This overview is excerpted from Manatt on Health, Manatt’s subscription service that provides in-depth insights and analysis focused on the legal, policy and market developments.

On July 1, Oregon launched a Basic Health Program (BHP) that offers comprehensive health care coverage, including medical, dental, and behavioral health care, with zero premiums and zero cost-sharing for eligible individuals with income between 138–200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL).  

The BHP is the state’s primary strategy for preserving the health insurance coverage gains achieved among low-income Oregonians during the federal public health emergency, and the state has been pursuing implementation of a BHP since 2022. Oregon is the third state in the country to establish a BHP—following Minnesota and New York—and the first to offer the BHP with no premiums and no cost-sharing for enrollees. Under a BHP, the state will receive federal funding equivalent to 95 percent of the premium tax credits individuals would have received had they enrolled in the Marketplace. Federal funds received for the BHP are deposited into a Trust Fund and can only be spent on BHP enrollees.