As previously mentioned, many states are working towards health insurance exchanges in response to health care reform. Colorado specifically has a plan in place to incorporate an effective exchange. The state started their exchange process back in 2006 with the appointment of a Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform.
By 2008, they had recommended a ‘connector’ similar to an Exchange. Once the federal government passed health care reform, Colorado started working with the state legislatures to host public meetings about the Exchange. In June 2011, the State legislature passed a bipartisan bill to establish the independent Colorado Health Insurance Exchange.
A 12-member Exchange Board was set up and an executive director was put in place by July of 2011. $18 million in grant support was approved in December and they are well on their way to creating the Exchange the federal government has in mind.
Written by Sam Tabes
Each state has their own structure for providing health insurance to children. There are many updates throughout the nation for 2012, and it’s important you know how you may be affected if your child needs health insurance protection. ”Child-only” plans are individual policies which are offered to children 18 and under with no guardian listed on the same policy.
Many health insurers have stopped offering these types of plans, partially due to the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Car Act which prevents the insurers from declining applications due to pre-existing conditions. Insurers are worried parents will wait until a child gets sick before they start applying for health insurance coverage. This could be disastrous financially for many insurers.
With this said, some states and health insurers have designated open enrollment periods for child-only plans as a possible solution according to the press release from eHealthInsurance found on Yahoo Finance. These specific enrollment periods give parents and guardians a window of opportunity to enroll their child in their own individual health insurance plans and they will not be turned down due to pre-existing conditions. Yahoo Finance offers a state by state summary which represents a brief overview of current rules and regulations by state.
As an example, Arkansas has availability of child-only plans and enrollment periods vary from insurer to insurer. This differs from Maine where child-only health insurance policies are available throughout the entire year. Some states, such as Iowa, have specific enrollment periods. Iowa residents can enroll their children from July 1 through August 14, 2012. Utah is an example of a state that requires a certificate of insurability which can be obtained by applying and being declined for the state’s high-risk pool. As you can see, each state has a slightly different system in place, so be sure to look up how your state is handling child-only health insurance plans.
Written by Sam Tabes
Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/smartshopper78
