On April 10, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit issued a much-anticipated ruling connected to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that affirms the broad authority of states to license and regulate health insurance exchange navigators, certified application counselors and other assisters. The ruling overturned a lower court order and was a victory for proponents of state insurance regulation. 

   St. Louis Effort for AIDS v. Huff arose when a number of self-described consumer organizations challenged a Missouri law that created a state-level regulatory framework for insurance navigators and exchange-related assisters. Missouri and many other states (including Nebraska) enacted similar navigator and assister-specific statutes following the passage of the ACA to fill the regulatory void that might otherwise exist and to make clear that these entities are subject to the jurisdiction of state officials.        The plaintiffs argued that the ACA largely preempted the Missouri law. 

In January 2014, the federal district court that first considered the lawsuit issued a preliminary injunction that prevented the state from implementing the law. The judge suggested that jurisdictions with federal exchanges have no authority to license or oversee navigators and similar assisters and went so far as to say that "any attempt by Missouri to regulate the conduct of those working on behalf of the [federal health insurance exchange] is preempted." Some consumer groups and others argued the order threatened the existence of similar statutes in other states, and the independent agent community and other supporters of state insurance regulation welcomed the state's decision to appeal the troubling decision.