Legal challenges are likely to a rule released Tuesday that will make it easier for families whose members have employer-sponsored health plans to get Obamacare subsidies.

There “absolutely” will be litigation challenging the rule, said Brian Blase, president of the Paragon Health Institute and former health-care adviser in President Donald Trump‘s National Economic Council. “This is the White House wanting to expand Obamacare, and getting the IRS to change its enforcement of the tax code because of White House political pressure.”

Blase said the final rule is illegal because the statute defines an affordable plan as a self-only plan, not one that includes family members.

The final rule (RIN 1545-BQ16) from the Internal Revenue Service is meant to close the “family glitch,” which prevents family members from receiving Affordable Care Act subsidies if a household member has access to employer-sponsored coverage that meets the law’s requirements for affordability and coverage. The law requires that employer-sponsored plans be affordable only for employees, not for family members, although family coverage may be unaffordable for the entire household.

The rule defines affordability for family members based on the employee’s share of the cost of covering the employee and family members, “not the cost of covering only the employee,” it said.

The rule will “not have a direct...

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