Adoption of the Methodology for the HHS-Operated Permanent Risk Adjustment Program Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for the 2017 Benefit Year

This final rule adopts the risk adjustment methodology that HHS previously established for the 2017 benefit year. In February 2018, a district court vacated the use of statewide average premium as a basis for the HHS-operated risk adjustment methodology for the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 benefit years. Accordingly, HHS is issuing this final rule to allow charges to be collected and payments to be made for the 2017 benefit year. We hereby adopt the final rules set out in the publication in the Federal Register on March 23, 2012 and the publication in the Federal Register on March 8, 2016.