Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (MI-05) reintroduced H.R. 2528, the Association Health Plans Act, legislation that will expand health care choices for small businesses and self-employed individuals through association health plans (AHPs).

Association Health Plans (AHPs) let small businesses and self-employed individuals in the same industry or region band together through a trade group or association to offer a single, large group health plan, giving them more bargaining power to get lower costs and better benefits, similar to large employers, by pooling their members into a larger risk pool. These plans must be sponsored by a "bona fide" association with other purposes besides insurance, and rules have expanded to allow for geographic commonality and self-funding options, making them more accessible. 

“Since small businesses have fewer employees, they often have weaker bargaining power when it comes to negotiating lower insurance costs and higher coverage for their workers," said Chairman Walberg. "For years, working families have struggled with rising costs, including health care. The Association Health Plans Act provides innovative health care solutions to bring down health care costs for small businesses and in turn, their employees."

Background: In 2018, the Trump administration published a final rule to expand AHPs by enabling a broader group of small businesses, including self-employed individuals, to be eligible to form an AHP. At the time of the implementation of the rule, the Congressional Budget Office predicted that 400,000 people who would have been uninsured would enroll in AHPs, and 3.3 million people would enroll in AHPs who would have had other coverage (many coming from the individual marketplace), resulting in 3.7 million additional people enrolling in AHPs. The Biden-Harris administration rescinded the rule. H.R. 2528, the Association Health Plans Act codifies this 2018 rule into law.