Connecticut- Without Federal Law, Some Pieces of Health Reform Could Continue in Connecticut

Connecticut officials are working to create a new health insurance market that will open next year, hire a CEO to run it and prepare for an influx of new Medicaid recipients by 2014.

In effect, they're racing to implement a law that might not exist for long, at least in its current form.

But those involved in putting federal health reform into action say that Connecticut isn't likely to stop moving forward on a major piece of the act, regardless of how the law fares before the U.S. Supreme Court or under a new Congress after this fall's elections.

"I think if there were to be some major change, such as the [act] was rendered unconstitutional and therefore removed, that we would be far enough along down the line that we would have a lot of what we need in place," said Jeannette DeJesús, special adviser to the governor for health reform.

In particular, the creation of a marketplace for buying insurance coverage, known as a health insurance exchange, could happen even if the federal law is altered substantially, those planning the state's exchange say. Connecticut has already received more than $7 million in federal funds to develop the exchange, and is expected to have applied for most or all necessary federal start-up money by June, when the Supreme Court ruling is expected.


http://www.ctmirror.org/story/15733/without-federal-law-some-pieces-health-reform-could-continue-connecticut
Hat Tip: Connecticut Mirror

National- Many States Take a Wait-and-See Approach on New Insurance Exchanges

States are lagging in the creation of health insurance exchanges, the supermarkets where millions of consumers are supposed to buy subsidized private coverage under President Obama’s health care overhaul.

Many states are waiting for a Supreme Court decision or even the November election results, to see whether central elements of the new law might be overturned or repealed. But that will be too late to start work. By Jan. 1, 2013, the Obama administration will decide whether each state is ready to run its own exchange or whether the federal government should do the job instead.

Republican governors and state legislators across the country are split. Some want to set up rudimentary exchanges with limited features — as a defensive tactical maneuver — rather than cede control to Washington. More-conservative Republicans do not want to do anything at all.

After a great deal of bickering and bargaining, the insurance exchanges emerged as a centerpiece of the 2010 health care law, crucial to achieving Mr. Obama’s promise of affordable coverage for all Americans.

The issue was a major topic of discussion over the weekend at the winter meeting of the National Governors Association here, and it is expected to come up Monday when governors meet with Mr. Obama at the White House.


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/27/health/policy/a-wait-and-see-approach-for-states-on-insurance-exchanges.html?_r=1
Hat tip: The New York Times

Connecticut- Health Foundation Raises Red Flags on CT Health Exchange

The Universal Health Care Foundation on Tuesday raised fresh concerns about Connecticut's health insurance exchange including strongly cautioning the state against adopting the exchange currently run by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association.

The Foundation, which has been a strong advocate for a state-run health plan, also raised objections to the Health Insurance Exchange Board's lack of small business and consumer representatives and is looking for new seats to be added to the board.

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Additionally, the UHCF also raised concerns about the recommendation by national benefits consulting firm Mercer, which was hired by the state to analyze the insurance market, that the Connecticut Business & Industry Association run the SHOP exchange for small businesses.
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The Mercer recommendation, which was first reported by the Hartford Business Journal, urged the state to consider leveraging CBIA's experience with its Health Connection's exchange by utilizing it as a statewide vehicle.

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Foundation officials say there would be too many potential conflicts of interest if CBIA ran the exchange.

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The Foundation also raised concerns about CBIA's lobbying role, saying the business organization represents the state's private sector health care industry and has consistently opposed non-profit or public alternatives being added to the market.


http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/news22668.html
Hat tip: Hartford Business Journal

Connecticut- Don’t reinvent insurance exchange

As policymakers debate how to form Connecticut’s health insurance exchange ahead of a 2014 deadline, they may not need to look far for an answer.

Mercer, a national benefits consulting firm hired by the state to analyze the insurance market, is suggesting that Connecticut could adopt the exchange run by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association rather than create a whole new state-run entity, warning that two similar but separate exchanges may not be able to co-exist.

In its analysis, Mercer, which had been asked by policymakers to help establish policy direction and implementation strategy, also warns that very few small employers, particularly those that don’t receive government subsidies, will likely join an exchange run by the state because it won’t offer products that aren’t already available in the marketplace or that can provide a pricing advantage.

“The creation of a SHOP Exchange in Connecticut is complicated by the presence of an existing private exchange,” Mercer said in a recently published 400-page report. “Duplicating what the CBIA has done would be difficult, expensive, and disruptive.”

http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/news22609.html

Hat tip: Hartford Business Journal

Opinion- Connecticut: The Cost of Excluding Consumers

The creation of health insurance Exchanges – marketplaces where consumers will be able to shop for and buy health insurance – is a cornerstone of the health reform law. But when the members of the Health Insurance Exchange Board were announced, consumer advocates expressed dismay for two reasons: first, no consumer advocates were appointed, so slots that, by law, were supposed to go, for example, to someone with experience in dealing with barriers to individual coverage, instead went to people who have no such experience; and second, some of the appointees to the Board have very strong ties to the insurance industry, which certainly has a strong self-interest in many of the decisions the Exchange Board is going to have to make.


http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/op-ed_the_cost_of_excluding_consumers
Hat tip: Connecticut News Junkie

Connecticut- Lawmakers Face Tough Policy Decisions On Basic Health Plan

Over the next few months the legislature will have to tackle some tough policy questions about whether to create a State Basic Health Plan for about 74,000 low income adults, who make too much money to qualify for Medicaid.

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Some of those unknowns still remain because the plan would largely be based on the “Essential Health Benefits Package,” which the Insurance Exchange Board has yet to develop.

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He said the Exchange Board first has to set the “Essential Health Benefits Package“ before the department is able to decide whether there would be enough subsidies to support such a plan.

“In that light, while it’s premature for us to have a position for or against the BHP, the administration is certainly considering it in the context of the Exchange and other health reform efforts,” Dearborn said.

But some advocates are sold on the idea of a State Basic Health Plan and Tercyak is one of them.

He said with the exchange still being largely private insurance many of the people who would be in this plan instead of that plan will protect private insurance companies from seeing their costs increase.

“The basic health plan helps protect the insurance companies,” Tercyak said. “So that there plans in the exchange can be reasonably priced.”

http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/lawmakers_face_tough_policy_decisions_on_basic_health_plan
Hat tip: Connecticut News Junkie