Following the release of a Request for Information in August, CMS issued an interim final rule on December 12 requiring dialysis facilities that offer premium assistance for individual market health plans, whether directly or through a third party, to educate patients on their coverage options and to ensure that issuers are informed of and agree to accept third-party payments. CMS still is “considering whether it would be appropriate to prohibit third party premium payments for individual market coverage completely for people with alternative public coverage.”