Effective Date: January 1, 2027

What’s Happening?

Due to changes in federal law, in 2027, certain noncitizens will no longer qualify for Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC) or ConnectorCare.

Currently, to qualify to purchase a health or dental plan through the Health Connector and to qualify for APTC or ConnectorCare, a noncitizen needs to be lawfully present.

Starting January 1, 2027, if you are lawfully present, you will still qualify to purchase a health or dental plan. However, to be eligible for help paying for health coverage (like APTC or ConnectorCare), a noncitizen must qualify as one of the following:

• Lawful permanent resident (LPR), also known as a green card holder
• Cuban and Haitian Entrant (CHE)*
• Compact of Free Association (COFA) migrant, including people from Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau living in the U.S. under a special agreement

*The term “Cuban-Haitian Entrant” (CHE) relates to a benefit eligibility category rather than an immigration status. People who meet the definition of a CHE may be eligible for certain public benefits, including help paying for coverage through the Health Connector.

If a person is lawfully present, but does not have one of the three eligible statuses above, they will no longer qualify for APTC or ConnectorCare in 2027. Some examples of statuses that will no longer qualify for help paying for coverage include:

• Asylees (granted asylum)
• Refugees
• Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
• People with valid non-immigrant status, including visitor visas (B visa), student visas (F visa), crime victim visas (U visa), specialty worker visas (H visa), religious worker visas (R visa), and other non-immigrant visas

Similar changes to noncitizen eligibility are impacting MassHealth coverage. Get more information on federal changes impacting MassHealth

What This Means for Members and People Applying for the First Time

Due to these federal law changes, the Health Connector estimates that about 35,000 current enrollees may no longer qualify for help paying for coverage.

If you are lawfully present, you will still qualify to purchase a health or dental plan.

However, to qualify for help paying for your coverage, including receiving federal APTC and ConnectorCare, you must have one of the following statuses or benefit categories:

• Lawful permanent resident (LPR), also known as a green card holder
• Cuban and Haitian Entrant (CHE)
• Compact of Free Association (COFA) migrant, including people from Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau living in the U.S. under a special agreement

The Health Connector is updating supporting resources to reflect these changes related to immigration status for 2027 coverage.

Take Action

• Check your mail and email for information from the Health Connector about your 2027 coverage. You should receive your preliminary eligibility for 2027 coverage based on these new rules in August or September.
• Figure out if you think you may qualify as a lawful permanent resident (LPR), a Cuban Haitian Entrant (CHE), or a Compact of Free Association (COFA) migrant. If you do have one of these statuses or benefit categories, gather relevant documents.

Note: Some people don’t know that they qualify as a Cuban and Haitian Entrant. If you are a Cuban Haitian Entrant, you should select that status in the application to make sure you are considered for the benefits you are eligible for.

“Cuban Haitian Entrant” or CHE is a public benefits eligibility category, not an immigration status. To be a CHE, you need to be:

• a Haitian or Cuban national (for example: a citizen of Haiti or Cuba), or a child born to at least one Haitian parent, whether in Haiti or elsewhere in the world, and either have
  • a pending asylum application;
  • have been paroled into the United States at any time in the past, even if the parole status has expired;
  • be in removal proceedings currently;
  • or be a lawful permanent resident (green card holder) who obtained this status under one of the following laws: The Cuban Adjustment Act (CAA); The Nicaragua Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA); or The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA).

Effective Date: January 1, 2027

What’s Happening?

Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTCs) lower monthly premiums throughout the year if you qualify for this financial help. When you apply for health insurance coverage, the Health Connector estimates a maximum tax credit based on the income you and your household expect to have during that plan year. Your final APTC amount is determined when you file your federal taxes, based on your actual modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) for the plan year.

Before tax year 2026, there was a limit on how much excess APTC some people had to pay back at tax time. Starting with tax year 2026, federal law removes that repayment limit.

• If you get more APTC during the year than you qualify for, you may have to pay back more when you file your taxes. This can happen if your income ends up being higher than you expected. There was a limit on how much of that excess APTC you may have to pay back at tax time.
• If you use APTC during plan year 2026, you may owe more when you file your 2026 taxes.
• You can choose how much of your tax credit to use now (in advance) and how much to claim when you file your taxes.

2025 vs 2026 APTC Repayment Caps

What This Means for Members and People Applying for the First Time

You should update your household income any time it changes. Because of this change, it is more important than ever to understand how to adjust the APTC you take each month. This is especially important if you:

• Expect your income to increase during the year,
• Have income that changes during the year, or
• Have income close to 400 percent FPL.

To reduce the amount you may have to pay back at tax time, you may want to take less APTC each month. This means your monthly premium may be higher now, but you may owe less when you file your 2026 taxes.

Take Action

There are two steps you can take now.

• Check your application to make sure your income is up to date.
• If you expect your yearly income to increase, consider taking less APTC each month.

To do this, sign in to your online account and select Plans to view your current enrollment. Then, select Change Amount of Tax Credit you take now to use less APTC.

The Maximum Tax Credit is the default APTC amount applied to the monthly premium based on your household’s yearly income used in the eligibility determination

You can use less than the maximum tax credit each month by clicking on the Change button

This will update your “Selected Tax Credit” amount.

If you lower the amount of APTC you use, you will pay a higher premium each month for your health insurance. But this may help you at tax time. Here is how it works:

• If you use less APTC than you qualify for during the year, you may get the rest of your premium tax credits when you file your taxes.
• If you use more APTC than you qualify for during the year, you may need to pay some of it back when you file your taxes.

Effective Date: Open Enrollment 2027

What’s Happening?

• Tufts Health Plan will no longer offer health insurance plans to people who live in Berkshire County.
• Fallon Health will no longer be offered to people living in these Massachusetts counties: Berkshire, Bristol, Norfolk, Plymouth, and Suffolk counties, as well as parts of Hampden, Middlesex, and Worcester counties.

What This Means for Current Members

Are you or someone in your home signed up for one of these plans right now? If so, you will not be able to keep the same health plan in 2027.

You should get a notice letting you know about the change in health insurance plans available to you and what to do next.

Anyone in your household who is enrolled in one of these plans now will be automatically enrolled in the lowest-cost plan within the same level that is offered in your area.

If you want a different plan, you can shop for a new 2027 plan during Health Connector’s Open Enrollment period, which runs from October 23, 2026 through January 23, 2027.

Many Health Connector plans have similar benefits. This makes them easy to compare. You may find a plan that costs less but still covers the benefits you need and the doctors you want.

When you shop for a health plan, it’s important to compare:

• Monthly premium costs
• Out-of-pocket costs like co-pays for doctor’s visits or prescriptions
• Doctors and hospitals covered by the plan

Use our Shopping Guides to help shop for plans→

What This Means for People Applying for the First Time

Are you signing up for Health Connector coverage for the first time? If you live in one of the impacted areas of the state, Fallon Health and Tufts Health Plan will not be available when you shop for 2027. You will have a number of other plan options to choose from.

Take Action

If you are currently enrolled in one of these plans and you do not act between October 23, 2026, and January 23, 2027, you will be automatically enrolled in the plan chosen for you.

• You can check for plans that have your doctors and hospitals online with our PlanFinder tool.
• Update your application. This helps you get the right coverage. Learn how to update your application.
• During Open Enrollment, shop for a plan that fits your needs. Do this after you compare plans and update your application.
• Act early. Want coverage that starts January 1? Shop, pick a health and dental plan, and pay your premium by December 23. Want coverage that starts February 1, 2027? Sign up by January 23, 2027.

Need more help? The Health Connector also offers webinars on how to compare plans and check if a doctor or medicine is covered. Check for upcoming webinars, or find past sessions through the Health Connector’s video library.

Effective Date: Open Enrollment 2027

What’s Happening?

• Harvard Pilgrim Health Care (HPHC) will no longer offer its HMO 3500 – Flex Bronze plan. Current enrollees will be mapped to the HPHC Standard High Bronze 2 plan unless an alternative plan is selected.

What This Means for Current Members

Are you or someone in your home signed up for one of these plans right

If you or someone in your home is enrolled in the HPHC HMO – 3500 – Flex Bronze plan, you will not be able to keep the same health plan in 2027.

Letters will be sent to members currently enrolled in the HPHC HMO – 3500 – Flex Bronze plan with information about the change in available health insurance plans and what to do next.

Anyone in your household who is enrolled in this plan now will be automatically enrolled in the HPHC High Bronze 2 plan unless a different plan is selected.

If you want to select a different plan, you can shop for a new 2027 plan during Health Connector’s Open Enrollment period, which runs from October 23, 2026 through January 23, 2027.

Many Health Connector plans have similar benefits. This makes them easy to compare. You may find a plan that costs less but still covers the benefits you need and the doctors you want.

When you shop for a health plan, it’s important to compare:

• Monthly premium costs
• Out-of-pocket costs like co-pays for doctor’s visits or prescriptions
• Doctors and hospitals covered by the plan

Use our Shopping Guides to help shop for plans→

We are here to help

The Health Connector wants members and people applying for the first time to have the support they need to get covered and find the right plan. By planning ahead and acting early, you can be ready when Open Enrollment begins and won’t miss your chance to enroll in 2027 coverage this fall.

Find a local Enrollment Assister near you→

• Make sure your contact information, including your mailing address, email, and phone number, is up to date.
• Carefully review all mail, email, text alerts, and calls from the Health Connector.
• Check this page for important updates.

The Health Connector is committed to helping you navigate these changes. Stay connected and informed to make the best decisions for your health coverage.