the special enrollment period triggered by the consent. If you are defaulted into a plan, you get a 30-day window to reconsider, during which you can disenroll completely or, if the plan is deemed "high cost-sharing," switch to a lower-cost option from the same insurer (Sec. 4(c)(5)). For the average person, this means you need to pay attention to that notice: if you don’t act within 30 days, you’re locked into the plan the government picked for you, even if you preferred a different zero-premium option or had other plans in mind.
Data Sharing Gets Serious: IRS Meets HHS
Making this system work requires massive data sharing, and this bill authorizes it. When you consent, your "relevant return information"—which the Treasury and HHS Secretaries get to define—is securely transferred from the IRS to the Exchange. This is a one-time consent that also authorizes data sharing for future automatic renewal checks (Sec. 3). Furthermore, the bill dramatically expands the data available for eligibility checks across all health affordability programs (Medicaid, CHIP, Marketplace). Exchanges can now access the National Directory of New Hires—the federal database containing identity, employer, and wage information—to verify income and check if you have an offer of employer coverage (Sec. 6). While this streamlines eligibility and reduces paperwork, it represents a significant increase in the amount of personal financial and employment data the government can use to determine your health coverage status.
Streamlining Eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP
For families already struggling, the bill aims to reduce the bureaucratic hurdles between different benefit programs. States are now required to accept an eligibility finding from the agency that handles SNAP (food stamps) or TANF (cash assistance) for certain applicants, especially children under 19. If you’ve been approved for SNAP, the state must use that same finding to confirm you meet the financial, residency, and citizenship requirements for Medicaid or CHIP (Sec. 5(a)). This means a single eligibility determination for food assistance can now open the door to health coverage, removing the need to submit the same paperwork repeatedly. Additionally, to help with continuity of coverage, if your eligibility check falls early in the year (January through April), states must check if your income from the previous calendar year qualifies you for coverage, though they must use current income if it results in better benefits for you (Sec. 5(b)).
The Fine Print for Tax Preparers and States
If you use a tax preparer, you’ll need to be extra careful with the supplemental enrollment form required by this Act. The bill explicitly states that tax preparers are not responsible for checking the accuracy of the enrollment information you provide on that form (Sec. 3). The liability for any errors that could affect your coverage eligibility falls squarely on the taxpayer. Separately, the bill gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services significant power over state Medicaid and CHIP procedures. If a state doesn't select one of the three offered verification rule sets presented by the HHS Secretary within the deadline, the Secretary will simply choose one for them (Sec. 4(b)). This ensures procedural consistency across the country but limits state flexibility if they fail to act quickly.